Destroyed my engine. Upgrade?

oGKevin

New member
So while I was at school my dad drove my Jeep and managed to put around 2500 miles on it. I changed the oil and only got 1 quart out of it. I took it to my mechanic and he said this "clicking sound" I was experiencing would go away.

Long story short, it didn't. Oil pump went bad and didn't pump oil into the engine. Engine seized at 65 mph completely. No turn over, no nothing. Thinking its a total loss.

I talked to a guy at a local off road shop and he recommended a stroker. He recommended hemi stroker conversion kit. He told me to look at Golen (?) or AEV. The prices vary from 5300 - 6000

I was wondering if anyone had any advice or could vouch for these kits. I'm looking to add some more power without breaking the bank on an LS swap.
 
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highoctane

Caught the Bug
If you had a shop tell you they could do a hemi stroker by reusing your stock block then you need to run and find a new shop. You could call AEV or Motec and see if they have any takeout 3.8 engines left over from a swap they've done. As far as doing a hemi v-8 swap, there really isn't an affordable way to do it. You'd be looking at $10k easy if you did it by yourself in your own garage.
 

oGKevin

New member
I may have misunderstood him, I admittedly know little about engines. I believe he was talking about the 4.6 Stroker which is 5300
 

highoctane

Caught the Bug
I may have misunderstood him, I admittedly know little about engines. I believe he was talking about the 4.6 Stroker which is 5300

Ok, that would make sense then. I don't know much about the 3.8L based striker kits out there, but I'd imagine the power gains would be minimal, and it's a relatively unknown venture since I've never heard of anyone on any forums I'm on build the 3.8. I have heard of people getting low mileage 3.8 engines from places that do hemi or LS engine swaps. The 3.8 is getting to be an older engine since the 3.6 came out in the JK in '12, but You may still be able to snag a decent lower mileage one for under $2k.
 

USMCvet

Banned
Novak Adapters has a good website for conversions for the LS 5.3 or 6.0. You can call them as well. If you get an all aluminum LS, it's only slightly heavier than the stock V6 coming out of the JK. A lot of the components are reused in the conversion kit such as power steering pump, AC, etc. The kit is still $5k and you have to source the LS and trans beyond that. Whether you go Hemi or LS if you do it yourself, you're still north of $10k and months of downtime and bugs.
 

oGKevin

New member
So the power gain would be minimal? Not sure I could justify an extra $3k for minimal results. I guess I'm looking for the best bang for my buck for around $5k. :thinking:
 

mudmobeeler

Caught the Bug
So the power gain would be minimal? Not sure I could justify an extra $3k for minimal results. I guess I'm looking for the best bang for my buck for around $5k. :thinking:

The best bang for your buck for around $5k would be another 3.8. You start looking into doing complete motor swaps your going to get over that $5k very quickly.

Most LS or LS style engines plus a transmission or a Hemi plus a transmission would be almost $5k. Most install kits for either is $5k.
 

JK_Dave

Caught the Bug
So the power gain would be minimal? Not sure I could justify an extra $3k for minimal results. I guess I'm looking for the best bang for my buck for around $5k. :thinking:

I think what he's saying is that a stroked 3.8 would probably get you close to the power that a stock 3.6 would give you. The 3.6 is already 80hp higher than the 3.8L. Unless your budget is prepared for a lot of unknowns, you're probably best to stick to a stock 3.6 and minimize the additional costs.
 
So the power gain would be minimal? Not sure I could justify an extra $3k for minimal results. I guess I'm looking for the best bang for my buck for around $5k. :thinking:

Do yourself a favor and find a low mileage 3.8 and do a straight swap. Then put the extra money in other mods. Don't mess with a v8 conversion if you don't have $15K or more. Anyone that has done it for less has a TON of experience and did it themselves, or are lying about the cost.
 

oGKevin

New member
I think what he's saying is that a stroked 3.8 would probably get you close to the power that a stock 3.6 would give you. The 3.6 is already 80hp higher than the 3.8L. Unless your budget is prepared for a lot of unknowns, you're probably best to stick to a stock 3.6 and minimize the additional costs.

Can anyone recommend a place to find a low mileage 3.8 or 3.6? I believe this will be the route I'm going. I can wait until I get my next Jeep for a swap.
 
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