Novak Conversions Jeep Wrangler TJ engine mounts

What did you do to your TJ today?

Hey all, been MIA but want your opinions.

Looking at an LJ for my dad. Has 240k miles, minimal tub rust, frame looks clean on the outside but may have chipping on the inside.

The previous owner doesn’t technically own it yet as he owes money, the title is still in possession of the dealer he “bought” it from. I spoke with the dealer and they said they’d be able to sign the title directly over to me since he never got the title in his name with an official lien tied to it. This imo makes it simpler as no lien release documentation is necessary.

He mentioned it failed inspection because mileage discrepancy, which was due to the cluster being replaced and not reprogrammed. The guy has been fully transparent and honest. This is an easy fix.

In my opinion to my dad, assuming worst case and the frame needs patching / the engine/ transmission gets replaced, for $6500 that is a good deal.

It would be a lot of time spent to fix these things if needed, but then you know what you have.

What do you guys think, good deal? Run away? Let me know!!

Hmmm….the best I could say is find a replacement frame or do the safety caps repair and there seem to be plenty of 4.0 engines and transmissions. Ideally get a ‘04 engine and tranny so it’s compatible with your PCM. Of course, it’s a fair bit of work, but you may end up in the 10.5-12k range all in.

Otherwise, head south and pick up the LJ of your choice and mileage.
 
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Hmmm….the best I could say is find a replacement frame or do the safety caps repair and there seem to be plenty of 4.0 engines and transmissions. Ideally get a ‘04 engine and tranny so it’s compatible with your PCM. Of course, it’s a fair bit of work, but you may end up in the 10.5-12k range all in.

Otherwise, head south and pick up the LJ of your choice and mileage.

My dad does have a good welding unit, maybe we will give it a try. My dad tends to be a perfectionist when looking at vehicles and it’s not realistic. You could easily drop 12k on a jeep that should be perfect then has a major issue a month down the road. I always think it’s better to get a jeep assuming it will need work for a good price and using the remainder of your budget to fix what is needed. That way you know exactly what you have.
 
Noooo, he likes my stuff a lot, and if I get enough likes Chris says I might get a toaster.

Ive got a spare one I can give you to stop the Kiwi notification spam...

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Just pay for shipping (And possibly HazMat)
 
My dad does have a good welding unit, maybe we will give it a try. My dad tends to be a perfectionist when looking at vehicles and it’s not realistic. You could easily drop 12k on a jeep that should be perfect then has a major issue a month down the road. I always think it’s better to get a jeep assuming it will need work for a good price and using the remainder of your budget to fix what is needed. That way you know exactly what you have.
These are 2 Jeeps ('49 CJ3A & '81 CJ7) I had many years back which were sold because of rust. I had them both of them running reliable by sinking money as necessary for the long haul. Thought I could teach myself to weld good enough to repair the frame & under body damage. The more I was chipping around the more damage I found until I was over whelmed. The moral is... if at all possible, the top priority is to get rust free. Spend your money on that. All the other stuff only takes money or time to buy or salvage the needed parts to rebolt on. You & dad can learn and actually have fun wrenching doing it. Dealing with any rust, be it frame, body or nuts & bolts will steal away that enjoyment.
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1981 CJ -7 Superstar.jpg
 
My dad does have a good welding unit, maybe we will give it a try. My dad tends to be a perfectionist when looking at vehicles and it’s not realistic. You could easily drop 12k on a jeep that should be perfect then has a major issue a month down the road. I always think it’s better to get a jeep assuming it will need work for a good price and using the remainder of your budget to fix what is needed. That way you know exactly what you have.

Sounds like you have found the Jeep! Maybe you can talk them down to $5,500-$6000 to get a little more breathing room. Good luck!
 
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Massive air attack today before wind picks up again. DC10 tanker with fire retardant. Will not get the slimline bearings and pressed on the ARB until Monday. Just cleaned things up today and watched tanker fly by, at least 10 runs. Brentwood near Palisades and Encino in the valley threatened. I keep a very close I on the dry Verdugo hills near my resides. Have not slept much.

Made some progress today, diff is torqued in with a .006 backlash, slimline bearings was the ticket. I tried to keep ARB functional but I busted the air tube off. Oh well, this Dana 35 axle will eventually be swapped out with a built up 2002 Dana 44 it will bolt in with suspension just need to fab a bracket.
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It was nice to focus on the job without the worry of firestorms. I almost had it all buttoned up but I busted a cover bolt, I stopped right there, tiered, pulled cover off broken bolt came out easy. Start fresh tomorrow, All calm now through the weekend, fires are contained and not a growing threat, winds pick up again next week. 🙏
 
I did the Ford Windstar air box mod, though without drilling into the cowl. I didn't shorten the air box where the MAF was, though I likely will as the air box has to be removed to check the oil level. Certainly better than the oiled air filter dangling by the motor mount and sucking up dirt that was there before. Don't mind the hole in the side of the air box - I plugged it immediately after I took this photo.
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I did the Ford Windstar air box mod, though without drilling into the cowl. I didn't shorten the air box where the MAF was, though I likely will as the air box has to be removed to check the oil level. Certainly better than the oiled air filter dangling by the motor mount and sucking up dirt that was there before. Don't mind the hole in the side of the air box - I plugged it immediately after I took this photo.
View attachment 586136

Do you have it secured in anyway? I may be interested in doing this eventually if I convince myself to go hi-lines. I don't really want to go into the cowl as I live in a very rainy area. I know some have reported no issues but I've seen other comments about damp air filters and such and don't want to risk it.
 
110 per tank on 33's? even driving like a race car that's hard to swallow.

I get just over 200 per tank.. Spirited driving, mostly highway and on 33s
My bad I was wrong! New calculation using a calculator tells me 128 miles per tank
Fueled up the day prior so I started with a full tank that day! I found it hard to believe myself but since I put on the 33s (I'm on 3.73s soon to be 5.13s 42rle) daily drive it 72 miles a day I now gotta fuel up everyday now with 8.71 gallons in which I've noticed 😆
5.13s should put me back hopefully and better than where i was on 31s! ,0 to 60 my jeep feels just as quick as before but after 70-80 it kinda likes to stay there OD off button and everything I gotta slow down to 60 for me to quickly get up to 90 for example,It only throws the timing I have tuned from a stop and it holds all the way even after 100+
 
I did the Ford Windstar air box mod, though without drilling into the cowl. I didn't shorten the air box where the MAF was, though I likely will as the air box has to be removed to check the oil level. Certainly better than the oiled air filter dangling by the motor mount and sucking up dirt that was there before. Don't mind the hole in the side of the air box - I plugged it immediately after I took this photo.
View attachment 586136

Looks like you cut the straw down a little(or the PO), It had a thicker wall,smaller internal diameter then what I was expecting. Don’t know if that was consistent across the years was yours similar?

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I did the Ford Windstar air box mod, though without drilling into the cowl. I didn't shorten the air box where the MAF was, though I likely will as the air box has to be removed to check the oil level. Certainly better than the oiled air filter dangling by the motor mount and sucking up dirt that was there before. Don't mind the hole in the side of the air box - I plugged it immediately after I took this photo.
View attachment 586136
What keeps this from getting water in it and how does it drain out? Not sure I see a benefit of this over the stock airbox. Assuming you did this because of the tube fenders inner fender?
 
Do you have it secured in anyway? I may be interested in doing this eventually if I convince myself to go hi-lines. I don't really want to go into the cowl as I live in a very rainy area. I know some have reported no issues but I've seen other comments about damp air filters and such and don't want to risk it.

At the moment it is pinned between the A/C lines, the grill support rod, and the hood. Once I decide if I am going to shorten the air box or not I will add some sort of means to secure it to the grill support rod. I live in an area that is generally dry, except we can get heavy snow, but I was worried about winter wheeling with snow falling into the cowl.
 
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What keeps this from getting water in it and how does it drain out? Not sure I see a benefit of this over the stock airbox. Assuming you did this because of the tube fenders inner fender?
I did this because the hyline fenders didn't allow for reuse of the stock airbox, and I didn't want to keep what the previous owner had which was a filter just dangling inside the engine bay sucking up whatever was getting kicked up while driving.
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I'm not sure if all Windstar filter housings have this, but mine has two spots where the case comes together where water that makes it into the filter area can drain out.
 
My bad I was wrong! New calculation using a calculator tells me 128 miles per tank
Fueled up the day prior so I started with a full tank that day! I found it hard to believe myself but since I put on the 33s (I'm on 3.73s soon to be 5.13s 42rle) daily drive it 72 miles a day I now gotta fuel up everyday now with 8.71 gallons in which I've noticed 😆
5.13s should put me back hopefully and better than where i was on 31s! ,0 to 60 my jeep feels just as quick as before but after 70-80 it kinda likes to stay there OD off button and everything I gotta slow down to 60 for me to quickly get up to 90 for example,It only throws the timing I have tuned from a stop and it holds all the way even after 100+

No way you are getting that crappy of fuel economy... (Roughly 8 MPG)

Meanwhile I am over here getting 14-16 MPG while trucking down the highway every morning.

When do you fill up? When the light comes on?

You should have the 19 gallon tank so filling up roughly 14-15 gallons when the light comes on.........
 
No way you are getting that crappy of fuel economy... (Roughly 8 MPG)

Meanwhile I am over here getting 14-16 MPG while trucking down the highway every morning.

When do you fill up? When the light comes on?

You should have the 19 gallon tank so filling up roughly 14-15 gallons when the light comes on.........

I dont really know if i have the 19 G. tank on my Lj,The 1st time I've had the light turned on I filled up on almost 15 gallons,I always get gas at half tank!
Also to mention,I'm tuned got a bigger cam than stock,Ported head/intake ARH header 3" exhaust so all that ain't helping,Although said mods really didn't affect my MPGs ! Maybe 1mpg less since my wallet didn't notice 🤷‍♂️ now it has however with these 33s lol
ALSO now that i think about it I'm sure I've been lugging it alot too,me going 70 I can be at full throttle or half and there's no difference in power,So I just rest my foot on the throttle so I need to watch out for my foot !
Edit- my calculations tell me I get 8.71 Mpg Befote with the 33s I was at 11 ish mpg when cutting up with people going fast,12-14 when driving normal.....not so spirited if you will
 
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Novak Conversions Jeep Wrangler TJ engine mounts