Help with my project jeep.

[cdentin]

Good evening all, I have a 1983 jeep cj7 which I bought a few years back as a daily driver. Well 100,000 miles later I decided it was time to have another daily driver and make my jeep a project. First I will fill you in on the intentions of use for the Jeep. Beach trips, on the sand and off, mountain trips, jamborees and such, but no rock climbing. And of course, driving around town in the summer sun. Here are my questions.

First: She (the jeep) currently has a 258cid I6 with many miles. A previous owner attempted to replace the valve cover and stripped the bolt holes, then attempted to fix this little problem with inserts. Well needless to say it didn't work. I don't think the holes have enough wall thickness to have them tapped again. What should I do, replace the head? Or any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Second: She has a 3 inch body lift and 33in tires currently but that is all the changes that have been made. To run these tires should I be running axles with a little more beef to them or should the stock axles be sufficient?

Third: EFI for Jeeps. Has anyone had good experiences, or bad, with the EFI packages I have seen on the net?

Fourth: Rear disk brake conversions for my Jeep. Again, any good or bad experiences with these systems.

What I am shooting for is a Jeep I can take offroad for light duty but also will be driving around town. Safety is paramount to this endevor, since the better half won't ride in it otherwise. Thanks for your help.

[SamFromCO]

You want opinions, right?

1. If the motor needs replacing I would probably have it rebuilt. I bought an Autozone rebuilt for mine. It's ran a couple of years so far but I don't put many miles on mine and I'm still not real comfortable with thier rebuild. If you rebuild your old motor, you'll know exactly what was done and how it was done. As far as the head goes, it sounds like the former owner put heli-coils in the valve cover holes. Usually heli-coils work OK. The gasket should seal. If they weren't done correctly, you might be able to replace them. It's a PITA but possible.

2. I think that body lifts over 1" or so aren't that great of an idea. If you want a project, go back to 1" body mounts and put on a 2-1/2" suspension lift. While you have your axles disconnected you could regear them and replace the rear axles with the one piece type. Maybe add some limited slip diffs or lockers. If you aren't crazy with the throttle the stock axles should work. I think that it's a good idea to weld the tubes on the rear AMC20 axle and add a truss if you like to get bouncy on the dunes.

3. I think that Howell is the best choice. I'm sure that other will disagree.

4. Rear discs are great but there is more to them than just bolting on a kit. Getting the right master cylinder/proportioning valve combo to work with the new brakes will take some investigating.

Add a full cage. It'll make the better half feel safer .

[cdentin]

I appreciate your input. I originally put the body lift on as a last minute deal before I moved away from my home town. I had the money and the manpower to put oversized tires and that was the easiest and most cost efficient lift at the time. I am definately looking at a suspension lift instead of the body. I just don't like the look and I have heard bad things about body lifts. I guess I will have to do some more investigation about brakes and axle options. Sounds like there is much more to it that I originally thought. The full cage is a good idea as well. I am having the engine rebuilt by a family friend who builds race engines. Not to sup up the engine, he just does out of this world work. So, there are options that I had not considered. Thanks again.

[cdentin]

Hello everyone. Any further input would be greatly appreciated from any source. Thanks in advance.

[longboy]

another option is to replace the head with a 4.0 HO head. some HP gains. 2 very good writeups on that are here:

http://www.off-road.com/jeep/new/40conv.html

http://www.monsterslayer.com/jeep/40Head/40Head.htm

also, i would agree that the 3" body lift is a little much. i am currently about to install (i have the parts in my garage) a 2.5" suspension lift, and will likely add 1" BL at a later date.

hth
_longboy

[Warlock]

My thoughts are to get rid of the body lift. Or at least down to 1 inch. A good suspension lift would be a great addition.

I have not had personal experience with the EFI systems, but I have heard everything from great to POS about them.

I second the thought on a rollcage.

[cdentin]

Thanks everyone for your input. I appreciate it.