Tx_Baby_Huey

Hello,

My name is John and I am a graphic designer from Dallas, TX. I am 32 and as I get older I appreciate what I have that fits me because I've always been a bigger guy.

My first car was a Karmanghia that sat in our driveway for 20 years, 6'2" doesn't fit very well in one, when I was 17 I got an 86 Camaro that was easier to fit in, but after a year it crapped out and I got a 1996 Jeep Cherokee.

To this day I still haven't sat in a car as comfortable as a Jeep Cherokee. I think part of it was I loved them since I saw the "ORV" in Goonies. And even to this day I love the 80's models.

We had two Jeep Cherokees in the family and it's still my favorite car to this day.

I am older now and I need one car that is just dependable, a crappy 2004 Buick, but it's highly dependable and gets great gas.

I'm single so for the past year I have been debating on restoring a car that I can just work on gradually for about a year. My original plan was to just buy a 2 door Jeep Cherokee 5 spd but I just could never land one when I had the money.

Last year I fell in MAD LOVE with a British car called a Morris Minor and loved the idea of doing a chop top. I never fall in love with British cars so this will happen eventually.

But I think I have decided to just restore a Comanche, with the 97-2001 front end. It will be a good work truck, with decent gas mileage, and the car that looks cooler than my Buick, a weekend driver if you will.

I am not mechanically savvy, so I need help. I plan on just replacing the engine and transmission to a modern engine that will power the truck, and get 20-30 street/hwy.

What is a decent and inexpensive way to go with these. There was a 2door Cherokee I almost bought, it was a 4 cylinder, my mechanic, my brother, and my parents highly urged against a 4 cylinder.

Would a rebuilt 97-2001 straight 6 be the best alternative? Or is there a Jeep motor from 2001-2013 that is a 6 cylinder that gets good gas mileage, it was my understanding the Liberty's weren't very good for that.

A guy I just met through a friend has a straight 6 88? Comanche 4 speed manual, which I want a manual.

I know finding a Jeep Cherokee manual is hard enough, but is finding a rebuilt transmission for these difficult?

What can I do economic wise engine and transmission wise? I already know what I want it to look like cosmetically.

Tx_Baby_Huey

I did a quick rendering of what I would like to do. I always liked the decals from the 80's and the white steel wheels, I may do a more desaturated or pastel blue, but I like the red to orange decals.

I think a chrome rollcage would be cool with those old kiaa lights or whatever.

TheCK4x4

Sweet I love the idea, I'm from Dallas as well but moved to Colorado, I'd deff say do a straight 6 there really dependable and run strong , a small block 350 would be awesome to put in a Cherokee but I for sure don't have the knowledge to tell you how to do that lol, are you going to offroad with this rig or just a daily driver? Maybe some nice custom bumpers front and rear and I love the idea of the roll cage (not a huge fan of chrome myself) but a high gloss silver would look awesome with a crazy design cage in the back! I'm sure you could find manual tranny from a jy or something but prob would have to re build it soon, are you looking to lift it or larger tires at all? I do like the color scheme with the design on the side though, actually looks really good! Best of luck to you with this build , there's plenty of ppl here that'll help out I'm sure!

Tx_Baby_Huey

Thanks!

It will just be a daily driver, I might put some larger tires, but I wouldn't lift it. I don't want to do a 350, seems like a big motor for such a small truck.

What about a ford 302? How bad are those, I would rather have a straight 6 but definitely want some pointers on what would be best power&gas mileage wise.

andrewmp6

The 350 they do make swap parts for but a 302 you would be kinda on your own for that stuff.If your wanting max gas mileage the inline 6 and 5 speed would be it really.As far as the inline 6 91 to 98 would be the best years to use.As far as the newer front end swap you could go nuts swap the doors too and maybe the interior just depends your time budget and skill.The great things about these jeeps you have a big list of options on how you can do anything.

kirknd4spd

The best gas mileage you're gonna get out of one will be with the 4.0 or 2.5, with a 5 speed. My 2.5 got better mileage stock than any 4.0 I've driven, but its still not great mileage. Best I ever got was 21 mpg.
If you want better mileage than that, and you're willing to swap engines, throw a little diesel in it, maybe something like a 4BT Cummins with an NV4500 behind it. I don't know what kind of mileage that would get, but it would have to be better, and the torque would be fun imo.
If you want to stick with a gas engine swap, forget the Ford 302 and drop a Vortec 350, 5.3, or LS1 in it imo. GM swaps are easier than Ford swaps, and would probably come out cheaper.

Really, you can do pretty much anything to an XJ or MJ as far as engine swaps go, there's plenty of room under the hood for a small block V8. It all depends on how much time effort and money you're willing to throw at it.

rmoore1031

The best MPG I know of is the 2.1 turbo diesel with 5 speed. There is a guy on ComancheClub with one and he gets 30 MPG. Good luck finding the 2.1. It's rare and parts for it are even rarer. The 2.5 and manual is easy to get. You'll just need to do lots of searching online for threads. There are lot of engine and transmission combos, you just need to find the one for your needs.

kirknd4spd

Yeah, the 2.1 will get good mileage. That is, if you can find one. And then you'd have far less power and less torque than the 2.5, which most people consider completely gutless.
Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't mind having a 2.1, but I wouldn't want to have to drive it very often.

andrewmp6

I wouldn't mess with a 4bt its 700lbs same weight as a big block.Diesel i would use a 1.8 chevette diesel its made by isuzu,Or if going to use a a stick you can buy a adapter plate to run a vw diesel but would have to make your own motor mounts http://www.hpamotorsport.com/tdiconversions.htm

wiggles

If I were in your shoes and planning a engine swap it would be a ls1. They are reliable, easier than many others to swap and has a large aftermarket.