Jenny_Jen83

I want to put an in-line six 4.0 liter engine in my Jeep. It's a 1986 Jeep Cherokee Laredo with a dying 2.8 liter in it. I'm pretty sure that I will have to change the bell housing at least. My Jeep has a 5 speed manual tranny that I'd like to keep if possible.
Or maybe you can tell me whats wrong with my engine now.. when I drive it it runs rough and stalls. Lately I've been able to avoid the stalling by taking it out of gear and keeping the rev's up around 2000 rpm, it straightens out after a while. When it does stall, it refuses to start again until I play with the distributor. The cap, the point and the ignition control module all seem to be fine so I am at a loss. After taking apart the distributor and finding nothing, I put it back together and now the idling speed has gone from 1000rpm to 2000 rpm (sigh) I can get it running again but it dies after a couple days. I know it's not the fuel pump because I can smell gas when I try to start it after it stalls and refuses to go. I'm getting frustrated.

Thanks
Jen

Savasa

Greetings,
Sound to me like your problem is more fuel/vacuum related than electrical. Your fuel system is much more than just the fuel pump. I am unfamiliar with the 2.8 l engine but assuming that your igntion system (cap, rotor, wires and plugs) is in GOOD condition, I would begin a thorough inspection of ALL your hoses and linkages. I THINK you have a carb on that engine. Is it bolted down tightly? Are all the vacuum hoses in good shape? Are the air and fuel filters clean? When was the last time the carb was cleaned?
The fact that your RPM's have gone up after you fiddled with the dist suggests a vacuum advance hose/air leak which you may have jiggled whilst working on the dist.
Hope this helps....Peter

Jenny_Jen83

Thank you Peter,

You are right, it is a carbed engine and I know some of the hoses are squishy, there are lines that aren't hooked up, wires that aren't plugged in and I have no idea when the last time the carb was cleaned was. The engine is filthy and the air cleaner holder thing is covered in duct tape. I know I have my work cut out for me, but I love this Jeep (it's my first Jeep) I'm beginning to wonder if the engine isn't a Chevy engine and not a Chrysler engine. The heater doesn't appear to work and the temperature guage doesn;t work. The guy I got the Jeep from didn't strike me as a smart fellow either... but at least he sent a whack load of spare parts with the Jeep.

Thanks again
Jen

Savasa

Hiya Jen,
Hey, it's a Jeep-what's not to love! I would suggest going to Can Tire, investing the $ in a manual, buying some hose and get 'er done. Hook up all the necessary wires and hoses and see what you've got. Get the 2.8l running and THEN decide whether or not you want to swap out for the 4.0l. One of the first things you can do to see just how bad your existing engine is is to do a compression test.
How many miles/Km's on the engine? As far as the heater, is the rad full of coolant?
Peter.

Jenny_Jen83

That is very true... whats not to love? The more I drive it the more I love it. I would like to keep the engine its got, but my hubby wants it to have more power. The guy I bought it from told me that the engine had 130,000 km on it and when it does run right, it runs really well. The body of the Jeep has 250,000 MILES on it. The radiator is very full of coolent, that was the first thing I checked. All fluids are topped up and there are no leaks. I have to have a look at the fuses because the rear wiper arm stopped working too and the temperature guage no worky. We did get a Haynes repair manual... it was kinda neat because it covers both my Jeep and my hubbys 1994 cherokee sport. Most of the symptoms all lead back to vaccum leaks, faulty spark plugs and faulty spark plug wires. May be hope for this engine yet.

Cheers!!
Jen

Savasa

Hiya Jen,
I don't mean to tell you what to do, but don't give up on her yet. As I said, I know nothing about the 2.8l BUT she just may need a bit of TLC (in the way of tune-up, plugs, wires and addressing the hose/wireing issues) and it may just surprise "Hubby". I would suggest you try to get the temp guage working as your thermostat may be dead and not allowing the heater to work. Nice looking ride!
Peter

Jenny_Jen83

you aren\t telling me what to do as I am the one who asked for help :) I thought the Jeep looked really good for it's age even if it was a "mechanics special" It's going in for a tune up and repairs as soon as I get my tax refund back... I wanted to do the work myself but I don't know enough about this kind of thing

Mr White

iTrader: (1)

The reason the rpm went up was after you removed the distributor and cleaned it, it changed the timing. But not to worry about that now. I would say with yur problem could very well be the ignition module its bolted on the side of the distributor (black thing)

Jenny_Jen83

Hey Peter...

You are going to laugh as I did when I found out what was wrong. The choke arm/wire thing was not plugged in. Boy do my husband and I feel silly... but at least it is running properly now... for now... might be another problem yet

Savasa

Hiya Jen,
Nope, I'm not laughing BUT I'm happy she's running better. Hold off on the 4.0l transplant until you know your current engine is really toast.
I'm sort of fussy (OK, REALLY fussy) about the cleanliness of my engines. I don't know how many hundreds of gallons of Gunk/Dunk I've gone through in cleaning my newest "treasures" over the years BUT if I ever get an oil/fluid leak, I can spot it immediatly.
Enjoy the ride!!!!!
Peter