6BT In A Cherokee.

[Hudson]

Blew the T-case out of my jeep on the highway. Torque convertor was locked up at the time so it pretty much trashed my tranny as well. Motor still starts. I picked up another XJ that is now my dd (it's stock and simple) i kind of want to go big or go home with this jeep.

Was thinking about a 4BT, but the 6BT seems to be cheaper as they're easier to get a hold of.

I figure i'd have to plate the entire XJ unibody to support this motor. I figure it's a fucking heavy bastard as well. Think i'd be able to run it with a stock HP D30 front axle and XJ coils?

I am a total novice when it comes to these kind of things, but i am not dumb. I can research things and figure them out as problems arise and ask you guys.

Anyways here are a few of my questions;

1. I think i want a 12v mechanical 6BT. Correct? Is there any 6BT i should stay away from? Which should i buy? Price estimate?

2. If i got a 6BT i'd need a tranny for it. I believe the NV4500 is what most people run behind it. Is that a manual or auto tranny?

3. Lets say i put the NV4500 behind it. What would i put behind that? Would a jeep T-case bolt up or would there simply be too much power going through the driveline and that T-case would get totally trashed?

4. Lets say i put whatever T-case normally mates to the NV4500 behind it. How would i get the yoke on the T-case to line up with the yoke on the driveshaft? I feel like the NV4500 T-case would be wider and wouldn't be in a straight line to the stock axle yokes. Would i have to swap in full width or one ton axles?

I know i'm dreaming, but hey a man can dream.

Any other information that would be helpful is greatly appreciated.

[HitItWithSomeSpeed]

ohhhh, this is good. I like.

DO IT!

I actually was thinking about what I'd do for a crazy XJ build a few years back, and liked the idea of a 4BT.

Now Im sure everyone on here will hop on later and say how bad an idea this is, but I will say that you arent the first to consider it.

There was a guy on Pirate a while back that was planning to run a 6BT in an XJ, and his solution was to cut out the unibody rails and graft in an actual frame. This was a pretty serious project however. Ideally, from what i can figure, is if you built frame stiffeners out of heavy enough material, and made some sort of sub frame for the engine bay, one that has beefy ass mounts for the motor, you should be fine.

The next order of business regarding the motor itself is the height, so modifications to the hood may be in order. Brian on here threw one in a Waggy and I think had trouble fitting it, so I think enginebay capacity is gonna be your biggest issue after supporting the weight. He might be a good source for answers on whether or not this might be worth it and issues to look out for, if you can get a hold of him.

As for trannys and t-cases, I was reading up on manuals. An auto is gonna be bigger, but either way youre gonna have to fab a new tunnel in the floor. A tranny cooler for an auto is gonna take up some room up front too, next to a larger capacity radiator, so keep that in mind.

As for axles... if youre planning on going through this much work just for a powerplant, youre obviously going to want to wheel it. So why stop now, right? Id say jump to one tons. Especially if you find a passanger side t-case, you'll have to find a matching axle anyway, so a chevy 60 would be prime. Also, while considering this, if you have a choice between driver and passanger drop t-case, keep in mind exhaust routing, as this might make up your mind for you.

All that being said, when I thought about this idea, I started to consider suspension setups. What I came up with was to run leaves up front, with a shackle reversal and slider boxes. I figured this would allow the rig to sit low and be pretty stout up front. With this setup ideally you'd want to do a four link rear with coilovers. The idea behind it being that with the front solid and the rear flexy, the rig will want to go anywhere you point it.

These, again, are just my ideas on how i'd do it. I do like the idea tho, and regardless of how you put it together its sure to be a sweet rig. So once again, you've got my vote.

[customcreationsllc]

I don't think anything about this is going to be cheap, and I don't think anything on the XJ is going to last including the unibody.

How much torque are we talking about?
If you actually plan on using the power from that engine you better have a cage to tie in the chassis.

Fitting it in and making it run should be as straight forward as any other engine swap, except very tight.
I would try to find a full drive train. As far as T-cases the NP24* series are stronger than the NP23* with the same off set. The big trucks use an even larger chain driving T-case there is some discussion on Pirate about chain driven t-cases.
You might want to go with an NP205 which if I'm not mistaken still comes in some Dodges.

So there is a chance you can find a Cummins with a NV4500 and 205. That's the way I would go.

Definitely no questions go with 1 ton axles.

Drive shaft offset depending how bad you might need to use single u-joints they will cancel out the offset. CV cannot handle offset pinions.

basically your going to take a Dodge truck and stick it in a XJ.
If it is just cool factor then go with it, if not I see a lot of wasted money.

Don't forget none of your friends are going to want to smell diesel all day on the trail.

[Harry]

The problem with any diesel stuff these days is that you're competing with a bunch of retards willing to pay top dollar for junk. Makes finding a deal worth buying almost impossible. You might be better off since you are looking for drivetrain donation and don't need a nice truck.

94-98 12v motors have the P7100 injection pump, or "p-pump". They have increasing power ratings as you move up that year range. 5spd trucks had higher HP ratings than autos. They are really easy and and relatively inexpensive to mod for more power. The autos don't take much abuse without some help. The 89-93 trucks have a VE injection pump that makes less power. Don't know much about them, but they will be cheaper than their p-pump counterparts. All are an all mechanical, non-computer controlled.

I think a 4BT is much more fitting for an XJ on all counts.

[Luke95]

Two thoughts.
1 4bt with a sm465 or a ford t18 behind it. Out of a bread truck cheaper and easier for you than a 6bt. But their is a reason every one does a v8 it's easier, simpler, and less work. Given what I have seen.
2 it would be fucking sweet when my truck finally does die from rust I will see if I can put the power stroke in something

[ct67_72]

No way. You would need the following,
actual frame
trans, t case, shafts, axles
cut firewall
HEAVY suspension
4bt seems feasible in an xj but it would need a good amount of lift. They are TALL. Same with a 6 cylinder too of course.

[sardo_67]

diesel XJ i so much winning!! 4BT.... no, massive and heavy.

i've mentioned this before but put a VW diesel into it, HPA makes adapter brackets so you can use everything minus the motor that's OEM and cheap, no custom or expensive extra shit. guy in mass on NAXJA did it with a modded wiring harness as i planned on doing but didn't feel like it anymore since i found an LS for cheap.

i have all the VW stuff you'd need minus the adapter brackets. since it's you and you're capable of finishing this i'd sell it all to you along with the extra aftermarket shit. in a jetta with a good tune and IC system it would get you 200+hp (5000rpm) and 300tq (2100rpm). shoot me a text

[customcreationsllc]

I would vote for a VW diesel if diesel is what you want.

Keep the cummins for the tow rig.

[Crazy Reid]

Putting a cummins into a Jeep is a ton of work. It might actually be simpler to put a Cherokee body onto a shortened dodge frame. Even then you have to shuffle everything and rework both frame and unibody rails. but you start with 1 ton axles. steering and a frame that will take the torque and weight. a 6BT weighs a hair under 1000 lbs and an NV4500 is 200 lbs. That is double the weight that a 4.0 and AW4 weigh!

4BT is a more common swap for a reason, a 6bt is huge and puts out a lot of torque. It was all the rage a few years ago to put NV4500's in TJ's and XJ's, but a lot of people have regretted the swap. The transmission is big, heavy and not ideal for a short wheelbase rig. There are other, more compact reliable trannys to put in. and since you won't be towing with an XJ (I hope), you shouldn't have to worry about blowing them up.

If you really want a Cummins, get a 4BT with an auto from a bread truck. If you can find a 6BT for less than that, be wary. You might want to consider an older mercedes engine (300D?) or there are some ok Puegot engines (504?) that would fit better into a cherokee and be semi unique. If you do swap any diesel, make sure you can run alternative fuels and drive for next to free

[WarGin]

^ I would go with an older Merced tD without a computer, late 70s.
They're cheap to get ahold of and a lot lighter and easier to work on then the retarded dodge monstrosities. Plenty of aftermarket support as well, they can make some power an are nigh unkillable. A diesel doesn't need to weigh 1500 pounds to work haha.
If we were in France I would say go with a Peugeot as well, however there's no support here, although they're supposedly making they're re-entry in 2018. My '07 Peugeot 207 made 250+ hp and was a little rocket. I miss that car

[Harry]

They're cheap to get ahold of and a lot lighter and easier to work on then the retarded dodge monstrosities.

Cheaper and lighter? Absolutely. Easier to work on? Doesn't get much easier than a 12 valve with a p-pump!

[WarGin]

I am leery of dodge diesels, they really aren't built that great. Everyone I know who actually Already owns one really, really regrets it, because each of them has been forced to put thousands for unavoidable repairs (injector pumps, front ends, etc). One guy I know is in his 97(?) for over 20 grand in just repairs and has owned it for like 2 yrs

[Harry]

$500-700 in parts to replace all front end components

$1500 for a reman p-pump

Can't see $20k unless he overpaid for it and is taking it to a shop for all the repairs. In which case... no one should buy any 15 year old diesel truck and plan to take it to a shop for all the repairs. That's a recipe for spending too much money!

[WarGin]

I admit his was a special case and was really, really messed up. Had an 8" body lift ghetto welded everywhere, ended up having to pretty much do a frame off on the thing. Then everything mechanical/electronic pretty much started failing one by one. At least he pretty much has a brand new truck now haha

[Crazy Reid]

1. The cheapest you are going to find a 12 valve is $1200, ask Harry, he just bought one. If you are handy, you can buy a bread truck for that and scrap the aluminum body for almost that much. Leaves you with next to free motor and tranny.

Avoid 24 valves, too much tech to swap into an XJ and harder to work on.

Gen one 12 valves aren't that bad, less power, but more than you need for a jeep

2. Manual

3. 231 would need adapting. You could run a dodge t- case, but you would have to probably have to open the tunnel more to fit it

4. Engine center line should be fine for the rear. The front shaft u joints hhould have enough play for misalignment, but you might run into oil pan/control arm/body clash issues