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Ls1 5.3

Ls1 5.3

C dubya

Active Jeeper
Posts
388
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1
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Location
Bartlesville, OK
Vehicle(s)
83 Jeep CJ-7 Renegade,
258 I-6,
T-4(Soon to be a T-19),
Dana 300,
1987 Grand Wagoneer,
360 V8, 2008 Chevy 2500HD Z71 Crewcab, 6.0 V8
The more I read and work on my GW, I keep coming up with ideas for my CJ. From FI to V8 swaps. Today I watched the Novak swap of an LS1 5.3 ax15 combo into an 85 cj and needless to say I am intrigued. I have salvage yard close by that specializes in Gm stuff. My questions are has anyone done the swap and has anyone rebuilt one? Most of the salvage ones have quite a few miles. I think I would keep the 4L80e Transmission , but may be persuaded otherwise. Thoughts?
 
The more I read and work on my GW, I keep coming up with ideas for my CJ. From FI to V8 swaps. Today I watched the Novak swap of an LS1 5.3 ax15 combo into an 85 cj and needless to say I am intrigued. I have salvage yard close by that specializes in Gm stuff. My questions are has anyone done the swap and has anyone rebuilt one? Most of the salvage ones have quite a few miles. I think I would keep the 4L80e Transmission , but may be persuaded otherwise. Thoughts?

It would be a cool swap. Can the 4l80e be used with the Dana 300 ? Youll need to make it PSD. Alot of the wagoneers people swap these into drop on the drivers side so it gives them more TC options.

I always thought it would be cool to get a newer Chevy motor in a cj or waggy, like one of the one that shuts down the 2 cylinder when cruising and has COP and fly by wire throttle. I wonder how tough it is to get all the guages to work.
 
ive been looking into swap options, just daydreaming really, the most interesting ones to me are ones that maximize on torque, and low rpm torque at that. stroker motors are top of that list, and with all the ability to put mpfi on almost any american v-8 i would tempt everyone with the 383 gm small block stroker or the mopar 400 stroker. top of the list tho has to be the 4-bt cummins guys.
 
id be interested to see an aftermarket built mpfi 383 feeding a possibly beefed up T-18 /atlas2sp combo for sure, im not a gm fan, for stroker motors i personally prefer the 400 mopar but of the chevy stuff the 383 has to be one of my favorites.
 
Ford:
Picture012.webp

The above is a Ford Racing 5.0L with 'B' cam. Rated at 350hp and about the same torque with the 'trim' that I have installed.

Want more? Stroke it to 331 cu in. Or go all in: 351W/5.8L. Easy to install EFI using stock Ford parts and EEC-III components.

Pluses? Mine is all Ford from the twin Contour electric fans to the Ford T-18 Transmission . Makes parts shopping really simple.

But if you're a die hard Chevy guy....
 
The first time I saw this I was like , What is that :drool:. Beautiful work. I already have the Chevy SM465 which makes the Chevy an easier swap. What kind of torque numbers do you get in the low rpm range with that "B" cam?

Ford:
Picture012.webp

The above is a Ford Racing 5.0L with 'B' cam. Rated at 350hp and about the same torque with the 'trim' that I have installed.

Want more? Stroke it to 331 cu in. Or go all in: 351W/5.8L. Easy to install EFI using stock Ford parts and EEC-III components.

Pluses? Mine is all Ford from the twin Contour electric fans to the Ford T-18 Transmission . Makes parts shopping really simple.

But if you're a die hard Chevy guy....
 
+1, i love this, total ford guy i am.
 
A Ls swap would be cool. :drool:
I'll be looking that way when my 350 tbi gives it up. The 6.0 sounds good to me.:D
I like auto's so I say keep the 4l80 if at all possible.
 
Ford:
Picture012.webp

The above is a Ford Racing 5.0L with 'B' cam. Rated at 350hp and about the same torque with the 'trim' that I have installed.

Want more? Stroke it to 331 cu in. Or go all in: 351W/5.8L. Easy to install EFI using stock Ford parts and EEC-III components.

Pluses? Mine is all Ford from the twin Contour electric fans to the Ford T-18 Transmission . Makes parts shopping really simple.



But if you're a die hard Chevy guy....



That looks awesome! But the GM motors and Transmission are way more available to me. I think in the end a V8 is going to get stuffed in my cj.
 
What kind of torque numbers do you get in the low rpm range with that "B" cam?
Thanks. I'm going to get the Jeep dyno'd and tuned this spring, so I don't have an accurate hp/tq read just yet. I'm running 4.56 gearing with 32" tires, so I'll have plenty of low end grunt. I'll probably go with 33-34 inch tires for street use. Maybe even a smaller set of 35's. Just wish they made 35's in a 10.00 width.

...total ford guy i am.
Thanks. Once I figured most of the details out, it wasn't that difficult a swap. The electronics aren't difficult to install or understand. I know of someone that did the 331 stroker on his CJ5 with AX15 Transmission . Says he really likes it. He wanted to go 347, but I talked him out of it, and hooked him up with a good builder for the short block. If I really wanted to break parts, I'd have gone with the 351/5.8L with some Lightning components, those put out mucho torque, and can be built to put out even more hp/tq.

That looks awesome! But the GM motors and Transmission are way more available to me. I think in the end a V8 is going to get stuffed in my cj.
Thanks. It was just the opposite for me. I could buy 5.0L with low miles for pennies compared to the 350 SBC that were all high mile engines. I had two low mile 5.0L on the floor, when I found the Ford Racing 5.0L on eBay. That engine had less than 1000 miles on it, was priced right with lots of extras, so I had to get it.
 
as far as the electronics go and speaking of tuning youve got me thinking now about a 4.6 to save weight, ohc engine, dad has a crown vic thats 15 yrs old now and still gets 30mpg on the hwy with a 4.6. Idk, the options are there and things are changing quickly, i know the old pushrod motors are just awesome and will always be around but we are getting to the point where the newer motors are becoming more available and lucrative, better and better mileage with better economy.

a v-8 swap makes me drool but i know the wife wants to keep it classic stock, and personally the more i work with the old girl the more im convinced to keep it preserved since its completely unmolested, she definitely deserves to be restored and have the weak points fixed.
 
as far as the electronics go and speaking of tuning youve got me thinking now about a 4.6 to save weight, ohc engine, dad has a crown vic thats 15 yrs old now and still gets 30mpg on the hwy with a 4.6. Idk, the options are there and things are changing quickly, i know the old pushrod motors are just awesome and will always be around but we are getting to the point where the newer motors are becoming more available and lucrative, better and better mileage with better economy.

a v-8 swap makes me drool but i know the wife wants to keep it classic stock, and personally the more i work with the old girl the more im convinced to keep it preserved since its completely unmolested, she definitely deserves to be restored and have the weak points fixed.

I was on the stock train for a long time, but the more I stare, watch, plan, and make acquaintances my mind keeps changing. Got a stock GW to keep my stock cravings satiated.
 
see the cj is all the stock classic we own. i think we're going to keep it that way till the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l is a parts problem. i just cant justify leaving behind the reliability of a 7 main bearing engine. definitely feel better about a ford swap now. i know its all possible but its always good to hear other peoples stories. hell i may jump on the clifford performance band wagon for old school grins when i do a full rebuild. im gonna break it down and paint everything when i do the frame-off, while its out i may contact them and do a stage one package all the way.
 
For pure driveability on the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l , I'd consider the 4.0L head swap and the MoPar EFI. Nothing wrong with the I-6, mine had a cracked block, and I think the 5.0L Ford is a decent platform to install.

The 4.6L 'modular' engine, is a bit wider. I don't know what problems that might cause. I also haven't looked into what sort of transmissions/t-cases can be adapted to it. The electronics can be worked through, as there are aftermarket suppliers for the 4.6L swap. However there is the existing problem of the CJ5 wheelbase and already short rear drivetrain.

Had I to do it over again (and I'm NOT), I would have gone with an I-4 out of a Turbo Coupe. Adapted an AX-15 (or similar 5 speed) and used a Dana 300 Transfer Case . I also would have kept the stock 3.53 axle ratios to be a bit more street friendly with 31" tires on stock leafs. There would have been some 'Hack Fabricating' for motor mounts, but the rest would have been relatively $imple.
 
im sure advance adapters could fab up something for the 4.6 to mate to a T-18 or one of the stubby 4 speeds, after that i would elect for a full third party fuel management system since the 4.6 has the gear to really take advantage of high density fuel mapping, then its just an issue of the mounting, really its quite a small motor until you get to the big block versions, the 4.6 all the way to the 5.7 are the same size i think and they're quite compact, i dont see any potential problems any worse than say dropping a mopar 360 in there.

whos i-4 are you talking about, i think ive seen some toyota 22r swaps, thats a torque monster of a 4 banger, and built like a brick outhouse.
 

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