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48 jeepster swap

9K views 17 replies 5 participants last post by  Highball 
#1 ·
im building a 1948 jeepster 2 wheel drive,for my sister.It has no engine or transmission.I do have a 1947 CJ2A with a nice flattie and a 3spd.Can i use the transmission from the 4wd CJ2A in a 2wd jeepster?.Or is the transmission and transfer case integral from the CJ?..i want to use the cj engine and trans but im wondering if i need a trans thats specifically designed for a 2wd.
 
#2 ·
jeepster

our jeepster has had several engine swaps, chassis swaps and is now on a blazer chassis and it was too much work, I've had jeep wagons, pickups and a FC pug nose truck. lots of modifications. I don't know if there is enough clearance in the jeepster floor for the 4 X 4 parts. If it is to stay 2 WD I would look for a 2 wd trans. A few years ago Ford was having Supply problems and put the trans and T case out of 4 wd into 2 wd Bronco II's but they didn't have the front drive shaft yokes and I don't know what if anything other than an output shaft was inside the T case they used ... MY Jeepster originall had the 4 cyl and OD trans and VW bugs could pass me on hills.
My first swap was to a nail head Buick 364, Ford station wagon T 85 Od trans, 9 in rear and the Ford brakes on the front.
 
#4 ·
48 jeepster

im trying to keep the jeep on its original frame,Its for my sister and she doesnt want 4wd or anything.I just picked up a 1977 mecury capri thats got a V6 and a standard trans,It runs really nice..so guess what she will be getting for a drivetrain? She wont even know that the thing doesnt have a flattie in it,Until she raises the hood to check the oil..by that time,She will be too far away from me to exact retribution..for the moment. What?...she gave me $500 to find a running drivetrain..and misc costs..huh??? good thing she is my sister and i promised my dad that i would finish the car for her.Hehehe i cant wait to put glass packs on that thing!!!
 
#5 ·
I would consider a larger cubic engine; V8. Here is why. Even if you chose a larger cubic inch engine with the same hp you will generally have more tq at a lower rpm. A smaller engine will have to rev more to make the HP.

What that means is drivability. If it were an small light weight sports car (I have an MG with a V6) I think it would be a good match. A heavier car would really do well with the larger cube's.

To take it to extremes to understand where I am coming from, look at Nascar engines (I know they are V8's) but they are designed for the highest HP. They get the extra HP by running them at 9,000 rpm. They cannot take off out of the pits without revving them up and spinning the tires If they try a normal take off they stall the engine.

V6's, to get the same HP as a V8 do the same. If it is a small car, it doesn't matter.
 
#6 ·
2.8 V 6

The V 6 would have a little more power than the flat head jeep. I worked my Jeepster, pulled a trailer a lot hauling lumber when I was building my house. The guy that bought the Jeep pickup put in a toyota 4 X 4 drive train and was not happy with it.. like the ad , he could have had a V8 , My son had a german Capri V6 when he was in high school, It had an offy dual port and 4 barrel holly carb, and headers and was comparable in performance to the early mustangs, The jeep FC and std pickups used a stronger channel frame that has the same contour as the jeepster, just longer for the pickup box, the single cross leaf front 2 WD suspension handled very good, I could out corner the stock 65 mustangs driving in the S turns into the Ford Adm building every morning. Some of the guys at Ford gave me a bad time about not driving a Ford, BUT Ford south america was in a partnership and built Jeep wagons after they went out of production in the US, A lot of tooking went south after Us cars changed to new models.
 
#7 ·
48 jeepster

The idea is to keep modifications to a minimum,If it were my car,I would likely still keep it 2wd but add a V8.However,my sister just wants to run it around town,And not have asked of it anymore than what it was designed for.The little V6 already has a stock Willys 4cyl flattie beat by a long shot for power,If its lacking torgue i will just add a steeper ring and gear..its a 4spd one more gear than the original 3spd. I do have a 1943 willys jeep engine that will work,But i still needed to find a 3spd from a non 4wd willys.I got tired of looking hence the V6/4spd from the mercury.All of you guys have good ideas and solid combinations,But im working with limited dollars.To me it will be underpowered,but to her..it runs/drives and is a convertible.my dad got it for her some years ago and was going to put it together for her,But he got cancer and passed on before he could do anything with it.the only immediate problem i see is the oil pan clearance..but,if i have to i will build what i need to make it work.Then the clutch/brake arrangement..hmm..steering column from a mazda truck seems to fit the bill with some modifications
 
#8 ·
clutch linkage

My older brother used to have the Warn franchise in Reno Nevada and did a lot of Jeep 4 X 4 engine swaps and installed a lot of other equipment. I followed his suggestions when I did the first V 8 swap into my jeepster. I moved the clutch linkage cross bar back into the chassis, made new brackets to mount the pivot brackets then ran longer linkage rods foreward, I had to drill a hole in the end of the clutch fork and used a half ball with the threaded hole on the end of actuating rod for adjustment. Also the relocated and longer rods made less movement of the clutch pedal from engine torque rocking the engine on the mounts
 
#9 ·
Problem solved,i just got a 1948 jeepster thats a barn find...hhmmm not a barn find to brag about under any circumstances.The barn roof fell in on top of several cars that were in the barn.A tractor,and Edsel,A 1963 mecury comet convertible..and a 1971 nova.Problem is,the roof fell in way back in 1974 and has remained that way.cars uncovered and exposed to weather.Snow,rain,sleet,hail...golf ball sized hail.anyway people have been picking over all the vehicles after the town told the owner of the barn he had to clean it out and dismantle the remains.Last car out was the jeepster.I asked if i could see if the motor in the jeepster was seized before i made an offer.I got the 'okay' it was seized uughhh.But i came back a few days later and doped the motor with a mixture of kerosene,marvel mystery oil,10w30 and a squirt of PB blaster and have let it set for a week.It turned over by hand without so much as a squeak.So i next brought a 6v battery,clean gas,fuel pump,points condensor and cap,cleaned an gapped the plugs and then kicked the motor over..it coughed and sputtered but she evened out and idled nicely.I offered the owner $100 for the remains he said 'great!' off i went.So i now have a 4cyl flattie,trans and a whole bunch f other widgets and gadgets to help with my sisters jeepster
 
#10 ·
jeepster time

Does your jeepster have the cross leaf front suspension, A arms on the top. Mine handled pretty good, I put in a 9 in rear from a 58 ford wagon, width was right, it dropped right on the springs, I had to adapt the shock mount to the Ford botton plates. On the front I used the 58 ford wagon brakes, adapted the ford backing plates and used the Jeepster hubs and wagon drums. Ford T 85 OD trans and 364 Buick nailhead engine, My daily driver for 5 or 6 years.
 
#11 ·
yeah,mine has that.im not straying too far from factory when i dont need to.im doing the jeepster for my sister.She wants to lollygag around town and go to parades with it.I will convert it to 12v. And i wonder if pertronix has an 'ignitor' set up for the early flattie jeeps that were 6v systems?The rear axle is definately getting changed.It looks a bit feeble.I have a rear axle from a 1976 pinto thats basically the 8in light duty axle you would find in mustang II's with a V8,Its not a 9in but this jeep wont be needing anything that big anyways.And its darn close in width to the original jeepster axle.She better like this jeepster when i got it done...uughhh the last time i did a car for her was in high school..a 1977 pinto 2dr wagon with the 'bubble' rear windows..she said 'i just want a 4cyl automatic'..my dad and i got it all done,then she says 'ahhmmm...can you guys put a v8 in instead?? arrgghh!!!!! of course she being the only girl (4 brothers) my dad made sure she got her way! BUT this time she has a husband hehehe guess what brother in law if my sis aint happy
 
#12 ·
pinto rear to 5 bolts

I don't know if early mustang 5 bolt axle shafts and 5 bolt brake drums are a direct fit or not, That way you could keep the Willys wheels , hubcaps and beauty rings. On mine I used ford centers and wider buick hoops for the rear and used some VW spring clips i bolted on so i could keep the Willys hubcaps.
 
#13 ·
jeepster ignition,

I have a couple Model T fords in the barn, horseless carriage type and well as a V8 T bucket and a couple fiberglass T bucket projects, lots of T parts, Back to the subject There are or were ignition systems conversions fot the horseless carrage T 's that used Jeep distributors, and some of them are solid state. You could search some of the T parts companies and ask, Snyders, Mac's Texas T parts, or go to the MTFCA web site. there is also a willys site and parts co some info- forums there.Kaiser Willys Jeep Blog
 
#14 ·
while i have your attention timothale.Do you have a source for new or good used hubcaps with the WO stamped into them? and the trim rings? (16in) the ones for my sisters jeepster are very rusty and thin..just chrome left behind mostly..the caps are wall hangers and i dont have any trim rings at all
 
#15 ·
jeepster parts

Kaiser willys parts supply had some jeepster parts but no hubcaps, Mine are well used, a few dents and dings. I just keep checking Ebay, craigs list and googleing , We have a lot of project cars, not enough time, You think when you retire you will have more time, We took back the farm this year and are building our smaller retirement home, farm equipment needs work, haven't mowed the 1 acre house yard for 3 weeks. Garden needs cleared off before winter snow, wife wants to have the A roadster or T speedster ready for next years 4 th of july parade.
 
#17 ·
the last 3yrs here has been devastating,my dad,both my grandmothers,2 aunts have all passed away that caused turmoil and havoc enough,My dad left me the shop and all its tools,presses,brakes,shears etc and i had a something called 'break-in'..thats the best way to describe it...a sibling helped himself to several tousand dollars in tools/equip while i took my first vacation in 15yrs and did about 8k in equipment damages. at any rate i told myself after all this passes and things settle down,im going to take time to get my Falcon convertible back on the road (been sitting since 92) then im going to get a leg up on my daughters 64 falcon wagon,And after that im going....fill in the blank..you're right ..no time to do all these things..the shop is finally back up and im making parts again and selling,So i settled on one vehicle to do,i did my 55 willys at least to the point i can now drive it and use it as my work vehicle..i settled on doing this 48 jeepster for my sister,My dad had got it for her and started to work on it,But he got lung cancer and couldnt do it.And at the time i was too busy with the shop and 3 kids at home (single parent..and self employed = nitemare) anyways enough gloom and doom.Im getting this 48 ready for summer for my sister
 
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