Rockie
New Member
Ver nice! Glad you found it. Did you find that the 6 were much more than 4 cylinder?
4 cylinder vs straight 6
- Thread starter Greenmachine
- Start date
Bingo. I have always tried to be considerate of other 4cylinder owners here, but having owned many 4.0 Jeep’s, I don’t want anything with less power. The 4.0 needs about 40-50 hp to ring the bell as it is.
The cost of ownership , suspension and lift mods is about the same regardless of engine, at least start with the most feasible engine platform.
Also, the complete build cost of many of the nicest TJs on here won’t even get you off the lot with most of the new ones, these are a great value and give a ton of enjoyment for the cost. I know it’s all relative, but TJs are a deal, just don’t expect them to be free or not need a few things. In most cases, the more you pay the less they will need.
That is why you put in a stroker, takes it to about 265 hp with a crane 753901 cam and a 7120 casting head and oversized throttle body and the mustang 24-26 lb injectors, don’t even need to remap the pcm, 5.7 Hemi valves are a drop in oversized valve so a good valve job and done
That is like a running a snowmobile engine in an Abrams tank, still anemic. Horsepower numbers maybe look good but torque is still lacking with longevity.
Fughuert
TJ Enthusiast
Gotta say going from a 2.5 5 speed for 5 years to 4.0 6 speed same tire size and gears (4.10) it is nice added power but nothing to write home about. Just easier to maintain speed and more pickup.
Ownership depends if you have a mindset of run it till it dies and swap an ls in or keep the stock engine long term, but i stand by if you can find a 2.5 in good shape for real cheap which used to be the case, not so much anymore, it isn’t a bad buy.
When I was looking recently the prices I saw were no reason to get a 4cyl, nearly equal prices to 6’s.
Ownership depends if you have a mindset of run it till it dies and swap an ls in or keep the stock engine long term, but i stand by if you can find a 2.5 in good shape for real cheap which used to be the case, not so much anymore, it isn’t a bad buy.
When I was looking recently the prices I saw were no reason to get a 4cyl, nearly equal prices to 6’s.
I have the 2.5 and haven't owned or driven a 4.0, but it does seem like the extra two cylinders make a big difference. I'm in the process of "lightening" the load on mine to help make the 2.5 everything it can be. I've removed the 5th (spare) 35" and am about to remove the 3" of body lift so I can run a 31-32" A/T instead of the 35/12.50 Wranglers that are on it right now. I've removed the aftermarket roll cage and cattle guard as well and I can tell it runs a little more nimble. I would imagine once the BL and big wheel/tire are off, it's going to be a nice runner.
...and spare me the lecture on the Rubi decal. It was on there when I bought it and I'll remove it if/when I repaint or wrap the thing. It's been on there for probably 10+ years so I'm either removing paint when I take it off or I'll have shadow of Rubicon forever.
...and spare me the lecture on the Rubi decal. It was on there when I bought it and I'll remove it if/when I repaint or wrap the thing. It's been on there for probably 10+ years so I'm either removing paint when I take it off or I'll have shadow of Rubicon forever.
Fixed that for you.
p.s. You can easily get some custom made decals to replace those Rubicon ones.
Last edited:
So with those parts I can have a 4.6L stroker? That’s about $1000 in parts if I’ve got all the right parts. How hard is the conversion?
TJRick
TJ Enthusiast
"Turd?"
I would like to ask you a serious question, if I may. And I mean this sincerely:
Why do you even have a TJ? I constantly see you criticize the engine and call it derogatory names. I have also seen you say multiple times how much you dislike the interior, and wish it looked like the CJ. I find that really odd coming from the Administrator of a great *TJ* Wrangler Owner's Forum.
Why don't you have a CJ with a V8 engine instead?
In your opinion, does the TJ have anything going for it that other Jeeps don't?
Oh wow... if you think I use derogatory names, you ought to follow @mrblaine around
Because leaf springs are horrid both on-road and off-road, the older V8s are far worse than any 4.0, and to build a CJ with coil springs and a decent V8 would be more money than it would be worth. At that point starting with a TJ as a platform would be a far better choice.
Absolutely
It's simplistic, easier to work on than most modern vehicles, and has an engine that while old and inefficient is very good at one thing...being mostly reliable.
In addition it's new enough that you get a coil spring suspension and longer wheelbase than previous generations while not being new enough to warrant all the electronic nannies and high price tags of the modern Wranglers.
I've owned a hell of a nice JK Rubicon 2-door. While that thing was undoubtedly a better "daily driver", it also was plagued by all sorts of annoying electronic issues, was inherently more complicated to wrench on, and at the end of the day I found myself preferring the simplicity of the TJ.
So while I think the 4.0 is a turd of an engine and the transmission options offered in the TJ are lackluster at best, I also love it for the fact that it is what it is.
Many things about the TJ in factory form suck. Many things about the TJ are also very desirable.
Two things can be true at the same time.
As long as they don't contradict!
“opposite assertions cannot be true at the same time” (Metaph IV 6 1011b13–20) - Aristotle
I think Chris is right that the TJ platform is about the easiest to modify to get the perfect vehicle. The only other way to do it is build one from scratch, which is a crazy idea.
Better question is why drag a post started in 2018 back to life to bash 4cly Jeeps? There are newer ones, or better yet why not start a new one?
We get it 4cly sucks, 6cly sucks less. Now back to which shocks suck less.
We get it 4cly sucks, 6cly sucks less. Now back to which shocks suck less.
I think it is. Just consider how many of them you still see off-road. They seem to be a very popular platform for off-road guys.
That doesn’t mean they don’t have their issues. I think the engines flat out suck for anything other than reliability. Doesn’t mean I’m going to sell it, it just is what it is. An engine that has been around in some form or another since 1965. I may be the admin of a TJ Forum but I'm not going to sugarcoat these things. Like any other vehicle, they have issues and it's apparent where Chrysler cut corners on these things when building them. That doesn't mean I am unhappy with mine or dislike it, it just means that I don't think anyone should pretend that the 4.0 engine is anything other than a reliable turd of an engine.
The 4 cylinders aren't even worth talking about. Those had no place in the TJ to begin with and were only put in as a means of meeting EPA guidelines is my understanding.
I have a 3.4 V6 Tacoma (first gen) as well. You're right about it being a fortune to modify.