Grand Wagoneer Question

[terrawombat]

Local guy has a '87 Grand Wagoneer for sale for $500. Seems to be in decent shape - straight body, decent paint, couple of rust spots on the wheel wells. Has a new auto trans in it, but the engine is toast - lost oil pressure and seized. There is a Grand Waggy at my local pick n' pull with the 5.9L V8 in it, but I can tell by what's left of the interior, it has to be in the early to mid 70's. Assuming the engine is good in the junkyard waggy, would it swap into the '87? From my quick searches, it appears it's the same, but was wondering if there were any specific differences between the two engines.

[jpnjim]

No real difference, swap away.

 

1970-1991 AMC 360's had minor changes over the years, but, other than the funky crankshaft flange on 1970 & 71's (which would require an adapter), any one of them will bolt into a late model GW.

 

1970 & early 71's also could be had with high compression, but they didn't put them in Jeeps, so you're not that likely to run into one.

 

 

FWIW, if the GW in the junkyard is a 1970's, it will have a GM TH400 tranny, and possibly a 401, instead of a 360. (I got one out of a 74' :brows: )

1980-91's got Chrysler 727's.

[terrawombat]

Thanks for the info. I'm going to hit the junkyard in the morning to see if they hopefully still have the GW and get the specifics on the year engine mileage etc. If it's what I need it will probably be the determining factor on whether or not I get the 87 GW.

[Incommando]

They weren't GRAND Wagoneers, just Wagoneers, prior to the XJ Wagoneer's introduction in '84. Prior to that, the top-line Waggy trim that looked like the later Grand was the Limited.

 

The basic 360 will be the same although there may be some accessory differences. The '79 -down PS pump had SAE fittings while the '80 and newer had metric fittings, for example. But all of that should swap from original to donor, IIRC. Good luck.

[jpnjim]

They weren't GRAND Wagoneers, just Wagoneers, prior to the XJ Wagoneer's introduction in '84. Prior to that, the top-line Waggy trim that looked like the later Grand was the Limited.

 

The basic 360 will be the same although there may be some accessory differences. The '79 -down PS pump had SAE fittings while the '80 and newer had metric fittings, for example. But all of that should swap from original to donor, IIRC. Good luck.

 

Weird, but referring to ALL FSJ Waggy's as "Grand Wagoneers" doesn't bother me, and seems kind of natural (even though I know it's not). Just an easy way top avoid confusion with XJ's,

 

but calling the 73 & earlier J-trucks as J-10 & J-20's always bugs me (I'm trying to get over it ;) ).

 

Good tip on the PS pump,

I was trying to think of any other sticky points (which is why I mentioned the trans, for the flexplate/TC differences).

[terrawombat]

Thanks for the info, guys. As long as the original accessories on the blown engine are good, they should swap over to my donor engine - that's my main concern.

 

I'm not really sure why I need a FSJ other than I've always liked them and it'd be neat to own one. I've only seen this truck at night with minimal lighting so I'll make a final assessment tomorrow morning to figure out if it's worth it or not. Any common areas of the frame that rust/rot out? I need to find enough GOOD parts on this truck to justify spending any dough on it.

[whowey]

Check the frame VERY carefully around the gas tank area and behind...

 

Mine was undercoated when it was new.. the undercoat was flaking and falling off. Found a hole in the frame back by the spare tire carrier...

[Incommando]

Front floor pans are rust prone, and as mentioned above the frame area by the gas tank is frequently rusted out. The design held crud there, especially if you had the factory skid plate, and promoted rust. The arches over the rear axle are another point.

 

And '87 will have D44's front and rear, but atrocious gear ratio's like 2.71/1. The BEST you could hope for is 3.21/1. I have not been a fan of the 219/229 transfer cases and on Monday I sold some leftover FSj spare parts, a 727/208 combo, to a guy replacing a junk 229.

 

A negative of Waggy's is that they take a ton of lift to fit any kind of tire due to smallish wheel well openings in the rear. You either have to go high or sawzall them to fit any kind of tire. I always had FSJ Cherokees and fit 33's on a non lifted '79 Chief.

 

http://www.ifsja.org are the FSJ gods, IMHO.

[terrawombat]

Thanks for all of the info. I decided to pass on it as it turned out to be more of a project than I was willing to tackle at this point. Plenty of rust in and around the fender wells and random rust spots around the body. I've got enough rusty vehicles to deal with :D

 

If anyone else is interested, I can post up some pictures and forward you the contact info of the owner.