Engine Swap Options?

[tvandmoviecars]

Need to replace the engine in my 2006 Liberty. It is the 3.7L. What donor vehicle options can I use that will be a direct drop in? Years, Makes, Models.. thanks I don't want to buy something with a 3.7 and have it require mods. thanks

 

[Conundrum2006]

Any Chrysler 3.7 from just about anything 2005-2012 (2004? Not sure when they changed reluctors)
We put a 2012 liberty motor in our 2006 commander, swapped the oil pan ( liberty should be the same) , intake, throttle body the temp sensor and cam sensor. The rest was bolt up.

The other thing is after 2008(?) egr is standard, but it doesn't matter as long as you use your original exhaust manifold .

I'll look for the list of years when I get on the laptop.


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[Conundrum2006]

Having trouble logging in the main site. Anyway here are the models that use 3.7 (I'm going to make 2004 the baseline because I think that's when Chrysler changed the reluctors, although if you could grab any older 3.7 and change the reluctors to match the new year but it simpler to grab the right year)

2004-2010 Ram 1500
2011-2012 Ram 1500
2004-2011 dodge Dakota
2004-2009 Dodge Durango
2007-2011 Dodge Nitro
2004-2012 Jeep Liberty
2005-2010 Grand Cherokee & Commander
2006-2010 Mitisubishi Raider

Although there are some small differences differences, intakes, Oil Pan, sensors, the blocks and heads are the same, however the newer the better design.
Junk yards will not show these interchanges so you'll have to ask or search car-part.com , Hollanderparts.com or eBay to see what is in you area.

Let us know what you are looking at and we can try to let you know what kind of things need swapping to work. People here are very knowledgeable, they helped me out a greatly.



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[tvandmoviecars]

I will have a Jeep "expert" doing the work, hopefully.. but the more he has to do, the more he will want paid<LOL>, so hoping to find as easy of a swap, as possible. My budget is very teeny tiny, so that makes the search even tougher.

 

[Conundrum2006]

Something to keep in mind is most used warranties and rebuilt for that matter require certain things be changed for a 90 day guarantee to be honored.

Stuff like water pump, spark plugs, oil seals replaced.

When i swapped the 2012 in to the 06, it was very straight forward and a low mileage engine to, skipped a ton of steps like the rear main seal and crank seal because they were still perfect at 30k mikes and three years old at the time I bought it. Did do valve cover seals cause the JY cracked a cover and second it would be a pain to get them off in vehicle in the future (commander big ass jeep PITA to get the covers off unlike the liberty where the job is more straight forward ). Also did the water pump just for the warranty , napa has a good pump I think made by the Jeep OE maker, don't waste time on the cheaper Chinese brand with metal impellers.

I understand your installer wanting a simple job but some of this he has to expect to do as part of doing the job right the first time.

But I guess he's guarding against something like receiving a 2002 motor and a ton of work to disassemble it to make the reluctor compatible with the computer.
If he's done a liberty swap before he should be well versed in the ticks to save steps, if this is his first rodeo ask around here you'll find some great advice from the folks who have already tackled this job.

I think if you stay in the 05-07 range you'll have the least amount of sensors to swap. But I wouldn't be afraid of the 2012 year either. Only two or three sensors to change, oh and the oil filter thread is different 08-12 (?) but just use whatever year you gets filter.



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[tvandmoviecars]

If I get my friend to do it... he bleeds Jeep, and everyone that knows him, takes thier jeeps to his house to work on.. He always has a few jeeps of his own, and many part jeeps (no Libertys), and he will have my existing Jeep engine for any parts he might need, as it still runs and drives, it just has a lower end tap, so time is limited. Since that, I happened I have only driven it to a local garage to get a estimate, and they said it was toast.

The making the job as easy as possible is my thought, as he can do anything probably, but he doesnt work for free, and more work=more cost... The Jeep was a 2nd vehicle I bought for fun on trails, and to beat the winter roads, but still ride decent for when I use it as a daily driver in the winter... I didnt know that the engines had a habit of breaking (I looked on Craigslist for an engine, and every time I found one at a decent price to buy as a donor... they looked great, but had a toasted engine.) So a bit discouraged... if I had known then, what I know now, I would have gotten a Wrangler... because after I buy an engine and get it installed... I will have spent the same amount.

 

[Conundrum2006]

Two of the tricks is the power steering and ac compressor can be left attached and just pushed aside. Probably the same trick for a lot of jeeps.

Just about any vehicle needing a engine is going to be costly unless it's ubiquitous like a 4.0 .

I found the 3.7 a hard engine to find a good cheap one. Most I found today start around $1000. Part of why I grabbed a 2012 motor, those are easier to find in better shape.



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[JasonJ]

If I get my friend to do it... he bleeds Jeep, and everyone that knows him, takes thier jeeps to his house to work on.. He always has a few jeeps of his own, and many part jeeps (no Libertys), and he will have my existing Jeep engine for any parts he might need, as it still runs and drives, it just has a lower end tap, so time is limited. Since that, I happened I have only driven it to a local garage to get a estimate, and they said it was toast.

The making the job as easy as possible is my thought, as he can do anything probably, but he doesnt work for free, and more work=more cost... The Jeep was a 2nd vehicle I bought for fun on trails, and to beat the winter roads, but still ride decent for when I use it as a daily driver in the winter... I didnt know that the engines had a habit of breaking (I looked on Craigslist for an engine, and every time I found one at a decent price to buy as a donor... they looked great, but had a toasted engine.) So a bit discouraged... if I had known then, what I know now, I would have gotten a Wrangler... because after I buy an engine and get it installed... I will have spent the same amount.

I wouldn't say they have a "habit" of breaking... I'd say that the target owner that the Liberty was marketed for have the bad habit of neglecting their vehicles and doing piss-poor maintenance.

That is what makes it hard for us who take care of our stuff to find replacement engines when something catastrophic or unexpected occurs (or if the previous owner was one of those fools who only changed the oil once every 3-5 years).

But yeah.. an older Wrangler would have been a good choice for trail fun ride.. lots of parts, every Jeep guy pretty much knows how to work on them... etc. BUT, it is what it is and it's done now.

Worst case, fix up the KJ, sell it and go buy the Wrangler.

 

[dude1116]

Wrangler's resale value is ridiculous. That's why I ended up here. This is a good rig for the price and it's served me well. A lot warmer than a wrangler too. Lifted it rides nicer than any lifted truck I've been in...but of course that's not to say that other lifted rigs can't ride nicer.

 

[tvandmoviecars]

I only had it 4 months when the motor toasted on me... during the very first road trip I took it on... so, guessing the prior owner didnt do things right... my other car is approaching 1/4 million miles and runs beautifully. I would love a wrangler, but kept hearing that they were terrible on highways and lousy gas mileage... and at the time I got the Liberty.. it was going to be my daily driver... as I was trying to sell the other car... plus trying to find a rust free wrangler without paying dearly... wasnt going very well.. (ALthough I did jut find the EXACT Wrangler I had wanted, for the price I wanted, in the condition I wanted..... but, no longer in my budget, as I paid cash for the liberty, and paid off my other car at the same time.)

 

[tvandmoviecars]

Found 2 2004s. I know the 03s have a lot to change, and the 05s are pretty much a straight drop in... what about the 04s?

 

[JasonJ]

Found 2 2004s. I know the 03s have a lot to change, and the 05s are pretty much a straight drop in... what about the 04s?

As per the responses in the other thread you have going ... 04 is going to be the same situation as an 03 or an 02...

 

[GunnerSchenck]

I only had it 4 months when the motor toasted on me... during the very first road trip I took it on... so, guessing the prior owner didnt do things right... my other car is approaching 1/4 million miles and runs beautifully. I would love a wrangler, but kept hearing that they were terrible on highways and lousy gas mileage... and at the time I got the Liberty.. it was going to be my daily driver... as I was trying to sell the other car... plus trying to find a rust free wrangler without paying dearly... wasnt going very well.. (ALthough I did jut find the EXACT Wrangler I had wanted, for the price I wanted, in the condition I wanted..... but, no longer in my budget, as I paid cash for the liberty, and paid off my other car at the same time.)

So you didn't even have time to see why we all love our liberties.. well, most of us lol.
Like Jason stated, it's not the engine, but rather the owners. My engine runs perfect at 212k and has a lot of life left in her. If anything were to kick the bucket, my money is going to be on my 42RLE.. eventually.

 

[tvandmoviecars]

So, just bought an 2006 motor for my 2006 Jeep Liberty. It's not the same color Jeep, so hope it works!<LOL>