I remember once a kid parted out a old FWD car (Citation?) and he left the front axle shafts out and towed car to boneyard. Front wheel bearings fell apart. Apparently the outer CV joint and nut holds together the bearing. Not sure if that's how your Jeep is put together, but may not work just leaving out axles??
The Jeep has a U joint between the inner and outer shafts of the front axles. I would remove the ujoint and inner shaft, and leave the outer shaft bolted to the hub, to hold the bearing together. Yes, you're right about needing to pay attention to how the hub works!
So, now that the vehicle has been procured...what's the game plan? You have a 6.0...what else? What EFI setup? What turbo? What Trans? I can't wait to see the progress...
I have an LQ4, a TH400, and a jeep. That's all. The shipping list is long. Planning on a terminator x for wiring and fuel management, single 75ish turbo, intercooler. And all the other stuff that would go with it.
Pretty hard to find a bigger, lighter box! I'd guess that a bit of aerodynamics will come into play at 10.0. Gotta make it look like a 'found' bolt on.
Nice. FYI, Sloppy Mechanics has a harness to make the Holley work with the stock truck alternator, also an optional "combo" Flex Fuel Sensor & Alternator harness can be added to that if you planned to use e85 fuel. VS Racing for the turbo & turbo stuff. A single 78/75 with a 1.25 A/R would be good on a 6.0. Also, I've heard good things about the Jegs XHD Billet converters behind turbo LS's, I ended up buying one for my 4L80E.
Just looked on Car-Part.com and it looks like a 2WD front axle is available and pretty cheap. There’s a wrecking yard in Tucson that has one for $35.00 and who knows, they might buy all your 4WD stuff from you!
I haven't figured out the alternator yet, I don't have any brackets or alternator to use, but I was considering making my own setup to mount a 12SI and the original Jeep steering pump. I don't plan on E85, I like to be able to buy fuel anywhere...I know there's a big performance increase with it, but that comes along with adding pump capacity, and some other things. I've heard good things about VS turbos and the XHD converters, also, they're in my plans. No chop, that's way too much work! this is about doing and spending as little as possible.
The 'flex fuel' apparatus will adjust the computer brain to allow you run any blend from E10 up to E85, I believe?
Yeah, but you have to have a fuel system that will deliver enough fuel. I just don't want to mess with it. I think I can get enough performance with 91 or 93 gasoline.
The other issue is something anyone who's run alky is aware of, having the entire system built to handle the corrosive and water absorbing effects of the stuff. We would have to drain and lube it after a weekend. With modern stuff, you probably don't even need water or meth injection, but at least that way you aren't relying on the main system staying clean and solid during driving.
You probably already found this... https://naxja.org/threads/how-to-lower-an-xj-and-go-road-racing.1059549/ EDIT: And a GOOD one too bad pics are gone. https://naxja.org/threads/turbo-jeep-cherokee-xj-r-build.1094822/
Pump gas 87 to e85, yeah. Uses an OEM GM content sensor plumbed into the fuel feed or return line. There's hardly any stations around me with e85, so i'll likely only buy it in 5-gallon cans whenever I wanna get rowdy, the rest of the time I'll be on a safe & conservative pump gas tune. I also have a Snow Performance water/methanol injection system to keep intake temps down.
Think a little out side of box & on cheap side , inject a little Meth, cheaper then Race Fuel . A solenod , $2 gallon of washer fluid , $20 intank pump , Old fogger Y set up with pressure switch for above 10 psi or so , experiment required Or a $400-600 kit
or make it go quick enough using low enough boost that 91 octane will be fine...is my approach. But that's an excellent back up plan, in case it doesn't work out!
If you ever do decide to run E85, remember that in tests there is no gain from about E45 to E85. You can actually mix higher octane gas with it to cut it down to E45 and get more out of it.
yeah, I know the guys who run E85 on drag week are pretty careful about measuring content, and sharing info along the route
I see by the accessories list that it has the cigar lighter option as opposed to the cigarette lighter option. This could be a big selling point at Barrett Jackson some day.
Looks like a great project Jim. The 2 door Cherokee you found looks pretty good shape. As you probably know the LQ4 is a little lower compression factory than the LQ9, so it's a good choice for pump gas turbo setup. Can't go wrong with T400 and I know you have plenty of experience with them.
Thanks. It's a bit different than my usual swaps into really old cars. Lots for me to learn! This is the fun part, figuring out where everything can fit. I'm getting a manual steering gear, to see if I can cut down the crossmember at the very front of the chassis, to lower the radiator down in there a few inches. One problem with this chassis is there's little rooom for a radiator. This 4 cyl model came with a small square one that fit behind that crossmember. The straight 6 models came with a wide radiator that fit above it, but the core is less than 12" high. Apparently you can make it work well enough, if you buy a special heavy duty radiator, and run two fans (which was original on them). But I hate electric fans, and also want it to look like crap when it's done, so I plan to figure out how to fit a radiator from the donor truck into this, and perhaps have it stick out a bit (no hood). Mounting the intercooler will be fun. It might go below, or might go in front of the grill? we'll see. I ordered some parts, so now I'm all in. Exhaust manifolds, Camaro motor mounts, and a turbo.
Just a quick, messy paint match to the body and the intercooler can BE the grille! Always hated the design team's overflow bottle, rad/belt/fan access, and the A/C compressor and No.1 cylinder access on the 6s. If it comes down to packaging issues, just extend the fender to nose an inch or two. It doesn't have to be pretty!
I was already thinking about extending the front several inches. That's the back up plan. But I'll keep looking for the easiest way to put it together...usually it takes a long time to figure out the most elegant solution.
But I hate electric fans, and also want it to look like crap when it's done, NEVER thought I would hear that on the HAMB, not the electric fan part but the……Oh I can’t even say it! Dan
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