I have a guy that would sell me a 5 speed out of 97 wrangler for 175$ but it was bolted to a 4cyl. Does anyone know if the bellhousing would bolt up to the 4.0L? Are they different/weaker than the ones that come behind a 4.0L? Thanks!

 

The 97TJ 5-speed behind the 2.46L should be the Aisin AX-5. Decent enough for the four-cylinder, and should bolt up - but I wouldn't bother. You'll end up with a pile of scrap metal in fairly short order, trying to put the AX-5 behind the 4.0L - way too much torque off-idle!

Look for the AX-15 instead, or even the NV3550. If you can get external AX-15 bellhousing parts (bell and clutch fork,) you can then open up your search for the AX-15 to, I believe, some Dodge Dakota and some Toyota RWD, and the NV3550 can be found in the V6 Dakota and possibly some Chevvy S-10 series (or comparable.) Both transmissions use the same bellhousing and clutch fork, and the input shafts are the same (1-1/8"-10, and same length.)