Auto Auction Project KJ Engine Swap?

[zzAMBIENzz]

For those that didn't see my introduction post, I will recap a little on my first KJ purchase.

I recently purchased a 2004 Liberty Limited from an auction. Good body, with a pretty cheesy repaint and a great interior. It started right up but had a considerable rough idle. I pretty much got scammed by an old auction trick, when I noticed several obvious vacuum leaks. Thinking that was the cause of the rough idle, I went for it.

Well, it wasn't. Unfortunately after diagnosing cyl's 2-4-6 were all dead, I pulled the valve cover, and it seems pretty obvious now what has happened.

The engine has clearly had the heads done very recently. They are spotless inside. But, the timing is clearly off by about 3 links. At this point, I think I have to assume that the valves are probably wrecked on that head. I do plan to run a leak down test after the Holiday, but at the very least, I can't see leaving that head on there without visually inspecting the valvetrain, no matter what the test shows.

BUT, ON TO MY FIRST QUESTION!

Considering at the very least I am looking at pulling the head, and everything to get to the timing system, my first thought is just to see if I can't find a good engine to swap in. I really was not looking for an engine rebuild project right now.

My research here says that the 2004 and older engine has the different reluctor ring on the balance shaft, BUT, according to these guys Engine-Guru | Engine Rebuilder & Parts | Grand Rapids MI | Rebuilt Engine | Remanufactured Engines, 2004 and up have the newer reluctor ring.

So the obvious question is ... which is correct? Do I need to be looking for a 03-04 engine, or am I looking for an 04-up?

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[tommudd]

04 engine

 

[ltd02]

Hopefully you might just get away with adjusting the timing chains. I think 2004 was a switch year for the KJ PCM. This means it could have either the JTEC or NGC computer. These engines have different reluctor or tone rings on the crank and cam. I believe the older JTEC has three plugs into the PCM and the NGC has four. If you can confirm you have a JTEC then get an 02-03 replacement. If you have an NGC then get an 05-07 (even up to a 12).

Here's an alternative if you can't get the correct replacement for your computer set up and have to swap the tone rings. http://www.jeepkj.com/forum/f202/engine-swap-overview-53270/

 

[zzAMBIENzz]

Hopefully you might just get away with adjusting the timing chains. I think 2004 was a switch year for the KJ PCM. This means it could have either the JTEC or NGC computer. These engines have different reluctor or tone rings on the crank and cam. I believe the older JTEC has three plugs into the PCM and the NGC has four. If you can confirm you have a JTEC then get an 02-03 replacement. If you have an NGC then get an 05-07 (even up to a 12).

Here's an alternative if you can't get the correct replacement for your computer set up and have to swap the tone rings. http://www.jeepkj.com/forum/f202/engine-swap-overview-53270/

So as long as I have the NGC controller, I can use the newer motor? That should be easy enough to check since I believe the ring on the head should be marked.

Unfortunately for me, the Jeep is stuck in my parent's garage about 30 miles away, since my shop is full with another project, and my winterized motorcycle, making this even more "fun" since I am having to tote tools back and forth to work on it.

If nothing else, if I can find even a "decent" engine to swap, just to get it rolling, I could then take my time an do a proper rebuild on the current engine when I don't have so many other projects on my plate.

 

[ltd02]

So as long as I have the NGC controller, I can use the newer motor? That should be easy enough to check since I believe the ring on the head should be marked.

Unfortunately for me, the Jeep is stuck in my parent's garage about 30 miles away, since my shop is full with another project, and my winterized motorcycle, making this even more "fun" since I am having to tote tools back and forth to work on it.

If nothing else, if I can find even a "decent" engine to swap, just to get it rolling, I could then take my time an do a proper rebuild on the current engine when I don't have so many other projects on my plate.

Yeah someone on here swapped a '12 into theirs. There are some other things that have to be done for that since I think the newer ones (KK etc?) may have an EGR. You'll probably need to swap most of your accessories over too.

 

[Conundrum2006]

As long as they use the original exhaust manifold it doesn’t matter if the new engine/cylinder head has egr or not. The egr port goes through exhaust manifold so the original with no egr port block it off.




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