83 CJ5 Drivetrain issues

[Jinx]

I have an 83 CJ5 that I just put a newly rebuilt AMC 304 in with a T-150 3 speed. The jeep originally came with a AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l with a 4 speed and because of the gear ratio it is very hard to get moving in first gear and by the time I hit third I am doing close to 50 mph. I have a 77 CJ7 frame that has a old AMC 304 but is in very bad shape and I thought I would just take the front and rear end out and replace them in the 83 but now I am thinking it might be better to just change gear and pinions. Any thoughts on which would be a better (and easier) switch? I do very little off roading now because of a back issue but I still love my jeeps.

 

[mtnwhlr]

You need to find out what gears are in both if they are close to the same it would not be worth switching them.

 

[Old Dog]

you should have wide trak axles in it now the 77's will be narrow trak if that meens anything to you. It will be cheaper than regearing though as long as they have the gears you need.

 

[Jinx]

You need to find out what gears are in both if they are close to the same it would not be worth switching them.

The 77 orginally had a AMC 304 with a 3 speed so the gears should match the way I have converted my 83. While I have the axles out I will go thru the brakes, and gear and pinion to make sure they are all in good shape. I am trying to get this jeep in great condition so I can sell my 2006 H2 hummer and use my 83 CJ5 as a full time driver. I am a die hard AMC jeep fan and I am going nuts without my jeep on the road. :drool:

Thank you for the reply

 

[Jinx]

you should have wide trak axles in it now the 77's will be narrow trak if that meens anything to you. It will be cheaper than regearing though as long as they have the gears you need.

I don't know what wide track axles are but now that you brought that up I will do some research and find out if that will be an issue with me. I do know that the 77 axles are much more "beefy" that what is in the 83 but I have no idea what modifications were done to the 77 before I bought it for parts. I just know that the 77 axles look like they are more heavy duty than the 83. thank you for the knowledge.

 

[CJ]

I don't know what wide track axles are but now that you brought that up I will do some research and find out if that will be an issue with me. ~~~

Just about everything you need to know about CJ factory items can be found in our CJ database. -->> - Jeep CJ Models and Info at Jeep-CJ.com

Norrow and wide track info can be found here. -->> http://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/f105/cj-axles-12186/

 

[mtnwhlr]

you should have wide trak axles in it now the 77's will be narrow trak if that meens anything to you. It will be cheaper than regearing though as long as they have the gears you need.

The '83 CJ5 did not have the widetrac axles