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Trying to get it mostly right the first time: A 5.9 Magnum and 46RE swapped, Tummy Tucked Daily Driven Jeep TJ

After enduring FB Marketplace for enough weeks it was time for the Dodge to go to the scrap yard. I loaded it onto my new to me trailer and headed to the scrap yard after work. And yes, it's really convenient having access to reach lifts at work!

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Right before Christmas my wife's car ended up in the shop for almost 2 weeks due to a failed ECU, which put the TJ into true daily driver status… ready or not. It didn't develop any new issues and was a joy to drive, although heat sure would have been nice when it hit low teens in Alabama that week.

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I took the week off between Christmas and New Years and got in a good weather day to work on the Jeep. The to-do list included installing the rear JKS track bar, angled relocation bracket and new lower control arms, all in an effort to correct the rear pinion angle. This project ended up taking most of a day and rendered a few lessons learned.

The first issue came with the shocks hitting the coil buckets due to the pinion being rotated so far up. Nothing a grinder and cutoff wheel can't fix. (picture taken mid process).

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The second issue came with the control arms. Core4x4 offers these in 0-6" and 6"+ lift increments and without much thought I ordered the 0-6" Tier 3 arms. Seemed logical. Except for the fact that the arms didn't have enough adjustment to pull the lower mounts forward enough to roll the pinion like I needed. This doesn't have anything to do with the arms – in fact I am very impressed with the fit, finish and quality of them. This has everything to do with me not measuring correctly before and after. To get the pinion somewhat close to correct, the track bar was trying (unsuccessfully, might I add) to coexist with the gas tank again. All of my issues revolved around the tummy tuck and relative lift height of the drivetrain, which will all be resolved when I swap in the 8.8 and can clock the bracketry as needed.

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But I had the rest of the day to fix this issue and an 8.8 swap isn't an afternoon ordeal. Since I couldn't rotate the pinon to meet the transfer case, maybe I could drop the transfer case to meet the pinion. If you recall from earlier, the front output shaft of the transfer case was hitting the crossmember and I'd installed a few washers as a quick fix to gain the needed clearance with the intent to remove them and fix this issue properly later. Well, later was now (and fingers crossed this was enough!). I unbolted the transfer case and lowered it until the angle finder read zero. This is how much I needed... about 3 washers worth.

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I removed the crossmember, notched and plated the cut and reinstalled. I re-checked my angles and everything was good to go. The test run was to a local favorite restaurant:

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It was 70 in December, so if course we took the top off. It still as a slight vibration at 45mph, but overall much better than it was. We also took the TJ through a drive through Christmas light display in town, which was brilliant considering it was pouring rain and the oil pressure at idle is sub-par.

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Total miles so far: 725.
 
Glad you are getting some good use out of it. You mentioned not having heat in the Jeep. Is that something you plan to correct later on or something you planned to not have going forward?
 
Glad you are getting some good use out of it. You mentioned not having heat in the Jeep. Is that something you plan to correct later on or something you planned to not have going forward?
I'm planning to get both A/C and heat back working. The heat does work but the blend door has the air on defrost and doesn't really do much. I don't lack much to having the A/C done either.
 
I used MMORV as an opportunity to get my new trailer dialed in with a relocated jack, toolbox, storage rack, tie downs and a winch mount. I'm a bit of a trailer geek and probably enjoy working on or building trailers as much as I do anything else. Out came the grinder and trusty $100 Harbor Freight Vulcan welder.

First was to move the jack forward to allow room for the toolbox and still have room for the tailgate of my truck to lay down.

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Next was to weld on 8 d rings to fill in the gaps where the stake pockets don't quite work for tying down a vehicle.

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I use my trailers for a lot more than just hauling vehicles and have found a winch and storage to be absolutely invaluable accessories for keeping all the gear I need to drag home new projects. This trailer is no different and got a receiver welded to the front rail for my multi mount winch and a toolbox and storage rack added to the tongue. The rack is designed to carry a gas can and have room for a spare tire but I still haven't committed to the final design.

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Speaking of water toys… remember when I said my trailers get used for a little bit of everything? Yep, I launched a Seadoo on a trailer…off the equipment trailer to retrieve my latest purchase.

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It's been a minute since I've updated this thread, which is largely due to the aforementioned Seadoo project taking on a life of its own and not wrenching on the TJ at all. I ended up buying a total of 5 skis, 2 trailers and a dock and am almost through fixing and selling what I'm not keeping.

The TJ has just over 2k miles on the swap and has had its first real issue that had to be addressed. A few months ago I was out running errands, shifted to reverse to back out of a parking spot and was met with a grinding sound that makes nails on a chalkboard seem pleasant. The best way to describe the sound is like trying to shift a manual trans into gear without using the clutch. Oddly enough, I shifted to drive and the noise went away and the TJ continued to run and drive fine, except for the grinding noise which would occur fairly random. I learned through trial and error that I could shift the transfer case into 4wd when reversing and the grinding went away, so I was confident the transfer case was where my problem lied.

Long story short, the grinding got too frequent for me to ignore so I parked the TJ a few weeks ago until I could diagnose the issue. I pulled the transfer case this weekend and found the fluid to have some super fine metallic color to it, but no large pieces. I had the transfer case sitting on a table with the input shaft facing down and stared disassembling it to find the problem. Disassembly revealed that the gear that engages the planetaries for low range had wear on the face of the gear teeth, like was attempting to engage.

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That didn't really make sense.

What also didn't make sense was how the shift collar that engages the front output didn't seem to have the travel to disengage the front drive, which I also knew didn't add up. I laid the case on its side, grabbed the input shaft and found 1/2" of play front to back.

That's DEFINITELY not right.

Look at the gap from the snap ring to the bearing:

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I looked at parts diagrams and confirmed I wasn't missing a shim, so next was to check the bearing size on the Dodge transfer case (remember, don't throw ANYTHING away until you've been done with this swap for a while!) and sure enough:

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Found it. I'd swapped the input shaft and hadn't verified that the bearing was the same which was causing the input shaft and planetaries to shift front to back. I reassembled the case using the Dodge front half and reinstalled the transfer case with no issues. A rigorous test drive will be conducted this evening in the form of an ice cream run, likely for Bruster's Southern Banana Puddin'.

The TJ is on deck to make a drive to the beach in September, so the push is about to be on get it road trip ready. If that trip goes well, the next outing will be a road trip in October to Ashville, NC then to Knoxville, to Nashville then back home. There should be a day of wheeling at Windrock in there somewhere, so this trip will be my goal to get the TJ completed (well, as 'done' as a jeep ever gets, right?)
 
It's been a minute since I've updated this thread, which is largely due to the aforementioned Seadoo project taking on a life of its own and not wrenching on the TJ at all. I ended up buying a total of 5 skis, 2 trailers and a dock and am almost through fixing and selling what I'm not keeping.

The TJ has just over 2k miles on the swap and has had its first real issue that had to be addressed. A few months ago I was out running errands, shifted to reverse to back out of a parking spot and was met with a grinding sound that makes nails on a chalkboard seem pleasant. The best way to describe the sound is like trying to shift a manual trans into gear without using the clutch. Oddly enough, I shifted to drive and the noise went away and the TJ continued to run and drive fine, except for the grinding noise which would occur fairly random. I learned through trial and error that I could shift the transfer case into 4wd when reversing and the grinding went away, so I was confident the transfer case was where my problem lied.

Long story short, the grinding got too frequent for me to ignore so I parked the TJ a few weeks ago until I could diagnose the issue. I pulled the transfer case this weekend and found the fluid to have some super fine metallic color to it, but no large pieces. I had the transfer case sitting on a table with the input shaft facing down and stared disassembling it to find the problem. Disassembly revealed that the gear that engages the planetaries for low range had wear on the face of the gear teeth, like was attempting to engage.

View attachment 214551

That didn't really make sense.

What also didn't make sense was how the shift collar that engages the front output didn't seem to have the travel to disengage the front drive, which I also knew didn't add up. I laid the case on its side, grabbed the input shaft and found 1/2" of play front to back.

That's DEFINITELY not right.

Look at the gap from the snap ring to the bearing:

View attachment 214552

I looked at parts diagrams and confirmed I wasn't missing a shim, so next was to check the bearing size on the Dodge transfer case (remember, don't throw ANYTHING away until you've been done with this swap for a while!) and sure enough:

View attachment 214553

Found it. I'd swapped the input shaft and hadn't verified that the bearing was the same which was causing the input shaft and planetaries to shift front to back. I reassembled the case using the Dodge front half and reinstalled the transfer case with no issues. A rigorous test drive will be conducted this evening in the form of an ice cream run, likely for Bruster's Southern Banana Puddin'.

The TJ is on deck to make a drive to the beach in September, so the push is about to be on get it road trip ready. If that trip goes well, the next outing will be a road trip in October to Ashville, NC then to Knoxville, to Nashville then back home. There should be a day of wheeling at Windrock in there somewhere, so this trip will be my goal to get the TJ completed (well, as 'done' as a jeep ever gets, right?)
Glad to see an update and at least you were able to fix the grinding noise with parts still on hand.
 
I've gotten a few days to wrench on the TJ in the past weeks and have gotten several things knocked off the list.

First up on the list was to replace the current Magnaflow 12866 with the newer and much larger 12276. I picked this muffler due to the center inlet and outlet and the case size being the largest I could reasonably fit in the space that I had. Check out the size difference in the 2 mufflers. If size is any indication of noise level, this should be a step in the right direction:

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Before I could install the new muffler I wanted to delete the trailer hitch and rear stock rear bumper in favor of a low profile rear bumper with an integrated rear hitch. I looked at several units and ultimately decided on a Barnes 4wd bumper. After scuffing it with a red scotch brite pad, a few coats of self etching primer and gloss black paint later it was ready to install:

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The bumper looked great but now the tail pipe and gas tank skid stuck out like a sore thumb. First to fix was the tail pipe. The muffler install went surprisingly smooth – the old muffler and intermediate pipe were removed, intermediate pipe was trimmed down and new muffler was installed in its place. I'll post a better picture when I can get the TJ up on a lift, but trust me when I say that everything fits snugly in place. Eventually I'd like to re-work the intermediate pipe to fit a little better but it'll do for now. I wanted the tail pipe tucked up as high as I could possibly get it and after some creativity with the stock exhaust hangers, this was the result:

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Bingo.

The exhaust hangers are temporarily permanent. The mount in front of the axle was clocked 90* to provide the lift that I needed. I'll drill and tap the second hole and this should work just fine.

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The rear mount is currently sitting like this:

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The plan is to swing the factory frame side exhaust hanger forward, use the stock rubber isolator and attach it to a new hanger welded to the tailpipe. Speaking of tailpipe – I plan to either cut the current tip down or weld on a new tip that tucks up closer to the bumper.

Next was to paint the gas tank skid. After a few minutes of prep with the Harbor Freight surface conditioning tool and a few coats of gloss black paint I had the back end of the TJ looking much much better.

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The next items on the list are to add another layer of insulation to the tub and get the A/C operational. I plan to do a detailed post on the A/C setup that I landed on. It's not terribly complicated, but did take a lot of research to finally land on a good solution that didn't cost a fortune.
 
I've gotten a few days to wrench on the TJ in the past weeks and have gotten several things knocked off the list.

First up on the list was to replace the current Magnaflow 12866 with the newer and much larger 12276. I picked this muffler due to the center inlet and outlet and the case size being the largest I could reasonably fit in the space that I had. Check out the size difference in the 2 mufflers. If size is any indication of noise level, this should be a step in the right direction:

View attachment 214704

Before I could install the new muffler I wanted to delete the trailer hitch and rear stock rear bumper in favor of a low profile rear bumper with an integrated rear hitch. I looked at several units and ultimately decided on a Barnes 4wd bumper. After scuffing it with a red scotch brite pad, a few coats of self etching primer and gloss black paint later it was ready to install:

View attachment 214705

View attachment 214703


The bumper looked great but now the tail pipe and gas tank skid stuck out like a sore thumb. First to fix was the tail pipe. The muffler install went surprisingly smooth – the old muffler and intermediate pipe were removed, intermediate pipe was trimmed down and new muffler was installed in its place. I'll post a better picture when I can get the TJ up on a lift, but trust me when I say that everything fits snugly in place. Eventually I'd like to re-work the intermediate pipe to fit a little better but it'll do for now. I wanted the tail pipe tucked up as high as I could possibly get it and after some creativity with the stock exhaust hangers, this was the result:

View attachment 214707

Bingo.

The exhaust hangers are temporarily permanent. The mount in front of the axle was clocked 90* to provide the lift that I needed. I'll drill and tap the second hole and this should work just fine.

View attachment 214708

The rear mount is currently sitting like this:

View attachment 214702

The plan is to swing the factory frame side exhaust hanger forward, use the stock rubber isolator and attach it to a new hanger welded to the tailpipe. Speaking of tailpipe – I plan to either cut the current tip down or weld on a new tip that tucks up closer to the bumper.

Next was to paint the gas tank skid. After a few minutes of prep with the Harbor Freight surface conditioning tool and a few coats of gloss black paint I had the back end of the TJ looking much much better.

View attachment 214706

The next items on the list are to add another layer of insulation to the tub and get the A/C operational. I plan to do a detailed post on the A/C setup that I landed on. It's not terribly complicated, but did take a lot of research to finally land on a good solution that didn't cost a fortune.
Always enjoy reading through the updates to this build and looking forward to the cool AC content.
 
I've neglected updating this thread and am working on updates as there have been quite a few. Enter the last weekend in August and t-minus 4 weeks to get the Jeep road trip (and mild wheeling) ready.

I originally installed Noico 80mil sound and heat deadening mats and the product worked well, but with this TJ being a daily driver I wanted to add another layer of heat and sound insulation to the tub to really get it closer to Cadillac status. I went on Amazon and looked for the cheapest and thickest insulation I could find and landed on this AggSound 157mil Sound Deadner. 1 roll did 98% of the area from the dash to the back of the seats and made a huge difference on the floor temperature and some noticeable sound difference. Yes, this will be a nightmare if I ever get water or mud inside the tub, but we'll cross that bridge when I get there.

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While I had the interior out it was a good time to actually install the console instead of it just sitting kinda in place. After a lot of in and out and finally cutting out the spare change tray / optional airbag switch, I finally had it bolted in for good. I haven't figured out what to do with this hole yet, but plan to clean it up and make use of that space.

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Working down my punch list, I finally wired in the trans temp gauge and installed a set of Tuff Country extended brake lines that I got on super clearance from JustDifferentials.com. These brake lines are made by Crown Performance and are great quality.

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Nope, still haven't bought new springs yet.

The TJ was getting due for an oil change and I haven't been thrilled with the oil pressure with the 10W-30, so I opted to go with Shell Rotella T4 15W-40, a quart of Lucas Oil Stabilizer and of course a Wix filter. I also installed a mechanical oil pressure gauge that is tee'd in with the stock sending unit so I can compare the 2 values. The oil pressure was substantially better after this oil change and the mechanical gauge verified that the stock gauge was within a few PSI.

A fire extinguisher that had been rolling around in the back floor board was finally mounted to the roll bar with a Synergy Mfg. Mount and a few hose clamps. I don't care if you have a daily driver Prius or a throw down rock bouncer, they all need the correct fire extinguisher and YOU need to know how to use it.

More road trip prep incoming....
 

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