parkia86 Posted February 11, 2016 Share Posted February 11, 2016 I just recently completed swapping out my old 4.0L with a 4.6L Stroker from ATK and I could not be more happy with the results. Prior to purchasing the Engine, I pinged the forums and probed the interwebs for a reputable reman company... all I found were bad reviews and horror stories... It made me feel uneasy but I went with ATK anyway. I figured I would post my experience. Prior to the Swap I had a 1987 4.0L with about 160K on it. The engine was still firing up and running but I felt it was time for a swap. The price was / is awesome. I paid 2900 for the stroker. It did not come with a valve cover but all of the gaskets were included. For the swap I also decided to put it a higher flow water pump, a new starter, plugs , wires, CPS, Thermostat, and a flex plate. Once the parts arrived I dropped the manche off at the shop and waiting for the motor to go in. I am told the install was simple... fit as expected ... no issues. HOWEVER.... as soon as the mechanic fired up the engine ... she leaked oil like a bastard! To be sure it was not the oil pan... I put a new oil pan in and replaced the gasket and sure enough it still leaked..... It was obvious it was the Rear Main Seal but we wanted to be sure.... I called ATK prior to authorizing work... and a little up set I explained the situation. Sight Unseen ATK authorized the mechanic to fix the problem and paid for both the parts and the labor. It took a few weeks for the check to finally arrive but never the less it did. It is worth noting that it if you purchase from autozone, the labor is covered by their warranty .... and the parts are paid for by ATK. Now not to throw any stones but the mechanic said the RMS was installed backwards :doh: With that said the RMS was replaced and the engine fired up with no leaks!... BUUUUUUT It was running sluggish.... I panicked thinking the engine was truly a dud and I would join the few folks on the internet in bashing ATK... but it turns out I did not upgrade the injectors to 24psi ( which most stroker forums recommend) .. ATK states that it can use the stock stuff... but it just does not run right. I also bought an adjustable fuel pressure regulator as well to dial in the power... it was not necessary but it helps. After all this... the MANCHE is more powerful than ever and runs very strong.. While I was a little disappointed with the quality control of ATK, they came through immediately with a fix.. at no cost to me. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions... I hope this helps some folks on the fence about REMANS... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnj92131 Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Glad to hear of your good experience. And that ATK took care of the problem when it came up. Everybody has problems, the important thing is how they fix the problems. One problem with internet reviews is that they tend to be done mostly by unhappy customers, not the satisfied customer. Nice to hear from a happy customer. A couple of questions if you don't mind. How much did the shop charge you to swap in the new engine and where are you located? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parkia86 Posted February 12, 2016 Author Share Posted February 12, 2016 The shop only charged me 500 bucks in labor for the engine swap... the oil pan and all the other stuff i mentioned increased the final number a bit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Strongly recommend you run the 24# injectors @ 49psi if you're not already. Sounds like you already have an adjustable FPR (Hesco?). For injectors you can run the stock OBD2 "gray tops" from a 96-99 4.0 (p/n 53030778), or Bosch "Neon" 702's, Volvo 703's, or similar. You don't want it running lean, especially during break-in. Pull a spark plug or two at regular intervals, maybe every 100 miles or so, and inspect to be sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88whitemanche Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I have a question regarding this... Though many have had problems while installing these engines by themselves to help with cost... Does atk state anywhere that the engines would have to be required to be installed by a licensed mechanic? Buddy of mine happen to mention that the other day when we had a conversation about this subject and said its "required" to have a licensed mechanic to install the engine to not void warranty and that they'll send in one of their mechanics to see what's the problem if anything goes wrong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marine1Texas Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I put the crate 4.6 in and when I received the information on warranty it said it needed to be put in by ase licensed mechanic. We did not do as it stated tho. We put the 4.6 in a 1988 Jeep Comanche about 3 months ago. We installed it with a 6=8 Combination Clifford 258 Twin 38 Weber Fuel Delivery System, and a HEI Dizzy. Since we have no emissions here over 24 years old other then mandated visual of a cat. We also installed a New Venture 4500 tranny. The reason for swap is AX15 we had in their got torn up in 1500 miles, could not handle the torque. After the swap we are very happy with mpg improve. When and if my 1987 jeep Comanche engine do's out we will do the same crate motor for it too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnj92131 Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 After the swap we are very happy with mpg improve. When and if my 1987 jeep Comanche engine do's out we will do the same crate motor for it too. ATK crate motor?? Or another Vendor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I put the crate 4.6 in and when I received the information on warranty it said it needed to be put in by ase licensed mechanic. We did not do as it stated tho. We put the 4.6 in a 1988 Jeep Comanche about 3 months ago. We installed it with a 6=8 Combination Clifford 258 Twin 38 Weber Fuel Delivery System, and a HEI Dizzy. Since we have no emissions here over 24 years old other then mandated visual of a cat. We also installed a New Venture 4500 tranny. The reason for swap is AX15 we had in their got torn up in 1500 miles, could not handle the torque. After the swap we are very happy with mpg improve. When and if my 1987 jeep Comanche engine do's out we will do the same crate motor for it too. Got pics of the Weber system? It "tore up" an AX15 because of torque? Hard to believe. Sure would like to see your dyno numbers........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parkia86 Posted February 12, 2016 Author Share Posted February 12, 2016 I have a question regarding this... Though many have had problems while installing these engines by themselves to help with cost... Does atk state anywhere that the engines would have to be required to be installed by a licensed mechanic? Buddy of mine happen to mention that the other day when we had a conversation about this subject and said its "required" to have a licensed mechanic to install the engine to not void warranty and that they'll send in one of their mechanics to see what's the problem if anything goes wrong The mechanic I had install it was not registered or certified by ATK... he did have an official business / shop etc... ATK didn't seem to dig too far into "who" installed it. They basically authorized the repair the same day the issue was discovered. If you install yourself however, it might not be covered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marine1Texas Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 johnj92131, on 12 Feb 2016 - 10:05 AM, said: Noriyori_Kudo, on 12 Feb 2016 - 07:06 AM, said: After the swap we are very happy with mpg improve. When and if my 1987 jeep Comanche engine do's out we will do the same crate motor for it too. ATK crate motor?? Or another Vendor? I got it from Summit Racing. hornbrod I have a picture of it up on my signature. The trans we have not pulled apart to see what happen. We know 1st gear just not their anymore, and it was in the 4.0 for about 10k before we bought it and put the 4.6 crate engine in it. I get more picture later. still work in progress .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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