Please help me figure this out. Has anyone swapped their weak 3.8l V6 engine from their Jk. I have a 09 manual shift coming up on 190k on it. If u have, please describe what you and if possible, the total cost. I dont want to break the bank so not looking at $20,000 bill. Wifey will kill me. I dont think I want to put another 3.8 V6 in my jeep.

 

Are you geared appropriately for what appears to be your vehicle on in the picture? I imagine that amount of weight would require a higher gear set to keep it moving. I have 217k on my weak 3.8l and don't mind an ounce, I did it to myself and I chose this path. Next time I'll regear sooner.

If you 'need' more power then maybe look at super/ turbo charging as options while it's out.

 

I have regeared to 4.88s.

 

You have a lot of options. You could swap in another 3.8 as there are many of them new in box and either super or turbo charge it, swap in a 3.6, LS, or even a Hemi. I would suggest you decide what type of Jeeper your going to be and let that help guide your motor selection.
Good luck in your endeavor
John

 

I was thinking of going with 4.1L V6 and adding a super or turbo charger to it. I read on forums where it made alot of people happy. Will a hemi work with a manual?

 

The 4.1 stroker for the V6 eliminates the rod bearing and oil ring issue. Still lots of money. 505Performance sell a rotating kit for $2K then there is all the shop work required for the block and heads. Personally I would buy their standard 3.8 rotating kit which still has the improvements as mentioned. They also claim a cam they have will wake the motor up. Then injectors and ECU tune with the rebuild. These are the things I went through and just said screw it and got the 5.3 Chev LT GDI motor and 8spd tranny and spent close to $15K with MC suspension and new driveshafts.

 

15? Damn. Was your jeep a manual? If so, did u keep it that way? I would like to stick to manual..

 

It can be done, but I don't think you should do it.

https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/modi...r-swap-325039/

Save a little more while you rack up some more miles and swap something with real power.

 

Orazi - it was a manual but went to Auto. The $15k was because I did it myself. About $20-22K for Motech to do the same stuff. The only good choice for a manual are 5 speeds with tall first gears unless you go the big 3/4 ton 5 speeds with the bull low. The V8s (LS in JK) that are wheeling around Calgary seem to have much less 'slip' on the torque converter (compared to an auto JK) when one hits an obstacle plus mine has a really low first gear same as LS/6spd. Mine is not tested offroad yet as I am still playing around with it and it is winter here.