Jeep Strokers

Hi all,

I know there are lots of threads/topics about the Edelbrock Performer head, but they are all quite old and full of ifs, buts and maybes.

I'm about to start building a 4.6 stroker using a Clegg Engine kit. It'll have their stage 1 cam too. I'm using a stainless performance header, cold air intake system and a 99+ intake manifold with 62mm TB. The car is a 1998 Cherokee XJ 4.0 with AW4 tranny.

So, is it worth the money to add in an Edelbrock performer head (as it comes, no further mods to it).

I'm not interested in absolute peak power and torque, just useful ooomph where it counts, e.g off idle and mid-range. In simple terms, from the driving seat, will this make a tangible difference? I expect to go "Wow!" with the finished stroker, will I go "WOOOOW!" with the Eddie added in?

Cheers..!

Just repeating what Russ has said (no first hand experience with that head) but if you aren't upping your compression to take advantage of the aluminum head and improved combustion chamber, you are wasting your money. And since you said you are running the Clegg kit which I'm guessing it's generic and not 10:1+ compression, I would say skip it.

SkylinesSuck wrote:Just repeating what Russ has said (no first hand experience with that head) but if you aren't upping your compression to take advantage of the aluminum head and improved combustion chamber, you are wasting your money. And since you said you are running the Clegg kit which I'm guessing it's generic and not 10:1+ compression, I would say skip it.

Compression with my Clegg kit will be 9.3:1, so one vote against. Thanks for your reply.

The Eddy head has a 2cc smaller chamber (55 v 57) than the stock iron head and that adds ~0.2 to the compression. However since aluminum dissipates heat faster than iron, the compression needs to be at least half a point higher to reap any performance benefit.
That said, I reckon an out-of-the-box Eddy head would still add ~20hp over a stock iron head on a 4.6 stroker, and a further ~10hp if Russ works his magic on it.

Hopefully Clegg didn't set you up with that torque killing full circular dish piston.

http://www.cleggengine.com/performance- ... -kits.html

Looks like it's the stage 3 stroker kit with IC944 pistons. That being the case, he could have 0.030" shaved from the block to bring the quench down to 0.040". With the Eddy head, the SCR will come in at ~10.1:1.

Cheromaniac wrote:http://www.cleggengine.com/performance- ... -kits.html

Looks like it's the stage 3 stroker kit with IC944 pistons. That being the case, he could have 0.030" shaved from the block to bring the quench down to 0.040". With the Eddy head, the SCR will come in at ~10.1:1.

Yup, that's the set I have. The only machining I want to consider is having a local engine shop clean and re-bore/hone the block. If I stick with the original head, I'll get that all cleaned up, valves re-ground and maybe ported and polished.

Unless anyone can tell me that I will feel a real extra benefit in real world, feel-it-through-the-seat driving, I'm thinking I'll stick with the current head. all these quench figures and stuff are genuinely interesting, but not what I'm focusing on.

You'll only feel the extra power from an Eddy head (or a ported stock head) from ~3000rpm to the rev limiter.

Cheromaniac wrote:You'll only feel the extra power from an Eddy head (or a ported stock head) from ~3000rpm to the rev limiter.

Well that's part of the rev range that doesn't see much action on my car.. I'll stick with the stock head.

Thanks for everyone's input !

Russ Pottenger wrote:Hopefully Clegg didn't set you up with that torque killing full circular dish piston.

Not horsepower robbing if you are putting a large dose of N2O!