JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

[CM325]

Hey guys,

I just got a call from a buddy who is wanting to me to either freshen up his existing one or (prefered) swap a newer F.I. motor. His wife is wanting to start driving it so he would like to improve the milage as well as dependability.

My question i guess would be where is a good source of info for me to dig through to decide whats best for this application both for me and cost effectiveness. The last jeep i did was just a basic rebuild of the old AMC v8. If it were just a rebuild it wouldn't be that big a deal, but i'm no mopar guy or an off road man, so I don't know where the best place to look is.

THE VICTOM: 89" Wrangler (poss.)4.2l I believe it's a siera (sp?) or the equivalent version for the time.
5 speed (pegout?) tranny and AMC transfer.
I guess i would need to know what engine is compatible and what ecu and harness i would need?

I know some of you guys out there including DF know a little or a lot about this so any help would be greatly appreciated, plus the profit would go to my builds (sorry but probably the BM) so lets keep the world turning (or wrenches) either way.

Thanks guys,
Chris

[nickleone]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

Go to this forum;

http://theamcforum.com/forum

sign up and start reading.

Nick

[CTX-SLPR]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

AMC 4.2 and 4.0 are somewhat cross compatable. Ma Mo'Par makes a conversion kit for it even listed in summit. Get an Aisin AX-15 to replace the Puke-got. The Mo'Par based HO EFI systems are pretty good, skip the Renix.

[DanStokes]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

I can double up on the Renix (Renault and Bendix). Those darn things lose all memory when you shut off the key, and have to relearn from step 1 ("Let's see - OK, that's #1, now I think I should squirt some fuel....."). When one of these starts up, you'll hear it crank for what seems like forever as it's little mind SLOWLY comes back. And they tend to be fussy and overly fragile.

Dan

[CM325]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

Thanks guys, I don't know exactly what he wants to do, as said i think his wife is gonna be driving it to work and stuff. I don't know how much off road use it'll get.
Unfortunately I'm one of those that doesn't learn what i can't use. So... I'm really familiar with Chevy and BMW. ford and mo par reserve very little of my kn owlage. That said they are all air pumps so it can't be that difficult.

Talking to him a bit yesterday I've learned what it's doing.
Apparently it's getting oil in the intake man. Since I'm not rel familiar with these i assume it could be bad valve guides.without having it in front of me tho it's all a guess. Oil up bad from what he says. Is this a common problem with the 4.2?
Any help is greatly appreciated. I should probably focus more on reapiring what he has, I don't think he wants to spend the money that a good conversion will require.

Thanks

[DanStokes]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

The last 4.2 I messed with was in a buddy's Cherokee. It was tired and had lots of oil in the intake, air cleaner (from the PCV) and leaking out the seals due to bad ring seal causing crankcase pressure. We cheated and bought a rebuilt long block from a Michigan rebuilder (can't remember the name but it's on Jefferson in Detroit in the original Ford dealership). It's kind of a pain to swap engines in the Cherokee, but it came out GREAT! Ran super, good power for what it was, and dead reliable - he's still driving it as of the last time we spoke. Might be a way to handle it if you determine the engine is just tired.

Dan

[CM325]

Re: JEEP Fuely conversion. Where to look?

Thanks dan,

Yeah, I have to admit I haven't really looked at it in a LONG time. His son used to drive it to school and around the farm,but it's been parked for a couple of years. I threw Bad rings out there, but he sort of dismissed it but it sounds like there can only be a few culprits causing this. I came on here initially cause i wanted to familarize myself with the engine a bit.
If it is tired, I assume i could fire her up get to temp,check the cyl. pres,as well as the pcv for oil. I'll look into it a bit more hopefully this weekend. Not real excited about doing it but hey, its cash, and it can't be too much diffrent than a CJ.

Do any of you guys know the cylinder pressure #'s for the 4.2?

thanks
Chris