Limeyjeeper Posted March 14, 2021 Author Share Posted March 14, 2021 I have been so busy at work and with the weather issues in Texas I hadn't had time to mess with the Jeep until this weekend. I have been struggling with crazy high intake temperatures. Where I had the intake was right on top of the exhaust manifold. My initial idea was to drop it down between the fans in front of the radiator. It worked very well and the intake temps dropped from 160 to under 90 on a 70 degree day.Optimally I always want the intake temp to be within 20 degrees of ambient. However it left the intake very exposed to water ingestion. So I decided to relocate the power steering reservoir and move the intake so it ended up close to the stock location. Intake temps are staying under 100 which is what an LS likes. High intake temps cause the PCM to really throttle back timing, resulting in a significant loss of power. That along with a 3" intake was really choking the engine. If this doesn't work there is always methanol injection lol. So I drilled a hole through the alternator bracket and fed the power steering feed under the throttle body to a new reservoir which I installed on the cylinder head on the passenger side. I used a Aeroflow reservoir from a 2005 GTO and fabricated a bracket. Hole drilled in bracket to feed power steering fluid supply line. Fabricated a bracket using a modified GTO bracket GTO Aeroflow fabricated reservoir. It had the inlet and outlet pointing in the perfect direction Almost looks like it was meant to be there. Intake in new location. I will be fabricating a heat shield to direct airflow from the front of the grille. MAF/IAT sensor mounted by the intake. I was able to get a larger filter in there too.Fabricated a small bracket to keep everything from moving around. Tight but it cleared fine. I was also able to go from 3" to 3 1/2" tubing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70barracuda Posted March 14, 2021 Share Posted March 14, 2021 That's pretty much where I have mine situated and my temps are really good when moving. I also made a little shield and wrapped the tube in heat tape. Making it work with how little room we have between the radiator and throttle body is tough. You definitely got a lot more going on in the engine bay tho. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quarterpastgone Posted March 15, 2021 Share Posted March 15, 2021 This has been my dilemma on my ls swap. Can not figure out how i want to run it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted March 15, 2021 Author Share Posted March 15, 2021 This is about the only route if you don't want crazy intake temps. Ideally if you use the truck PS pump that has the reservoir behind the pump and you don't use the huge mopar stock fans (unlike me) you should have more space than I had. 3 1/2 piping is plenty big enough for a 5.3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thecodemonk Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 On 3/15/2021 at 4:37 PM, Limeyjeeper said: This is about the only route if you don't want crazy intake temps. Ideally if you use the truck PS pump that has the reservoir behind the pump and you don't use the huge mopar stock fans (unlike me) you should have more space than I had. 3 1/2 piping is plenty big enough for a 5.3. Agreed. Move the accessories back using f-body or 'vette spacing for them and there's a few options for PS pump stuff to get it out of the way and there's good room. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Mistress Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 I hear this truck got Trophy @ Bantam Jeep Festival. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torq_Shep Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 I heard the same! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scaleless Posted June 14, 2021 Share Posted June 14, 2021 Well-deserved! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted August 5, 2021 Author Share Posted August 5, 2021 Sorry I haven't done an update in a while. Been dealing with a bad cooling issue. Took her to Bantam had a great time but she was getting too hot for my liking on the trails. It really struggles off idle at around 2k rpm and a load. Not running lean wideband looks good. The two Jeep fans plus the Novak radiator should keep her cool but I fear that is not the case. With the AC on it really struggles. Torq Sheep is doing a test for me on the true Jeep CFM rating once I have that I can see if it simply that the two Jeep fans aren't cutting it or it is something else. Bled the system multiple times, definitely no air in the system. Worked on getting the intake temps down, getting a custom intake shroud made, the test one pulled the AIT down about 50 degrees o I am hopeful. I am also having the factory front skid plate modified to work with the LS and I am also going to be replacing the stock crossmember with a beefier one. All for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted August 5, 2021 Share Posted August 5, 2021 1 hour ago, Limeyjeeper said: The two Jeep fans plus the Novak radiator should keep her cool but I fear that is not the case. Got to get away from the Jeep style radiator. Spal fans. Guys who go to V8 radiators........I'm not hearing any complaints from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted August 6, 2021 Author Share Posted August 6, 2021 That will be my next step. The problem is the hidden winch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torq_Shep Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 17 hours ago, Limeyjeeper said: Sorry I haven't done an update in a while. Been dealing with a bad cooling issue. Took her to Bantam had a great time but she was getting too hot for my liking on the trails. It really struggles off idle at around 2k rpm and a load. Not running lean wideband looks good. The two Jeep fans plus the Novak radiator should keep her cool but I fear that is not the case. With the AC on it really struggles. Torq Sheep is doing a test for me on the true Jeep CFM rating once I have that I can see if it simply that the two Jeep fans aren't cutting it or it is something else. Bled the system multiple times, definitely no air in the system. Worked on getting the intake temps down, getting a custom intake shroud made, the test one pulled the AIT down about 50 degrees o I am hopeful. I am also having the factory front skid plate modified to work with the LS and I am also going to be replacing the stock crossmember with a beefier one. All for now. I am back from WA this weekend so crossing my fingers I get time to play in the garage! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70barracuda Posted August 6, 2021 Share Posted August 6, 2021 The Novak radiator is similar to the original in size right? If so I have the dirt bound triple fan set up on my Cherokee with the 4.0 and 3 spal fans and it works really well. To me the 4.0 seems to run hotter than my LS but that just could be me. To cool the Comanche I used a 22x19 generic sbc rad with a single 16 inch. Never ever gets above 205f even sitting in traffic for over an hour. But like you said with the winch it probably won't work. I had to cut my lower support and it hangs almost to the bottom of the stock bumper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted August 7, 2021 Author Share Posted August 7, 2021 Novak radiator is fatter than stock and longer, but it fits in the stock location without any mods. Do you have AC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
70barracuda Posted August 8, 2021 Share Posted August 8, 2021 5 hours ago, Limeyjeeper said: Novak radiator is fatter than stock and longer, but it fits in the stock location without any mods. Do you have AC? Yup I got a/c in the Cherokee does really well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowdy89mj Posted October 4, 2021 Share Posted October 4, 2021 I use the Novak radiator and the 3 fan set up from them, purchased as an assembly. I run 197-205 for my ls setup, lots of idle time lately, as well as lots of hard pulls trying to get my tune dialed in. what ° thermostat are you running? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted October 6, 2021 Author Share Posted October 6, 2021 I think I am going to do the same. I am running a GM stock 188 degree thermostat. The Jeep fans should be fine they have very high CFM (over 2,200 each) but I guess they don't cover the complete radiator, so the radiator cooling isn't optimized. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted October 9, 2021 Author Share Posted October 9, 2021 So I bit the bullet and ordered the Novak fan kit. Also got the new crossmember installed. Had to modify it to clear the 242. The exhaust is fixed so it didn't hit the front DS. All the suspension geometry is now correct. Couldn't get the factory skidplate to work so I have one available if anybody wants one. Thanks to Aaron at Smith Offroad in Dallas for all the fab work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted June 13, 2022 Author Share Posted June 13, 2022 Haven't been able to do much to the Jeep. I moved from Texas to Ohio so that has taken up a bunch of time. Will be doing the bellhousing change in a couple of weeks, I am just not happy with the clutch setup as it is. and I still working on the overheating issue. Looking to be at All Breeds at the end of July and Smokey Mountain hopefully. Still have a bunch of niggly things to do. The Crank sensor has crapped out, I need to get the Digital Watch Dawg talking to the door locks, I have a brake fluid leak that needs fixing. Normal stuff to keep me busy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghetdjc320 Posted June 14, 2022 Share Posted June 14, 2022 Looking forward to your updates! I reference your threat at least twice a week for little tech tidbits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxyjeep Posted June 15, 2022 Share Posted June 15, 2022 On 6/13/2022 at 10:52 AM, Limeyjeeper said: Haven't been able to do much to the Jeep. I moved from Texas to Ohio so that has taken up a bunch of time. Will be doing the bellhousing change in a couple of weeks, I am just not happy with the clutch setup as it is. and I still working on the overheating issue. Looking to be at All Breeds at the end of July and Smokey Mountain hopefully. Still have a bunch of niggly things to do. The Crank sensor has crapped out, I need to get the Digital Watch Dawg talking to the door locks, I have a brake fluid leak that needs fixing. Normal stuff to keep me busy. Beware of the salt on the roads in the winter! You don't want that thing to rust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted June 16, 2022 Author Share Posted June 16, 2022 Definitely going to be a summer only vehicle!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limeyjeeper Posted October 11, 2022 Author Share Posted October 11, 2022 After way too much downtime due to my move from Texas to Indiana via Ohio. I am now settled in and have now got my garage to the point where I can start back on the Comanche. I have a decent list of fixes to make:- Overheating. Still chasing this down. Need to check compression, injectors etc. I am going to figure this out eventually. I am also thinking that the carter fuel pump might not be up to the job. I need to test drive with a fuel pressure tester connected to see if the pump keeps up. It should but who knows. AF ratio is good so it doesn't seem to be running lean. Cam position sensor replacement which means taking off the intake. PITA Also need to pull the trans and transfer case to replace the bellhousing and Novak adapter with the QuickDraw setup. Now I have my lift running that is a much easier job for and old fart like me. Lots of electrical gremlins. Still chasing down the door locks. They work with the key but not from Digital Watchdawg. Really weird issue. Also interior lights don't work. Might just make a new dash harness. Stock harness is an abomination. Replace park brake cable with slightly shorter one. One of my fender flares has lifting paint. Very, very hard to get a good adhesion. Made the mistake of blasting the factory paint off. Should have left it on would have made a better base. Also going to replace the aftermarket front clip with the original one from the Jeep. Needs a lot of cleaning up but it will fit sooo much better. Anyways. I will keep everybody posted as to my progress!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsalagi Posted October 11, 2022 Share Posted October 11, 2022 Nice setup! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxyjeep Posted October 11, 2022 Share Posted October 11, 2022 How many miles do you have on it so far after the build? It's always the little things that come up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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