5.3 Vortec engine swap and other upgrades

On another note, my heater blower only works when its on full blast now... not sure if anyone else has had this issue and how they fixed it? I've had issues with the vents anyways. The only thing that seems to work before was the floor vents and the side window defrost vents. It didn't default to the windshield defrost vents like I've heard its supposed to do. When I shift the selectors, it sounds like it all moves, but as soon as I turn up the air, you can hear a vent slap shut and air only comes out specific vents. I haven't tried pulling it all apart... seemed like a pain and its only cold for a few months in Louisiana.
Your resistor may have failed

Car Control Heater Motor Resistor Module Blower Compatible with Jeep Wrangler TJ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MXHL7ID/?tag=wranglerorg-20
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeeper25
I did some things cause I got bored waiting for parts to come in. Also ordered a new water pump after swapping the pullies because the squeaking is still there and its killing me. That'll be here today. The airbox I showed doesnt seal in the back so it's useless for a snorkel and the prefilter cap is massive so I'm sending those back.

But check out my back door table. I just found the biggest cutting board I could find at walmart, bought some magnets, a hinge and some hardware to tie the paracord too then mocked it up. I used extreme double sided tape for now incase I dont like it. I'll hard mount it later if I do

20200127_200636.jpg


20200127_212849.jpg


20200127_212857.jpg
 
No turning back!!!😬

Came out well though. The template sent with it was pretty good quality too. It was a thick glossy paper and lined up perfectly.

20200130_192054.jpg


20200130_203415.jpg


20200201_131802.jpg


Picked up a Jeep bed trailer too the other days for pretty cheap! More pictures to come with that project!
 
  • Like
Reactions: TJ Starting and JMT
Finally fixed the blend doors for the heater. No more foggy windows. But other then that I've just been fixing this YJ trailer up. Grab some stock fenders for it and started building a rack I can toss a tent on. I only used 1 inch tube but from the calculations I did, I should be able to have a center point weight of close to 450 lbs per bar which the weight wont be on the center and theres three bars... I guess I'll find out when I give it a try hahah! I'm more worried about my armature welding skills more then the strength of the steel... 😬

I'm adding rear Jack's so I can level it out too. Or jack it up to change a tire. I think later down the road I'll toss some brakes on it for better trail control but for now it's fine. I'm really hoping to go camping alot this year.

20200208_234403.jpg


20200208_234119.jpg


20200208_234011.jpg


20200208_234200.jpg


20200208_234241.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: JMT
I'd go with that stubby CC front bump, once you paint it you can always touch it up later. Good progress.
 
I'd go with that stubby CC front bump, once you paint it you can always touch it up later. Good progress.
I already bought the EAG one. I feel like everything gets replaced on a Jeep eventually. I'll probably change it out later down the road when I decide to make the thing more capable.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TJ Starting
I already bought the EAG one. I feel like everything gets replaced on a Jeep eventually. I'll probably change it out later down the road when I decide to make the thing more capable.
I have the EAG. It works fine and the stubby you got is cooler IMHO.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeeper25
Did some more work on the trailer. Extended the tongue a foot with an 18 inch reciever tube for the pintle hook setup on it's way, and i can also upgrade to a fully articulating hitch later if I want... I cut the lift jack off so I can move it forward later... Added the front rack mount and utility box. Cleaned up some rust, primed and painted it. The weather sucked too much to pull the rack out and paint it but maybe later.

20200209_185907.jpg


20200209_194809.jpg


20200209_203334.jpg


20200209_203609.jpg
 
Last edited:
Got the trailer rack painted, made a water tank, installed the RTT and awning... I need to hard mount the tongue jack but other then that shes pretty much ready for some camping adventures. I found an awesome deal on some Lithium Phosphate battery packs that I'm going to build a 12v battery pack out of. I'm just waiting on the 100w solar panel and the battery management systems and then I'll start building the power system.

I had a guy look into the pedal issue and I was doing some research as well... turns out the pedal is off an 07 chevy that uses different plugs and TAC (throttle actuator control) module, but the same style plug that goes into the TAC which may be why it responds to bad. When we hooked it up to HP Tuner it was showing 150% actuation. I might just see if I can find a pedal for an 04 Chevy. So if you do an engine swap, make sure the DBW pedal is of the same year engine because they might be different!

20200218_210522.jpg
 
Looking good so far! That's like the Ford F-150 Harley Davidson edition colors ;)