Im planning a 4.5L stroker 1990 XJ, S/c after

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DrFrisker
Posts: 2
Joined: March 11th, 2009, 7:44 pm

Im planning a 4.5L stroker 1990 XJ, S/c after

Post by DrFrisker »

I have a 90 XJ laredo with 239k miles. once the tags expire at the end of april ill be throwing some work into it, but until then i need to make sure some of the xjs components hold up until then. I think it sat for 2-3 years, and had an engine rebuild or swap that had 70k miles on it at some point in its life. ill look in the paperwork for more info. Its been my dd since August 2007 and ive put maybe 10k miles onto it.

I have a few questions as well as issues- if you could help me diagnose some problems i have before any actions are made towards piecing stroker parts together or even consider a s/c build. i would love your contributions. i was thinking about a poor mans 4.5 stroker 91-96 h/o head with h/o intake (if the renix would fix with the newer manifold) or raise the intake ports on the old intake. then eaton m62 from a gm 3800 series ii and a top mount intercooler :shock: and all of the stuff inbetween( TB, exhaust, s/c and intercooler piping, the list goes on...)
some issues i have-

1after it has warmed up, the xj emits a whistling noise/ teapot whistle at zero to low throttle. I have been told it is either a intake/exhaust gasket leak or vacuum leak. No, there is no teapot underneath the hood and coolant is always below 200 F and averages around 160F. I dont know which hoses to check so until i have some direction i wouldnt mess with it.

2 it sounds like the timing is rather off, in between normal operation and a sputtering engine.

3 the belt misaligns itself because one of the pulleys is off. it wants to skip one tooth and run there. the belt is missing one tooth, and it runs fine with the skinner belt. (If you replace the belt again it screeches horribly) i have replaced the belt twice and it has done the same thing each time. i have a picture of the part circled in blue from a mechanic friend of mine => http://s8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/do ... icture.jpg

4 at random times, but usually when i have been off of the throttle coasting down a hill for maybe 1/2 mile or more, and i step on the gas again there is a clicking noise coming from the engine that varies directly with engine speed. i am thinking rocker arms?

5 I have fixed this issue but it is worth mentioning - after warming up sometimes the throttle sensor would either get 'stuck' or something last summer, and the car would run at 3k rpms idle and 2k+ rpms in gear and take massive braking effort for it to stop. I did not attempt to drive it when this occurred. as i previously stated, i have fixed this issue but now it will idle at ~1.6k+ rpms in neutral or park after warming up.

6 when i turn parking lights or headlights on, the right turn signal is permanently "ON" displayed on the dash. the right side(passenger) corner and parking light are barely lit at all under this circumstance. Ive already replaced the bulbs, but i have no idea where to check wiring if anyone could help me on this i would greatly appreciate any feedback or criticism of my planned build.
yuppiexj
Donator
Donator
Posts: 319
Joined: February 13th, 2008, 7:31 pm
Stroker Displacement: 4.5 needs assembly
Location: Fredercksburg VA (land of nothing)

Re: Im planning a 4.5L stroker 1990 XJ, S/c after

Post by yuppiexj »

1. Doublecheck all the intake manifold bolts are tight and present.

3. I bet your harmonic balancer needs to be replaced. The outer pulley will walk forward and eat up belts just before it comes off completely and eats the radiator.

4. I bet you have a sticking lifter. (my 90 does) rockers arms would generally tick all the time. (a cracked exhaust manifold will sound similar but louder under higher throttle conditions)

5. Clean your throttle body and IAC and adjust the TPS.

6. The plastic sockets on your turn signals have worn out. I transplanted a metal socket from a rear harness into mine

hope all this helps
TurboTom wrote:i will eat my words later if need be.
TurboTom wrote: Not sure of your rules...but you need to start with an engine that works best for the rules and cheat from there!
Proud owner of many stroker parts, that have not yet spontaneously assembled themselves.
DrFrisker
Posts: 2
Joined: March 11th, 2009, 7:44 pm

Re: Im planning a 4.5L stroker 1990 XJ, S/c after

Post by DrFrisker »

How to i fix a sticking lifter?
Thanks a bunch!
yuppiexj
Donator
Donator
Posts: 319
Joined: February 13th, 2008, 7:31 pm
Stroker Displacement: 4.5 needs assembly
Location: Fredercksburg VA (land of nothing)

Re: Im planning a 4.5L stroker 1990 XJ, S/c after

Post by yuppiexj »

DrFrisker wrote:How to i fix a sticking lifter?
Thanks a bunch!
3 options

Replace it.
Try some oil flush snake oil stuff (Warm up Jeep dump 1 qt of ATF in the pan idle 30 secs change oil). Downside is it may not work, it may free up too much sludge and cause other problems
Ignore it until it eats a Cam or pushrod. downside, it'll be at a bad time and if it mushrooms it bad enough it'll be a bear to fish out of the block.

I'm doing choice 3 (since I have a spare engine on the stand and ready to go)
TurboTom wrote:i will eat my words later if need be.
TurboTom wrote: Not sure of your rules...but you need to start with an engine that works best for the rules and cheat from there!
Proud owner of many stroker parts, that have not yet spontaneously assembled themselves.
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