Summer Job!

[Baskinator]

I'll try to take pictures next weekend when I get home. I don't recall what it looked like exactly, just that they weren't so pretty from rust and oxidation.

[captspillane]

Howdy Phil, I hope your family didn't have any flooding problems. The water flooded further in Schwenksville than I've ever seen it. My sister took alot of good pictures if you want to see them.

I think he's asking you for pictures of your exhaust because you described your motor as a 4.0 from a 1995 Wrangler. Your pictures clearly show a 258 cast manifold and aluminum intake original to the Eagle, so you don't have the 4.0 headers that require a bracket modification to use. If the previous owner told you that he put a motor from a YJ wrangler in your SX4, then its likely a 1988 or 1989 motor. I believe those were the last years for the carberated 4.2 motor, and I also believe they had already changed the bolt pattern on the head to accept a 4.0 valve cover then. Your original 4.2 motor in 1983 only had three bolts on the passenger side of the valve cover.

If you motor is actually from a 1995 Wrangler, it will not have a mechanical fuel pump. The 4.0 casting eliminated the hole there. I can see the top of a fuel pump in one of your pictures so that solves that. If a 1995 head was put on your 82 short block, then the intake manifold will be sitting above your exhoust manifold. The alignment pins for the fuel injection intake manifold would not engage your carb intake, so you would see two pins sticking out from under the bottom of the intake manifold. None of your pictures shows it clearly but I'm pretty confident you have a 4.2 head as well. For now I've concluded that the previous owner simply didn't know the year of the Wrangler the engine came from.

-Dave Spillane-

[Baskinator]

Yeah, I wasn't so sure myself which engine I have. I've gotten different responses from different people, but yours is the most thorough so far. The intake manifold was above the exhaust manifold from what I recall, but I'd have to see it again to tell if the pins are sticking out underneath. Unfortunately I did not get to take pictures with the carb off since I was in a major hurry. The valve cover has probably 15 bolts, or something like that, and people have told me it does look like the 4.0 cover. It does also have the mechanical fuel pump.

My mom said they didn't have any damage or bad flooding at her house, but my dad sent me a picture of the tree that fell on his convertible Triumph TR4 (in the Trappe area I believe) which he's had for probably 30 or 40 years. It was already a major project, but now it's even more of a project .

I was actually just over in Schwenksville a week ago volunteering at the Philly Folk Fest, and it was ridiculously muddy from a little bit of rain. I can't imagine if they would've had it during the hurricane, wouldn't mind seeing some pictures of the area if you have 'em.

[captspillane]

In reply to “Casper” with the 4.0 head, I'll post pictures of my exhaust once I finish making it. On page 3 of his thread here on the project area of the forum, "tougeagle" already shows pictures of the exhaust he made if you need it immediately. From what I've seen so far I believe the axle support can remain in place if the lip around the edge is shaved down slightly. A donor midpipe flange from a Cherokee is needed to mate to the end of the header, but you don't want to retain more than a few inches from it. The Cherokee midpipe has a very profound crimp about 8 inches from the end that drastically reduces its diameter. You're best cutting off the last 4 inches to save just the flange before the crimped area and then welding that to new exhaust pipe. When I did the exhaust in my 151 Iron Duke I was able to use two prebent standard 90 degree elbows to go up and around the differential and then weld up nicely to my shortened midpipe. The 4.0 is obviously different than the 2.5, but the axle is the same and I do believe its an easier fabrication than you expect. I also put a stainless mesh piece of flexible exhaust pipe between my welded sections of midpipe and where the catalytic converter is rigidly fastened to the transmission crossmember. I do believe that allows the beginning sections of exhaust pipe to vibrate with the engine without fatiguing my welds.

I finished rebuilding my 4.5 stroker and am installing it next time I'm home. I use the term stroker lightly since it has the same displacement and 258 crank as a stroker, but I actually have an overbored 258 block and 4.0 head. Usually when you say Jeep stroker you’re talking about a 4.0 block mated with a 258 crank. My engine can’t be overbored anymore but the larger pistons in a 4.0 block have the potential to be overbored to a 4.9 displacement. I chose to switch to the wider serpentine belt from a 1995 Jeep 4.0 because I’ve had too many Eagles with screeching Vbelts over the years. It’s embarrassing. The 258 block is missing two bolt bosses needed to attach the Alternator bracket from a 1992 era 4.0, but in 1995 the top bolt of the alternator goes to the AC bracket and the smaller alternator bracket works fine. The timing chain cover from a 1995 also has a cool rubber bumper in it that prevents chain slap that the 258 cover didn’t have. I suggest changing those parts over too if you’re putting a 4.0 head, header, and fuel injection in your Eagle.

-Dave Spillane-

[mudkicker715]

When I stroked mine I cut the"collector" off the  and welded true dualson. Took alot of patience and trial and welding and trial and repeat.

[captspillane]

Howdy Phil, here are two great pictures of the flooding. Its a shame to hear about the damage to the Triumph.





Both of my 1987 Eagles have the older valve cover and 7/16 head bolts, but I've heard that 1987 was the year it changed on Wranglers. When they changed the casting in 1980 to add the bosses for our Eagle axles, AMC also lightened several areas of the block and also switched from 1/2 thread to 7/16 thread head bolts. I've heard that the 1987 up Wrangler 258s switched back to 1/2 thread head bolts and also got the new valve cover bolt pattern. They are the most desireable 258 to accept a 4.0 head because the bigger head bolts help center the head better. All 4.0's have 1/2 head bolts.

I've never had a problem lining up head gaskets and never purchased the 7/16 to 1/2 bolt spacers from Hesco because I made my own. I took an old pair of head studs from a 4.0 that have 7/16 threads at the top and 1/2 threads at the bottom and used a grinder to shave the 5/8 hex nut off of them. I then flipped them upside down, screwed the freshly smoothed 7/16 end into my 258 block and then slid the head perfectly down into position without disturbing the head gasket. The two smooth bolts twist right out by hand afterward. The head won't shift once its torqued down. Genius! I wish I thought of it on my own.

-Dave Spillane-

[Baskinator]

WOW, I wonder what that person was thinking when they left their car there! That is some pretty darn bad flooding, worse than I've ever seen it around there. Thanks for the pics!

Can't quite recall if my bolts are 1/2 or 7/16, but I have a feeling they are 1/2.

[captspillane]

Did you have your head off to expose the top of the cylinders? I don't mean the 15 tiny 5/16 thread bolts that hold the valve cover down and use a 7/16 socket. The bolts I'm refering to are the real big ones that hold the head to the block. They use a 5/8 socket to remove them. The head bolts that are visible between the valve cover and the intake manifold look like studs, since they have 7/16 threads poking up from the top of them. Your idler pully bolts to the front two and a grounding cable to the body bolts to the top of the rear one. Our Eagle head bolts have the same size threads at the top of the bolt as the bottom, but 4.0 head bolts have a different size thread at the top than the bottom. The visible threads are always 7/16, regardless of whats down into your engine.

I've heard that at some point AMC or Chylser decided to make the head bolts "torque-to-yield" bolts. That means that the first time you use them they'll torque down more accurately because if you accidently overtorque one slightly more than the others it will yield and stretch to maintain an accurate torque setting. It also means that once you've used them once they should be thrown away. Its good practice to replace the head bolts every time you put an engine together, but those buggers are really expensive. I don't mind replacing the ones that are 25 years old, but then I'm going to reuse them. Hopefully I can find a trustworthy source who actually knows which head bolts are "torque-to-yield."

[shaggimo]

I've heard that at some point AMC or Chylser decided to make the head bolts "torque-to-yield" bolts. That means that the first time you use them they'll torque down more accurately because if you accidently overtorque one slightly more than the others it will yield and stretch to maintain an accurate torque setting. It also means that once you've used them once they should be thrown away. Its good practice to replace the head bolts every time you put an engine together, but those buggers are really expensive. I don't mind replacing the ones that are 25 years old, but then I'm going to reuse them. Hopefully I can find a trustworthy source who actually knows which head bolts are "torque-to-yield."

Not quite, true the bolts should only be used once, but they stretch as you torque them to the final number say 100ft lbs. after that you have to torque to yield which is a degree say 60 degrees, but it is not a true 60 degrees, a special tool is required to get an acurate torque, that 60 degrees may turn into 70, this is actually what compensates for the stretch.

[mudkicker715]

Yes znd no. eagles do not have torque to yield bolts. They are reuseable.

[Baskinator]

Ah ok, then I guess I don't have a clue what size bolts are there. For some reason I was thinking about the valve cover bolts..

[captspillane]

It looks like your driver seat leans back further than your passenger seat. That usually means your lower seat frame just broke. The good news is that your seatback and lower seat cushion comes off easily and the broken frame unbolts from the sliding rails with only four bolts. There is also a bunch of zigzag seat supports that are usually broken that are easily fixed at the same time. If you catch it early the frame is just cracked and a repair is easily welded or bolted to bridge the crack.

Your 1982 seat is highly prized. I trash all my 81 seats because they don't recline and are considerably weaker than 82s and 83s. All of my 81 seat frames broke in ways not worth repairing. I'm going to put those seats into my station wagon too, because they look great and are very comfortable. Eagle Sedans and Station Wagons all came with really wide old-man seats.

Your hatch currently opens from a push button in the dash. I replace the push button with a solid switch as a rear hatch lock. I know of a walmart switch that uses the same two existing screws. I then put a doorbell button out of sight above the taillight. I usually leave the hatch unlocked when I lock my doors because no one would think to look for a switch, but I can disarm the rear button with the switch in the dash if I really need to lock the car. I also run a wire directly from the switch to a blanked off wire in the cargo compartment. That has saved me from destroying the interior panel multiple times by jumping the switch directly from a car battery. The first reason they are unreliable is that the switch in the dash sucks. The second is that you can't pull up on the lid while your hand is in the dash. It needs help to disengage sometimes. The third biggest reason is that the ground pin never makes a good connection and sometimes is straight up missing. I add a jump wire from the roof to the rear hatch. I tested the voltage across the solenoid before adding the jump wire, I got 6 volts, and then after adding the jump wire I got 12 volts. The solenoid is very weak if you have a weak ground.

[Baskinator]

I wouldn't be surprised if the seat frame was busted, that one is very rusty underneath. I hope it's not too difficult to fix.

The seats in there are actually pretty comfortable, at least I think, and my mom even commented on how comfortable they are (when she helped bleed my brakes).

Where have you been all this time, Dave? I'm sure many people will appreciate your hatch button fix, and you seem to have a wealth of knowledge about these cars. Eggs to you! 

[captspillane]

Your SX4 is quite sharp. An SX4 looks gorgeous and is an incredible driving experience. You have alot to look forward to. This is what your Eagle will look like with white Spirit turn signal lenses, a 1980 Eagle slit grill, and 1.5 inch wheel spacers on the rear axle. This is a picture from June 2011 of my daily driver SX4 before I dismantled it for restoration.

[Baskinator]

Wow, that's beautiful! Can't wait to be able to get mine driving. Just put the carb on this morning, but wasn't really able to get anything else done. It started up fine, but the idle still needs a little adjusting. I was just happy to see her.

If I can get a ride home from school (and back) next weekend, I would absolutely love to come see your garage and/or have you come take a look at my Eagle. Not sure if that will happen yet. I would really like to find a cheap beater A to B car so I can get an off campus job and make the trips myself.