So I get a call from my friend Charlie, who works in his father's towing company/small wrecking yard; you know the kind of place. He said a 1992 Jeep Cherokee just rolled in and his father already marked it for parts and is going to offer me 250 for the just the motor.

I was at work so I sent my father down to take a look and he heard it run before they pulled it; purrrs like its rolled off Toldeo assembly in 1992. So they hoisted it out and put it in the back of my father's rig and now its home.

I've already going to have my neighbor who does engine swaps do the swap for me in a few weeks, but obviously since its sitting on an engine stand in my garage, I'm going to do the oil pan gasket, rear main seal, valve cover gasket, oil filter adapter o-rings, and of course a good cleaning.

My father suggested I pull the head and do the valve seals; should I even bother?
And is there anything else I should do? I'm not up for a full rebuild since it still runs nor do I have the space.

I'd do the valve seals and head gasket. It's not hard on the 4.0 to do that stuff, especially if you have the motor on a stand. It will give you an opportunity to check the cylinder walls while you're in there. Chances are everything will still look nice, but it's good to know and it's ALWAYS good to decarbon everything.

Posted by Agent Skelly So I get a call from my friend Charlie, who works in his father's towing company/small wrecking yard; you know the kind of place. He said a 1992 Jeep Cherokee just rolled in and his father already marked it for parts and is going to offer me 250 for the just the motor. I was at work so I sent my father down to take a look and he heard it run before they pulled it; purrrs like its rolled off Toldeo assembly in 1992. So they hoisted it out and put it in the back of my father's rig and now its home. I've already going to have my neighbor who does engine swaps do the swap for me in a few weeks, but obviously since its sitting on an engine stand in my garage, I'm going to do the oil pan gasket, rear main seal, valve cover gasket, oil filter adapter o-rings, and of course a good cleaning. My father suggested I pull the head and do the valve seals; should I even bother? And is there anything else I should do? I'm not up for a full rebuild since it still runs nor do I have the space.

DEGREASE AND PAINT THE ENGINE.
(it just looks better that way)

Posted by Samurai DEGREASE AND PAINT THE ENGINE. (it just looks better that way)

I said I would give it a good cleaning. Paint? Oh god, I can't stand the people who paint the valve cover red in the Jeep world.

Posted by Agent Skelly I said I would give it a good cleaning. Paint? Oh god, I can't stand the people who paint the valve cover red in the Jeep world.

not the valve cover... the engine. ENGINE. BLOCK. HEAD. ENGINE!

Posted by Samurai not the valve cover... the engine. ENGINE. BLOCK. HEAD. ENGINE!

...Paint the block? What is this, a trailer queen? Its a Jeep, its going to be covered in mud in 6 months

Posted by Agent Skelly ...Paint the block? What is this, a trailer queen? Its a Jeep, its going to be covered in mud in 6 months

The virgin should at least look pretty on prom night before you start a lifetime of fucking the shit out of her.

Posted by jeepdave The virgin should at least look pretty on prom night before you start a lifetime of fucking the shit out of her.

thank you.
when I yank the engine out of my Cobalt, it WILL BE painted. I ordered a new cam cover today so I can have it powdercoated same color as the car (or as close as the 'coater can come)

Wouldn't painting EVERYTHING with a good enamel protect it from rust and would also make it much easier to clean mud and such?

If your engine block is rusting, you have other issues to deal with

Naw, I'll degrease it and see how it looks from there.

I'm just trying to find a engine stand...

So if you replace the hood and the doors, do you have a new Jeep? Cuz I'm pretty sure you've replaced everything now.

Paint it for sure, even black. It will clean up so nice, and easy with a simple hosing off.
I would pull the head , gasket, etc.., check the timing chain? tensioner? waterpump, I would do all that while it's on the stand.

Posted by Samurai not the valve cover... the engine. ENGINE. BLOCK. HEAD. ENGINE!

Thats cheap. Dont paint the head. It makes it look like a lazy dumb redneck put it together. if you paint, take time to remove everything from the block.

Posted by Samurai when I yank the engine out of my Cobalt, it WILL BE painted. I ordered a new cam cover today so I can have it powdercoated same color as the car (or as close as the 'coater can come)

I cringe just thinking about it.

Posted by bandi So if you replace the hood and the doors, do you have a new Jeep? Cuz I'm pretty sure you've replaced everything now.

No, I haven't replaced the body

And you have the parts in your barn to make like 4 brand new 1971 VW Beetles, so STFU :p

So now, I might be actually doing the swap myself along with 3 friends over a weekend instead of having the neighbor paid to do the work; still pondering it.

I also have a buyer for the old motor; one the other Jeep guys in our SAR group wants to upgrade his '87 Cherokee with the 4.0 RENIX engine to the 4.0 HO Mopar EFI.

HO is always a worthy swap, IMO. He should stroke that motor while he's at it :p

Posted by big dave I cringe just thinking about it.

but what if it comes out nice?

Posted by wannabeotaku HO is always a worthy swap, IMO. He should stroke that motor while he's at it :p

My motor is already HO unlike yours

And stroke? If this was a trail rig, I would. But its an daily driver/drive the backroads on SAR mission rig

Posted by Samurai but what if it comes out nice?

Then ill put my foot in my mouth

Posted by Agent Skelly No, I haven't replaced the body And you have the parts in your barn to make like 4 brand new 1971 VW Beetles, so STFU :p

More like 10.

I had a '92 Cherokee in the shop at VW yesterday. I'd own another one.

Posted by bandi More like 10. I had a '92 Cherokee in the shop at VW yesterday. I'd own another one.

Yeah, today on a Search, I was talking with a few other people and you know, despite a bunch of small issues, the Cherokee is still solid.