Hi I am going to do a Dodge 5.9L swap in my 2000 TJ. Would love to get advice from anyone that has done one of these swaps.
Information on doing a 5.9L Magnum swap in my TJ
- Thread starter Wojoe
- Start date
@RangerRick has done it, and he has a lot of details in his build thread here:
Project "Red Headed Stepchild" A restoration & build
Project "Red Headed Stepchild" A restoration & build
I've done a few. What are you wanting to know?
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OP
Well I am going with the auto trans from the donor vehicle. What do I do for a trans mount? Plus what about a radiator?
I bought a conversion radiator for Chevy/Dodge into a TJ, 4.0 shroud, and ZJ fan and clutch. I fabricated a trans mount using the Dodge and TJ mounts.
@Wojoe Look on my build page to see what radiator I used in my TJ conversion. It was around $100 (give or take), and very well made. Fit perfectly and keeps the engine @ 195* even in hot desert or creepy crawly speeds in the rocks. I also kept the factory thermo-clutch radiator fan and used the shroud from a 4.0L TJ for my cooling solution. It looks and works 100% factory except for cosmetics of a billet aluminum radiator all tig welded and shiny 
.
As far as the transmission mount goes, I combined the original Jeep transmission mount bottom part with the transmission side bracket from the donor vehicle the transmission came from. Three spot welds hold it together and it uses a standard 1996-2002 TJ Wrangler rubberized mount available at any parts house supply. I've also done a tummy tuck with a nearly flat belly pan from TeraFlex (their older style boatside skid plate) from Tera's LCG line of long arm suspension kits. It only drops about 1.25" below the frame at the lowest part of the belly pan. It clears my Atlas II transfer case and 46RE automatic transmission nicely.
You can look around on other boards to see how others have done this swap. It's been done many times by lots of people at this point and is fairly well documented in builds. Some look factory, some to put it mildly, definitely don't. I wanted this conversion to be like it came off the assembly line in Toledo Ohio with the customer build sheet order box checked for a Magnum V8 engine under the hood.
There are a lot more details over on the build page including pictures.
RR
.As far as the transmission mount goes, I combined the original Jeep transmission mount bottom part with the transmission side bracket from the donor vehicle the transmission came from. Three spot welds hold it together and it uses a standard 1996-2002 TJ Wrangler rubberized mount available at any parts house supply. I've also done a tummy tuck with a nearly flat belly pan from TeraFlex (their older style boatside skid plate) from Tera's LCG line of long arm suspension kits. It only drops about 1.25" below the frame at the lowest part of the belly pan. It clears my Atlas II transfer case and 46RE automatic transmission nicely.
You can look around on other boards to see how others have done this swap. It's been done many times by lots of people at this point and is fairly well documented in builds. Some look factory, some to put it mildly, definitely don't. I wanted this conversion to be like it came off the assembly line in Toledo Ohio with the customer build sheet order box checked for a Magnum V8 engine under the hood.
There are a lot more details over on the build page including pictures.
RR
OP
Thank you so much for the advice. I am getting really pumped up to do this. Starting to buy and collect parts now. I bought a 2000 Durango with the 5.9L. Runs really smooth and feels like a ton of power.
Two things I would try to find at a junkyard are the power steering pump and bracket with pulley from a ZJ Grand.
I'd also run the fan from the ZJ and a shroud from a 4.0L Wrangler if your TJ is a 4-banger like @pcoplin did. Way more reliable than anything electric fans will do in the middle of nowhere. The power steering conversion will give you more inner fender clearance on the drivers side and the pump is the same style/design as what your TJ already has. The hoses hooked right up to the steering box with the TJ lines and all I did was add a plate style trans cooler out of the ZJ donor as a power steering cooler since I run big tires in the rocks. Keeps the PS fluid from boiling out on the trail and makes the fluid last twice as long before it needs changing.
Remember your exhaust and starter will be different from a Durango/Dakota than it will be from a Jeep ZJ Grand because the starter is on the driver side with Dodge trucks above your drive shaft. You may need a body and or suspension lift to help clear things up there depending on your front axle setup.
The Jeep has a ton more power, feels like it should have from the factory even with the big tires. Especially since I have 5.13 gears, it will pass almost anything getting on the freeway on ramp. Hard for even high performance sports cars to catch me in a hole shot from a dead stop at the signal light if I really put my foot in it. Definitely night & day difference from the 4-banger. The best part is no more leg cramps trying to mash the accelerator to the floor "hoping & preying" I don't get run over getting up to speed on the freeway. Also don't have that urge to rock forward and backwards in my seat feeling like I need to pedal faster LOL......
I'd also run the fan from the ZJ and a shroud from a 4.0L Wrangler if your TJ is a 4-banger like @pcoplin did. Way more reliable than anything electric fans will do in the middle of nowhere. The power steering conversion will give you more inner fender clearance on the drivers side and the pump is the same style/design as what your TJ already has. The hoses hooked right up to the steering box with the TJ lines and all I did was add a plate style trans cooler out of the ZJ donor as a power steering cooler since I run big tires in the rocks. Keeps the PS fluid from boiling out on the trail and makes the fluid last twice as long before it needs changing.
Remember your exhaust and starter will be different from a Durango/Dakota than it will be from a Jeep ZJ Grand because the starter is on the driver side with Dodge trucks above your drive shaft. You may need a body and or suspension lift to help clear things up there depending on your front axle setup.
The Jeep has a ton more power, feels like it should have from the factory even with the big tires. Especially since I have 5.13 gears, it will pass almost anything getting on the freeway on ramp. Hard for even high performance sports cars to catch me in a hole shot from a dead stop at the signal light if I really put my foot in it. Definitely night & day difference from the 4-banger. The best part is no more leg cramps trying to mash the accelerator to the floor "hoping & preying" I don't get run over getting up to speed on the freeway. Also don't have that urge to rock forward and backwards in my seat feeling like I need to pedal faster LOL......
OP
OP
Ok I am at the wiring point. Having trouble with the 8 wire Transmission Solenoid Assembly, Not 100% sure where all the wires go? I am going from an auto trans toan auto trans. like the # 7 wire I think goes to #11 spot on the TJ harness PCM C2 but there is a wire in that spot already?
@ Wojoe did you get the manuals for your TJ and the donor like I show in my build page? That helps a lot because if you look at the JTech book it has both side-by-side. There was only adding the solenoid and power that had to be done because I used the donor engine and transmission harness from the V8 ZJ so I didn't have to add anything to that, just the PDC on the passenger fender where I added the TCS solenoid and a tap for power to it.
OP
Yes just got it all wired up yesterday. I did have to add a solenoid, It finally started to make sense to me. Just a few brain farts.
That seems to be the common consensus that when you first start working on the wiring it seems confusing or daunting but after a while, you get in the groove and it all makes sense.
I do electronics for a living and still had that feeling when I first started. A few hours into it, everything started to come together and when it first fired up, it was confirmation we were on the right track and had made the correct decision to build and blend the wiring harness instead of hire or pay someone else....
RR
I do electronics for a living and still had that feeling when I first started. A few hours into it, everything started to come together and when it first fired up, it was confirmation we were on the right track and had made the correct decision to build and blend the wiring harness instead of hire or pay someone else....
RR
OP