non mechanic looking for info

[cableguy621]

Long story short . My Dad is returning the 89 eliminator I sold him to give to my son. My son wants to convert a 2wd to a 4wd. My mechanical knowledge was learned on a 1970 Mustang fastback (one hot car that my

sons wish I still owned). My question is, is it just a bolt on swap out with a

Cherokee?Or is it nightmare to do? My 4wd friends (mostly GM owners )

say I'm better off buying a 4wd than swapping out the front end and

associated stuff.Will a YJ front end work? My coworker is building a

rock crawler and will have these parts available. I checked out Wade's

89 Eliminator and it is basically the same set up my son wants to do.

Any info would be appreciated.Thanks in advance.

[rejeep]

bolt in swap from an XJ.. YJ won't work unless you feel like welding new coil buckets..

go for it if parts are available.. its fairly simple.

[feerocknok]

You need to find a Cherokee with the same engine and tranny for it to be bolt in. Then the front axle bolts straight up to the pre-existing control arms, front driveshaft'll fit right up, and the one real modification you'll have to do is to get your driveshaft cut to the proper length by a driveline shop.

 

No one ever brings up transfercase linkage, so I don't know anything about that.

 

If the condition of the truck is better than average, I'd say go to swapping it to 4wd, as it can be difficult to find a well conditioned Comanche.

[DirtyComanche]

No one ever brings up transfercase linkage, so I don't know anything about that.

 

 

Take it from the donor. There's dimples in the floor where the holes for it are supposed to be drilled. And a cover where the lever goes.

 

 

Same if you want to put in a centre console - the floor has the dimples to drill for the screws.

 

 

Is it an easy swap? Theoretically. Would I bother? Perhaps. If I planned to wheel it I'd not swap any of the stock garbage in. If I planned for it to be a street/DD truck, sure. But I'd probably put a NP242 in then. And a 5-speed.

[comanche5L]

just make sure you end up with the same gear ratio front and back. you can try googling, there has been a lot of people doing this over the years with some good write ups out there. if i find any ill pass them along.

[fiscus]

It's pretty simple, everything just bolts on.

I just finished converting an XJ to 4wd with parts from an MJ.

(remember XJs are sprung over & MJs sprung under, so welding is required with an MJ rear end.)

 

The front axle will bolt right in. Just make sure it's the same ratio as your rear axle.

You might do some searching around and find a set of axles with a better gear ratio since you're gonna pull the front one out anyways.

 

If you're using a vacuum disconnect front axle, you'll have to eliminate that feature. There are 2 C-clips on the rod that hold the sift fork, you need to remove the one on the side opposite the reservoir, move the fork over & replace the clip. If you're using a solid front axle, no modifications are needed.

 

The tranny & t-case will bolt right in. If yours is an 89 you either have the Peugeot or 2wd AW4. Any year 4wd AW4 should bolt right in. The Peugeot is thought to be a bad tranny & many would suggest going ahead & upgrading to an AX15. I am not sure if there are any modifications necessary besides using the correct pilot bearing to making this upgrade. (search Peugeot to AX15 swap for more on this)

 

The front driveshaft needs to be from a Jeep with the same transmission, the rear (unless you find a 4wd MJ rear shaft) will have to be cut down to the correct length.

 

The t-case linkage has holes predrilled (rubber plugs are in the holes now) so, grab this off the same vehicle you take the tranny from. The 4wd shift handle is the same way. The console comes up by removing a few screws (faceplates pop out)

 

Are you planning on lifting this MJ? I would do it at the same time as this swap, cause you're gonna have the front end off anyways.

 

Also, pull the old 2wd hubs & stub shafts off the 2wd axle. The hubs are the same as 4wd hubs & the stub shafts make great trail fixers if you don't have a set of spare axleshafts. (You can't drive on a broke shaft or drive w/o an axleshaft. But, you can stuff a rag in the shaft hole & bolt a stub shaft in to get you home.)

[mjeff87]

It's 100% bolt-on, you just have to make sure you get the specific bits and pieces for your particular drivetrain. There are minor variations in length on things like driveshafts, linkage rods, TC input gear length (and spline count), and a couple other things that'll drive you nuts if you don't do your research beforehand. And, you will need a new/different transmission....same model trans as you have now, but of the 4WD variety. You can't attach a TC to a 2WD tranny (without doing ALOT of work, anyway).

 

Go for it, and don't listen to your GM friends :D

 

Jeff

[carnuck]

It's 100% bolt-on

 

Go for it, and don't listen to your GM friends :D

 

Jeff

 

Friends don't let friends drive Chev! (or Dodge or Ford) unless they are parts rigs!

[89eliminator]

i say go for it. it wasnt that hard and i learned a lot from it. it took about 3-4 weeks for me to do it working every night. i got screaming deals on everything so that made it way better. like a tranny and t-case for 75 bucks off ebay. front and rear axles and adj lower control arms for 500 bucks all in good condition. just look around for good deals before spending a lot.