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after almost 4 years, finally my own build/swap thread

15K views 90 replies 23 participants last post by  afp377 
#1 · (Edited)
picked up my YJ about 4 years ago - a bone stock 95 w/ 2.5L & AX-5


First thing it needed was a set of tires, so I went with 31x10.5 Cooper Discoverer STT... they rubbed a little so I trimmed the flares to the crease and made a set of 1" shackes from 1/2x2" flat stock. all was good for a little while.


about 6 months into ownership, I lost 5th gear. I didn't feel like bothering with it and drove around the last couple years as a 4 speed. with the 31s and 2.5, 5th gear wasn't much use anyway, and I figured 4 gears were good enough for all those older CJs I should be fine.

as time went on I've done some upgrades here and there - some big and functional, others smaller and mainly cosmetic.

It started out black, which I eventually (about a year ago) changed to Rust-Oleum industrial paint "safety yellow" and painted the trim pieces wrinkle black. My windshield took a rock so I replaced it with a polycarbonate one (no more broken windshields for me), I replaced the tail lights with LED versions (same Jeep box style, but made as LED), installed LED front signals, replaced the front seats with buckets from a Neon.

Last summer I installed a 2" BDS kit and just last month installed a Daystar 1" BL. also a little over a month ago I replaced my slightly tweaked steering linkage with a crossover style using heims and 1.75"x.250" DOM

about a year ago I got a great deal on an 88 K5 Blazer that the frame was broken and about 75% of the floor was totally gone.... but the motor (5.7 TBI) and trans (700r4) were in great shape with a little under 80k on the ticker.

I pulled the motor, trans, computer & all wiring and parted out the rest for just a little more than I paid for the whole thing :highfive: then I started collecting parts as I could afford them. replaced most of the external accessories, oil pump, pans, gaskets, ignition components, etc. and got the necessary swap parts.

a few trips to the U-pull got me an 8.8 which I replaced seals and all brake components, got a NP241 and installed a JB SS SYE, a couple CV shafts from a ZJ, etc, etc.

well I've finally got all (I hope) the necessary parts together and ready, have a binder full of printouts on wiring for the YJ and the GM ECU, and took some time off work.... now as my dad would say "time to SH-- or get off the pot" lol

came out to Dad's to begin my swap.. I've set sort of an ambitious timeline as this is my DD and I have 10 days off from work... though I'm remaining optimistic as I've "pre-installed" quite a few things.... radiator, exhaust from the cat to tailpipe, gauges, so those should save me a little time.

pulled it into the garage tonight so it'll be nice and cool and dry (raining here tonight) when I start tearing into it in the morning.

I took a few pics of the "before" engine bay as well as the new powerplant sitting on blocks awaiting install... but for some reason I keep getting "upload of file failed" errors from the forum, and they're well within size limits so maybe a glitch in the forum itself?.... but I'll try again to post pics as soon as the forum lets me...

tried again this morning, still won't let me upload, so in the mean-time, I'm hoping linking to my pics on facebook works...

stock engine bay:


another view:


new engine/trans/TC ready for install:

 
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#54 ·
I actually did think of that....but didn't have the proper equipment with me at the time. all I had was my ipod touch and my dumbphone... phone was ok for pics but doesn't do video.. my ipod doesn't do pics OR vids (gen 3 I think), but my son's does (gen 4) but he (and his ipod) were at Great Escape (local amusement park) with my wife.
Dad's picking me up after work tomorrow and bringing me down for the weekend. I'll bring my actual video camera with me this time... I already have a new timing set (AND a new timing light) so I'll get that changed out and see if it's any better... if not, then I'll take some vids and put it up on youtube or something.

thanks
 
#56 ·
ok good to know.... tbichips was the only ones I knew of to just sell a chip already burned... I've seen all sorts of info for DIY prom burning, buying "blank" chips, sockets, adapters, cables, etc... by the time I was done (plus the learning curve of doing it) I'd be better off buying a chip burned by someone else.
for the hot-rodders, I can see constantly wanting to tweak with it to squeeze every bit of HP they can... but as it is, I'm doubling the HP from what I had, and I know it gets real expensive, especially for the TBIs to try and achieve 350-400+ HP... stock is rated at 210. I'm guessing with the couple small things I did (hotter coil, better exhaust) might have bumped it to 215-220... if I can get a solid reliable 225-250 that would be awesome

I sent TBIchips an email with what I was looking for... basically remove EGR and maybe a small HP goose and the quote I got back didn't seem too bad considering what I've seen more commercial chips & modules sell for.

is it bad product?
is your source another company? or a DIYer who has gotten good at it and does them on the side now?

at any rate, I first need to get it running the way it should before I get involved in tweaking ;)
thanks
 
#57 ·
i have a chevy pickup running a 350hp tbi vortec motor with a healthy cam, bored tbi, larger injectors and headers.. i originally went with tbichips for the same reason as you. well after buying many parts as instructed by him and sending him money to do the tune an him making 5 chips i was left with a truck i couldn't drive, that had metal on the plugs from running to lean and an f'ed up tranny. i am not the only one to have these issius from him.

after further research i found my current tuner who had the truck up and running on the first chip and ran better than it ever did with the chips from tbichips and the trans shifted properly. i am not on the 3rd chip from him and the truck is wicked.

here is a link to contact him. just make a login and send him a pm or make a thread. http://www.gearhead-efi.com/Fuel-Injection/showthread.php?1776-TBI-Chips
 
#58 ·
also i would recomend getting an aldl cable and downloading tunerpro rt for free that way you can plug in to the jeep and see what is going on with it. this could also help you find the issue. eagle can help you with both of those things.

this is what i see when i plug in my truck to my laptop.

 
#59 ·
well fixing one thing seems to bring another issue to light LOL
been a while since I've updated... too frustrated I guess but I'll try to bring the thread up to current

found what I thought was a little bit of play from when I manually turned the crank to when the rotor started turning... Didn't think it was huge, but given the 80k or so, figured I'd replace the timing set. Did that last weekend (also sold my old 2.5)
Got the timing cover off and man that chain was LOOSE... both sides of the chain had enough slop that it would deflect almost 2x the thickness of the chain... I didn't try beyond lifting by hand, but I bet if I used a screwdriver to pry it, I probably could've removed the chain without removing the gears. Got the new chain/gears on without issue and got the front all buttoned back up...

went to start it, had my timing light all ready, seemed to start easier but idled rough and seemed to want to die - but I was able to keep it running by playing with the gas pedal... but as soon as I stepped out to run around to the front to set the timing it died on me... tried to restart, cranked for about 20-30 seconds then heard an awful grinding then a ping ping sound. looked underneath and saw a bolt on the floor - one of the starter bolts broke. pulled the inspection plate from the trans and the teeth on the flexplate were all chewed about 1/2 way or deeper, so I got to order a new flexplate. That put things off for another week.

When I ordered the flexplate, I also ordered a new pinion drive gear for the starter (Proform hi torque), Those came in this past week so back here to Dad's last night after work.
Went out this morning and got to work - had the old flexplate out and new one installed in about an hour and a half - all going good so far.
put the starter on the bench and took it apart to replace the drive pinion - about an hour on that
put the starter back in, checked clearances, all was good

went to start - cranks like a champ now, even better than when I first fired it up... but that's all it's doing - cranking.

I have spark from the coil, spark on all 8, injectors are firing, verified I have all the plugs/wires going to the correct cap posts - everything I can think of is in place where it SHOULD start... my only thought now is that maybe the dizzy is out a couple teeth (or more?) so that's the plan for tomorrow - pull dizzy, turn a tooth, reconnect, try to start, repeat as necessary until (hopefully) the thing starts.

have another wiring gremlin that's really throwing me off... with the lights off and turn the key it cranks as you'd expect it to... but if I have the light switch on (either parking lights or full headlight) it won't crank at all. I must have a wire (or ground) crossed somewhere, but I figure since it cranks with the lights off, I should at least be able to start and drive it with the lights off. Whatever this light issue is, I don't think it is related to the main problem above because I WAS able to start it before, but didn't have any reason to try cranking with the lights on - and I didn't do anything relating to wiring since before the timing chain replacement.

it just keeps getting better LOL
 
#60 ·
another unproductive day.... well, I did a lot of stuff, but none of it amounted to anything.

I de-loomed the harness and traced EVERY wire coming from the ECM. double-checked voltages, tested the coil - primary and secondary resistance exactly where it should. pulled the dist cap and checked the pickup coil. resistance within spec range and voltage while cranking where it's supposed to be. put an LED tester on the ignition module - signal appears to be pulsing fine. put a test wire/spark plug on the cap posts one at a time - spark good there so I'd say cap & rotor check out. all plugs good and all plug wires check out on the meter.

I'm really at a loss at this point - I'm seriously considering putting an order in for intake, carb and HEI dizzy and trash the ECM and all it's annoying sensors
 
#62 ·
oh it won't die... I'll die before this project does... but I've sort of thrown my hands up at the whole computer/TBI thing... so, today browsing through the local craigslist parts ads, found an ad for someone selling a cab & intake along with a bunch of other stuff (but the other stuff I didn't want/need) so I emailed to see if he'd sell just the carb/intake... he said ok $50.

I about fell over... I guess the guy didn't really realize what he had or he was REALLY strapped for cash. said he had a car with a rod knock so he was originally planning on rebuilding the motor, but then changed plans and scrapped the project, selling off whatever he could

so for just $50 total, I got an Edelbrock Performer manifold #2101 (about $170 new at Summit) AND an Edelbrock Performer 600 cfm carb #1405 (about $300 at Summit)

bargain shopping :D

a few other things I need, but compared to the carb & intake, they're small items... adjustable return type fuel pressure regulator (keeping the in-tank pump), an HEI distributor, and possibly throttle & kickdown brackets if I can't make my old ones usable.

yeah, I know - carb no good offroad, EFI better, etc, etc.... my Jeep is about 90% street (my main vehicle) and when I DO get off road, it's mostly logging roads, seasonal (limited maintenance) acces roads, etc to get to fishing spots or trailheads for when I go hiking.
 
#65 ·
a few various chemicals, some ingenuity (home-brew soda blaster) and a little elbow grease (and a shot of paint on the intake) - lookin like new
:2thumbsup:

Automotive tire Motor vehicle Automotive design Automotive exterior Rim


Automotive tire Motor vehicle Alloy wheel Automotive lighting Vehicle brake


Motor vehicle Automotive design Engineering Automotive exterior Gas


Automotive tire Motor vehicle Rim Automotive exterior Wood


wish I could've gotten ALL my parts through Craigslist at such a bargain
 
#67 ·
#69 ·
definitely do it outside, and best if there's a slight breeze... stand with the wind at your back or you'll end up covered in white powder.... goggles are useless, but at least wear a dust mask. doesn't feel too good (and tastes even worse) breathing it in.
 
#72 ·
got all the TBI stuff removed and got the new (to me) intake all torqued down. carb is currently just finger tight because I need to get a different cable bracket (old one bolted right on, but it's too far away and slightly off to the right) and the linkage corrector for the TV cable.
waiting for funds to get the HEI distributor, bypass (return) style fuel regulator and a few smaller incidentals.
Motor vehicle Hood Automotive design Vehicle Yellow


Motor vehicle Electrical wiring Hood Automotive exterior Cable


I'll probably be putting the old TBI stuff up in classifieds and/or craigslist so someone with more patience, time & knowledge can mess with it
 
#73 ·
ok, what should have realistically been a 10-day (or less) swap has become a 2 month process LOL
fingers crossed this will be the weekend I get to drive it home.

this past week I picked up the rest of the parts I need (I think) to finish the conversion to computer-free jeeping.... got my HEI distributor from Summit, the new throttle/TV cable bracket, the throttle arm geometry bracket, bypass/return fuel regulator and a bunch of smaller misc parts.
got to dad's late this afternoon and after dinner spent a couple hours out in the garage getting started on the fuel plumbing. need to make a quick run to the hardware for a couple elbows and barb fittings I forgot, but then I'll be getting ready to fly (I hope)
 
#76 ·
:Dsoprry, been a while. well this past weekend I inally worked out my starter issues and got a 6449 OEM type starter made for a 95 GMC Yukon... it's a gear reduction small starter, but not the race type "mini" starters... that's the kind I had that was giving me so much trouble not engaging the flexplate.

so Saturday late afternoon I picked up the starter and headed back down to Dad's. got my stuff unpacked for the long weekend and headed out to the garage - figured I'd at least get the starter bolted in and just try to crank to make sure it was engaging properly.. well got it bolted in about 15 min, and cranked it over... no crazy grinding or scraping sound, and it sounded like it actually wanted to kick over. So I shot a quick blast of starting fluid at the carb, floored the pedal and cranked. after about 5 sec of cranking it fired up. a little playing with the gas pedal and I was able to get it to idle without sounding like it wanted to die :D I stopped there as I did a bunch of stuff at home before coming down, and I figured I hit a good milestone I'll stop and start early in the morning with the final tuning and wrapping it up.

so the next morning I got out to the garage and grabbed the timing light, disconnected the vac advance and set timing to 12 to start. then I plugged in the vac gauge and set the mix screws on the carb, then I adjusted the idle and then double-checked the mix - then finally gave a fine adjustment to the timing using the vac gauge, then checked what it was... torned out I was pretty close on my initial set... setting timing with the vac gauge got me to just about 14-15 deg. I may bump it another degree or 2 in the next couple weeks after I see how it does at the current setting.

with all the test running over the last 2 months I haven't paid attention to the gas gauge... decided to take it for a drive into town to get gas (dad lives in a fairly rural area) got about 2 miles down the road and it started sputtering then died... yep, I'm a ******* LOL
walked back to dad's and grabbed his gas can (only about 1 1/2-2 gal in it) and he gave me a ride back to the jeep. poured in the gas turned the key on a few secs to let the pump run, then turned over again... turned a little slow but did fire up. made it to the gas station just fine and filled the tank.

drives very nice. very smooth and responsive, and the exhaust has a real nice tone without (IMHO) being obnoxiously loud. I'm guessing it's because of the heavier engine, trans and rear, but I swear the ride itself is smoother and less jarring.

so I get back to dad's and clean up all my garbage and pack up all my tools and other parts so he can have his garage back. we had dinner, packed up my clothes and stuff and hit the road to finally bring it home!! Started a little sluggish but it DID start and idled just a smooth as when I first tuned it.

about half-way home I'm loving the ride, but then approaching a traffic light, took my foot off the gas letting it coast a bit, then all my gauges drop to zero and the engine dies. tried to restart it and not even a click... so I call my wife to come out for a jump start. 20 min later she pulls up and I pop the hoods and hook up the cables. try to start again and NOW I get a click but that's it... so the battery is dead, I suspect I might need a new alternator.

now I'm stuck at the half-way point so I call AAA for a tow home. luckily the weather cleared up so it wasn't too bad hanging out off the shoulder.

where I'm at now - YJ is now in MY driveway with a charger on the battery and after work today I removed the alternator.... taking it to Advance tomorrow for them to test it. the alt and the power steering pump are the same ones that were on the donor vehicle, so it's my fault for not changing it earlier, but alts are quick and easy to replace so I figured I'd wait to see if I NEEDED to - same with the PS pump, but THAT seems to be doing fine with no leaks and steers just as easy as I ever remember.

so tomorrow it's off to Advance to return the old starter for my core charge and have them test my old alt and probably get a new one.
Also getting a can of B-12 Chemtool to clean the top end a bit
 
#77 ·
and after some consideration, I've come up with a name for my build...

Murphy's Law
anything that CAN go wrong, WILL go wrong :rtft::rofl:
 
#79 ·
well my new drivetrain IS considerably heavier than the old one.

all weights approximate as I've found them in google searches:

2.5 - 340 lb
ax5 - 110 lb
231 - 65 lb
---------------
515 lb total for stock 2.5 powertrain


350 - 575 lb (already more than whole stock powertrain LOL)
700r4 - 130lb
241 - 85 lb
-----------------
790 lb total new powertrain.


so that's a weight gain of about 275 lb, which doesn't take into effect the weight difference of the D35 - 8.8
I'd say the springs would definitely have a bit softer feel with the extra weight :thumbsup:
 
#80 ·
well after some wiring issues (and running A LOT MORE GROUNDS) I finally got the thing to fire up reliably. no more having to spray a quick shot of ether in the carb, no more pumping or playing with the pedal.... this thing starts faster than any car I've ever owned :2thumbsup:

but I DO plan on upgrading the wires for power & ground to 1/0 welding cable for increased reliability, durability and to get rid of some of the new 4 & 8 gauge rats nest I've recently created.

this evening I hope to get the shifter cable re-adjusted - I don't think it was tightened fully and came out of adjustment during my attempt to drive it home last week... it would only shift from R-N, wouldn't go into park or any forward gears.... I had to disconnect the cable and get underneath to put the trans in park.

finally wired my elec fan through a dash switch - before it was wired to just come on low whenever the key was on, no off or high - finally got that straightened out.

also corrected the wiring on my new alternator harness... it's a 140 amp CS-144 made for a 95 Chevy Caprice police/taxi option. my headlights are even BRIGHTER now :D

if I can get my new phone figured out (or steal the kids Ipod for a moment) I'll take a video of it starting and running later in the week.

Thanks all for the ideas, assistance and support :highfive:
 
#82 ·
well it was fun while it lasted... like I said - Murphy's Law :rofl:

a little over a week ago I was out driving when I heard this HORRIBLE sound and vibration coming from somewhere in the front
if I came up to a stop sign or red light it started shaking violently like it wanted to die (it DID want to die) so in an effort to get home I'd coast to stops in neutral playing with the gas just to keep it running, then slamming it back into drive, chirping the tires at each takeoff.
eventually the sound and vibrations got worse and playing with the gas wasn't enough to keep it running... and it DIED :crying:

I was about 1/2 mile from home and didn't feel like (and couldn't afford) another tow, but luckily it was mostly flat from there to home so I proceeded the arduous task of pushing. about 10 min of pushing, a truck pulls up behind and beeps. It's one of the other dad's in my son's scout pack. he just happened to have an unmounted tire in the bed of his truck, so we ratched strapped that to his front bumper and he pushed me the rest of the way home.

The next morning I dug into it a little... the motor is SIEZED. I removed all the plugs and sprayed PB Blaster down each hole and left the plugs out... tried to start with key - nothing. Then I took the damper off the front and put a 3' pipe wrench on the crank snout.... couldn't budge the crank worth a damn

so I figured it would be laid up a few months while I bit the bullet and scraped funds together to just get myself a crate motor... fresh build with some sort of warranty.... well that's still the plan for down the road, but last weekend my dad called and said "don't buy an engine just yet"

his neighbor became interested in my build and would stop by on his way home to check my progress. last week he asked my dad how my Jeep was running. dad told him my ordeals and that I'm just planning on buying a new motor. He then offered up a 350 he's got on a stand that "runs like a top"... not a performance build, just a solid reliable stock motor. he offered to GIVE it to me :bowdown: that he currently doesn't have a use for it but couldn't see junking a perfectly good motor.

So that's the plan for now... pulling the old 350 for junk, and installing the free motor. at the very least, it'll get me by with a running vehicle while I save up for a nice crate motor down the road :thumbsup:

pics of Murphy's Law: Part Deux to follow
 
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