2001 Jeep Cherokee 4.7L build

[SilverXJ]

That is AWESOME! Did you ever make a wiring diagram and list part numbers? I am DEFINITELY interested in building this.

Its a 2002 Dodge Viper coil (probably other years too), a custom length wire kit and you just extend the stock harness using the same pinout.

Also, is that a cheetah skinned steering shock in the pictures?

I had to go back and look.. but now I see it. Funny that you mention that. I am fixing the cheetah rust skin damper. You think OME would use better paint on their shocks.

[604rail_king]

silver, do you think the viper coil could be mounted off the side of the engine with a custom bracket, that the stock harness could reach? there must be spare bolt holes or studs off the block to work with

im thinking if you could position the viper coil in a similar position to where a distributor sits on a 4.0, you could use a regular set of wires... no need to go with a custom set.

[GoMopar440]

Only bad thing about that idea is that coils usually don't like a lot of vibration. It would be a lot better for longevity of the coil to mount it somewhere solid on the body like SilverXJ did. I do like your idea for keeping it close to the distributor location so stock length wires could be used though.

Maybe you could just build a bracket and mount it a little lower on the inner fender that would get the Viper coil close enough to allow you to use the stock wires?

[604rail_king]

i agree its a good idea to keep the coil off the motor to reduce vibrations/heat, however lots of factory cars have their coils mounted to the engine. Neons, talons, and alot of newer cars

[SilverXJ]

I mounted it there because there really wasn't enough room on the engine, not enough bolt holes and the bracket would have to been large and overly complex. That is where I wanted to put it first. Also, its better to mount them away from the engine heat and vibrations. You will need to extend the stock harness either way.

[Drv2e30]

Well I'll add the coil pack in eventually, but I am happy to say that the engine turned over on Sunday close to midnight! Though I have to say it is pretty loud and has a decent amount of valve tick. Everything sounds steady but of course I'll end up showing some concern.

Aside from that, I'm still in the process of cleaning up the interior and getting the transmission to work properly. Shifting the transmission to reverse or drive doesn't yield movement, so I'm guessing it's just low on fluid. If the transmission and the radiator are empty how many quarts should it take? 4-6?

Also, has anyone had issues with the fuel level sender? The gas tank is showing empty even though I put in 5 gallons of gas.

[SilverXJ]

Did you do the cam break-in procedure?

[Drv2e30]

No, but the cam was already run in the engine before the build.

[SilverXJ]

You used the same lifters in the same spots?

[Drv2e30]

Crap, I think I may have got some of them switched up.

[SilverXJ]

That will be a problem.

[Drv2e30]

Is there anything you recommend? or am I done?

[SilverXJ]

I don't know. When you do a cam break-in and over several thousand miles the cam lobe and lifter food develop a wear pattern with each other. What I have been told, read, beat in to my head is that if you reuse cam AND lifters you need to keep the lifters exactly where they were or the lobes and lifters would be damaged in short time. The same thing for used lifters on a new cam, never. New lifters are fine on a used cam as long as you break it in properly. I have no personal experience of moving lifters around though.

You can run it as is, hoping it holds up. If it doesn't the metal will go into the oil and circulate through the systems damaging bearings, crank journals, cylinders, etc, given enough mileage. A complete rebuild would be in order. That is worse case. Best case is it develops a tick, you measure lift and lash and realize a problem, pull the engine and clean it. Install new cam and lifters and break in properly.

Or you can replace the cam and lifters now.

[Retlaw01XJ]

Stock replacement lifters are under $3 each from Rockauto. Might be a cheap fix, or a waste of money.

[Drv2e30]

Stock replacement lifters are under $3 each from Rockauto. Might be a cheap fix, or a waste of money.

I only cranked it twice. I'm up for replacing replacing the lifters. I'm assuming I'll have to pull the head to do so.

-Sean