To swap or not to swap

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COjeeper
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Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2021 9:29 am
Location: Mountains outside of Denver

To swap or not to swap

Post by COjeeper »

I’m sure this has been covered a million times by now but I like being part of the discussion so I’m going to ask. I just bought an ‘87 wagoneer and I would love for it to be the families new camping vehicle. I live in the foothills outside of Denver and have huge elevation changes anywhere we go so I want an engine that with the proper gearing can handle this reliably and still pull decent gas mileage.

Currently the wagoneer has the 360 with the 3speed auto. I am very close to dropping a 5.3 with a 4l60 in it but after reading a few threads it sounds like the 360 can be a great engine with a little work. So what’s the consensus here? Drop a vortec in it or rebuild the 360? If I rebuild the 360 should I swap the tranny and if so what’s the way to go?

I just bought this today and have been reading articles all day but it’s always nice to talk to someone that’s been there and done that.

Thanks in advance!
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Stuka
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Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by Stuka »

Whats the condition of the 360 like currently? Does it NEED a rebuild, or would the rebuild be centered around boosting power?

A 4sp auto would help a lot on the HWY of course. And it would allow you to lower the axle gears, which are really high on 80's waggys (2.73 standard, 3.31 optional). With an OD trans, you could put in 3.73's with 31" tires and still have good HWY, but also way more acceleration.

The 5.3L is also a good option, although you would also want to change out the gears as OD would be kind of useless unless you are doing like 85mph.

Another question, would you do everything yourself, or pay somebody to do it? The 5.3L swap will more work, but would be a more reliable vehicle in the long run if done properly.
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Topic author
COjeeper
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2021 9:29 am
Location: Mountains outside of Denver

Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by COjeeper »

Honestly I’m not 100% sure of the condition of the current engine. I bought it from a car lot that had it on consignment and when I test drove it I couldn’t get it over 20 mph. The engine sounded fine and I think it may have been a shifting issue but I wanted to use this in my negotiations on the price so didn’t inspect it further.

All of the work would be done by myself, my father in law has a dealership with a shop and it’s something that me and my brother-in-law could knock out in a day, we’re both mechanics. I’m looking to make this wagoneer into something that we can rely on and is a joy to drive, that’s why I originally planned on the swap but if the 360 with a different tranny behind it can be comparable I would rather do that and spend that money elsewhere.
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tgreese
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Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by tgreese »

Not stuck in low range?

This topic is very popular, and if you search old posts you'll find plenty to read. Here and at IFSJA.
https://www.bing.com/search?q=site%3Aif ... ngine+swap
https://www.bing.com/search?q=site%3Afs ... ngine+swap

Read some and modify the search terms for a new search if there is a specific additional topic to pursue.
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Topic author
COjeeper
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2021 9:29 am
Location: Mountains outside of Denver

Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by COjeeper »

Good stuff, got stuck going down that rabbit hole for most of the day. Looks like I’m definitely going to swap but I might not be in as big of a hurry as I was before.

Topic author
COjeeper
Posts: 37
Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2021 9:29 am
Location: Mountains outside of Denver

Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by COjeeper »

Still waiting on the wagon, I live 4000 feet up from where I bought it so they’re having to trailer it up to my house. I’m thinking it something simple that a good ole fashion hard shift will fix.

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Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by 89_Wagon »

If going the AMC 360 route, TBI + AW4 transmission will get about 15 mpg. That's probably the best bang for the buck and you'd be out $2k in parts. TBI alone will get 14 mpg with conservative driving. An engine swap could run anywhere between $5K - $8k in parts. I did the TBI + AW4 and it's dependable. I use the jeep just as you plan to use it... Camping and vacation. However, the AMC 360 in my rig now has more serious problems and to me I would rather put that $ towards a more reliable/advanced platform than rebuilding the AMC. So, if the engine is good I would go TBI + AW4. If not, any variety Gen 3-4 GM V8. Many people report 17 mpg on a gen 3-4.

Oh, incorrectly adjusted transmission bands can cause it not to shift out of first. The TSM does not mention to back the first/reverse band after torquing it to spec. I forget how many turns though.

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Topic author
COjeeper
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Joined: Tue Apr 27, 2021 9:29 am
Location: Mountains outside of Denver

Re: To swap or not to swap

Post by COjeeper »

Thanks for the advice. Ends up that my father-in-law has a complete 5.3 out of an 05 1500 so it’s looks like the swap is on! Maybe someone on here could help me out with an issue I’m currently working on.

I’m wanting to at least drive it a little until I can get around to pulling everything and doing the swap. It had low end power but absolutely nothing when I gave it full throttle so I assumed it wasn’t getting good spark. I started with a new distributor cap, plugs and wires, after that it doesn’t even try to run. It turns over great but doesn’t fire at all. I replaced the coil and did the light test and everything seems to be right. I looked down into the carb and it’s spraying fuel. Any ideas would be much appreciated!
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