Your favorite Eagle misconceptions or other funny, but incorrect stories

[89 MJ]

I'm sure all of us have heard someone say something like "Aren't those basically a Jeep Cherokee underneath?" or "Those were the first all wheel drive car" (side note, I don't completely disagree with the second statement. It wasn't the first, but I would call it the first successful AWD car in the states), amongst others, I'm sure. My question is, what is your favorite misconception about the Eagle?

I am fond of the old "those are a Jeep Cherokee underneath" line. It seems like they would be a very similar vehicle. They are from the same era, they had the same parent company, Roy Lunn from Jeep was a big reason the Eagle exists, and they even were designed for similar people, yet they are very different vehicles. They really don't share many components at all.

On a one day off road trip I went on (and the car did better than anybody expected it to, including myself), I was told that a guy knew someone with an Eagle that they put a body lift and 31s on.

[MIPS]

An eagle is "the 70's AMC's with Jeep parts and a trim update" but it's so much worse than that.

Body and trim, sure with the exception of the Pacer they recycled nearly everything else but the drivetrain is special. Transfer case is different. Axle is different. A Jeep's (normally) gonna be body-on-frame and as we all know an Eagle is Unibody and makes some awful noises if you push it too hard. Treat an Eagle like a jeep without any modifications and if the suspension doesn't betray you with it's multiple uniquely Eagle parts the unibody is gonna twist itself apart.


An Eagle could come with a V8
See below.


An eagle can fit the 304. It drops in.

It can't. Yes the 998 will bolt up to the engine and the yes engine bay is large enough to fit it but then you have to relocate the mounts and even then I can't even promise you the oil pan will clear the front diff.

[89 MJ]

An eagle is "the 70's AMC's with Jeep parts and a trim update" but it's so much worse than that.

Body and trim, sure with the exception of the Pacer they recycled nearly everything else but the drivetrain is special. Transfer case is different. Axle is different. A Jeep's (normally) gonna be body-on-frame and as we all know an Eagle is Unibody and makes some awful noises if you push it too hard. Treat an Eagle like a jeep without any modifications and if the suspension doesn't betray you with it's multiple uniquely Eagle parts the unibody is gonna twist itself apart.


An Eagle could come with a V8
See below.


An eagle can fit the 304. It drops in.

It can't. Yes the 998 will bolt up to the engine and the yes engine bay is large enough to fit it but then you have to relocate the mounts and even then I can't even promise you the oil pan will clear the front diff.

Yes! These are great!