Irish Build Thread

Ddays said:
Sooooooo,

Seeing that there are obvious and numerous issues with both V8 swaps out there, I find it really hard to believe that no one has offered a warmed over 3.6 kit WITHOUT turbos or supercharged induction.
How much would it really take to add 50-75 HP, maybe even 100, by adding a hotter cam, a little more compression, a good set of long tube headers, and tweaking of the fuel delivery/intake system to get there?
Would it sound as badass as a V8 swap? No, but you'd be working within the same electrical architecture, which seems to be the biggest buggaboo in the whole swap? :idontknow:
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The 3.6 isn't a bad engine per se. My root issue with it was the thousands of pounds I added in axles etc couple with it makes its power at high rpm. I'd either have to run it screaming or deal with searching for gears. The easy solution for Jeep was adding the 8 speed in the JL platform which allows the 3.6 to stay in just the right power band more often. I think this alone will definitely reduce the number of swaps you see especially in the near term for JLs as you can much more comfortable run 40s with 5.38s.

I don't know the specifics, but I think there was a Michigan company working on a 8 speed swap for 3.6 JKs, but I think last I heard from other folks, it was going to end up being more expensive than originally hoped.
 
Ddays said:
Sooooooo,

Seeing that there are obvious and numerous issues with both V8 swaps out there, I find it really hard to believe that no one has offered a warmed over 3.6 kit WITHOUT turbos or supercharged induction.
How much would it really take to add 50-75 HP, maybe even 100, by adding a hotter cam, a little more compression, a good set of long tube headers, and tweaking of the fuel delivery/intake system to get there?
Would it sound as badass as a V8 swap? No, but you'd be working within the same electrical architecture, which seems to be the biggest buggaboo in the whole swap? :idontknow:
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I’m not familiar with a cam swap on a dual overhead cam engine, but I’d assume it’s probably a nightmare compared to a push rod engine such as the LS. I think it’s a stretch to get more power without forced induction. I recently purchased the Tuning School software for the JK and JL engines, so I’m going to see if I can make any power out of them conservatively, meaning not blow up the fucking motor.


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Irish JK said:
I am a firm believer that people won’t talk about their issues until you’re already deep into the club.
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I guess posting up on the forum and including pics doesn't count. :crazyeyes:

Exodus Jeeps said:
A lot of truth to that. I’ve always said that most people can’t afford to be honest.
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Right, I just make sure to include the truth in the videos we make but hey, who watches them. :grayno:
 
Sharkey said:
And whether you want to admit or not, you and Bubba have both implied in this thread that people (like Eddie) who claim to have had a good experience with their swaps are either not being honest with the masses or they are financially unable to admit they made a bad decision. I have a problem with that and I happen to know for a fact that neither is true with respect to Eddie or Brute (although Brute’s swaps are not Motech LS swaps).

Sharing your experience and frustrations is great; generically claiming that all swaps (and all swaps from Motech) are riddled with problems is not.
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I think I have named dropped Motech before regarding swap issues, around the time he started having issues with his swap, but since then I’ve had issues with RPM Extreme as well. Ever since then I’ve refrained from characterizing one company as having issues, and just refer to LS swaps in JK’s as a whole with having issues.

I should be fair and say that ANY engine swap, particularly when mixing electronics, will have some kind of quirks. What’s not cool is when we continually have the same issues and it seems nothing is being done to correct those issues. That’s super frustrating for a shop like us to tell our customer that their Jeep will be better than before with the LS, and it turns out having dumb issues like the battery going dead in 2 days. It’s a real thing and happens more than it should. That’s just one of the issues that seems to come up often, but I can assure you there is more.

If I only did 1 swap, then yes it would be difficult to make an argument that LS swaps are kind of a pain in the ass. However I have done a lot of these swaps with different vendors and I’ve had my share of issues that just can’t be resolved for some reason. I also think it’s only fair that people here the other side of the story. If at times it comes across like I’m picking on Motech, it’s only out of the frustration of having to deal with so many of the issues associated with the parts that are particular to their kit.

All in all, V8 swaps in Jeeps are fun. They’re expensive and can have issues, and people should know that going into it. I’m not here to trash Motech or any other vendor that specializes in V8 swaps in JK’s, but provide honest feedback. If at times it comes across hyper critical, that’s most definitely my emotions getting the best of me. I really do appreciate Robbie and the help he has provided over the years. I hope at some point he is able to get all the kinks worked out of all his setups.

On a side note, I do know a few people that have done the DIY swaps that haven’t had any issues, and I find that interesting. Not really sure what to think of that.


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wayoflife said:
Right, I just make sure to include the truth in the videos we make but hey, who watches them. :grayno:
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I hope you didn’t think that was directed at you, or anyone else on the forum for that matter. I say that often and usually refers to the fanboys that preach how great a product is when they know deep down it hasn’t lived up to their expectations. I see a lot of people save up their money for some expensive mod on their Jeep and then it falls short. They’ll still brag on it to me though like it’s the best thing ever. MetalCloak 6 pack comes to mind.


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Exodus Jeeps said:
I hope you didn’t think that was directed at you, or anyone else on the forum for that matter. I say that often and usually refers to the fanboys that preach how great a product is when they know deep down it hasn’t lived up to their expectations. I see a lot of people save up their money for some expensive mod on their Jeep and then it falls short. They’ll still brag on it to me though like it’s the best thing ever. MetalCloak 6 pack comes to mind.
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LOL - actually, I did and based on the fact that my name was specifically being discussed. But, I do appreciate you clearing things up :yup:
 
wayoflife said:
I guess posting up on the forum and including pics doesn't count. :crazyeyes:
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Again, Sharkey and now apparently you take this as a personal attack on yourself and and Brute. It was a statement I clearly said is "my belief" and was a generalization to not only motor swaps, but large modifications in general. This is not some outlandish claim. It was not aimed at you (or brute for that matter), but if that is the way you read it, then that's that and I don't think there's anything for me to say that is going to change anyone's opinion. I still stand behind my belief that most people won't publicly talk about issues as such for a multitude of reasons. I have since even provided my personal experience with such as I felt I was very much at the mercy of the harness builder once gone down that route as I would still have to have their support unless I was willing to seriously commit to changes.

I don't know Brute, have never brought his name up anywhere and I haven't said more than a "cool" in passing on his projects, so not sure how he got brought into the conversation. But after looking quick through his JK6 build, I'd definitely be willing to say he committed serious capital to the project which again is to my point, to have a V8 swap run reliably in any condition you run a Jeep in, you have to have significant resources for the project.

Lastly, I don't blame you for my bad experiences. You provided experiences and recommendations (not just on this but many other subjects as well) and I made my own decisions. Turns out, using Motech was a horrible experience for me, apparently much different than yours. But hindsight is 20-20 and I'll take it as a learning experience. But I do feel people who are interested and asking for feedback may want to know my experiences with this vendor and the mountain of lame excuses I've been given for two years. My recommendations are based on my experience and communications with other owner's who have had swaps or vendors who have had issues with Motech's work specifically, but V8 swaps in general. Through this I can form my own opinions and generalizations on the subject. My take is there a lot of swaps out there that sit in guys garages most of the time because they never work right, you just don't hear about every one for a laundry list of reasons. Take it as you will.
 
Irish JK said:
Again, Sharkey and now apparently you take this as a personal attack on yourself and and Brute. It was a statement I clearly said is "my belief" and was a generalization to not only motor swaps, but large modifications in general. This is not some outlandish claim. It was not aimed at you (or brute for that matter), but if that is the way you read it, then that's that and I don't think there's anything for me to say that is going to change anyone's opinion. I still stand behind my belief that most people won't publicly talk about issues as such for a multitude of reasons. I have since even provided my personal experience with such as I felt I was very much at the mercy of the harness builder once gone down that route as I would still have to have their support unless I was willing to seriously commit to changes.

I don't know Brute, have never brought his name up anywhere and I haven't said more than a "cool" in passing on his projects, so not sure how he got brought into the conversation. But after looking quick through his JK6 build, I'd definitely be willing to say he committed serious capital to the project which again is to my point, to have a V8 swap run reliably in any condition you run a Jeep in, you have to have significant resources for the project.

Lastly, I don't blame you for my bad experiences. You provided experiences and recommendations (not just on this but many other subjects as well) and I made my own decisions. Turns out, using Motech was a horrible experience for me, apparently much different than yours. But hindsight is 20-20 and I'll take it as a learning experience. But I do feel people who are interested and asking for feedback may want to know my experiences with this vendor and the mountain of lame excuses I've been given for two years. My recommendations are based on my experience and communications with other owner's who have had swaps or vendors who have had issues with Motech's work specifically, but V8 swaps in general. Through this I can form my own opinions and generalizations on the subject. My take is there a lot of swaps out there that sit in guys garages most of the time because they never work right, you just don't hear about every one for a laundry list of reasons. Take it as you will.
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:cheesy: :cheesy: :cheesy: Easy there Chris, I can't speak for Sharkey but I can assure you that I didn't take anything personally. I was simply commenting on what was said. Sharkey mentioned that I didn't have too many problems and you responded by saying that you were "a firm believer that people won’t talk about their issues until they're already deep into the club." If that wasn't directed specifically at me, I appreciate the clarification. I just wanted to make sure that others out there understand that I have and ALWAYS will post up about anything that I experience and the proof of that can be found here on WAYALIFE. :yup:

With that said, I really am sorry to hear you've had such a bad experience with Motech and I think it's great that you post up your experiences here. To the best of my knowledge, I don't believe I have ever discouraged it.

If we're all good, allow me to say once again that I'm glad that you're finally getting your JK built the way you want and I look forward to the results :thumb:
 
wayoflife said:
:cheesy: :cheesy: :cheesy: Easy there Chris, I can't speak for Sharkey but I can assure you that I didn't take anything personally. I was simply commenting on what was said. Sharkey mentioned that I didn't have too many problems and you responded by saying that you were "a firm believer that people won’t talk about their issues until they're already deep into the club." If that wasn't directed specifically at me, I appreciate the clarification. I just wanted to make sure that others out there understand that I have and ALWAYS will post up about anything that I experience and the proof of that can be found here on WAYALIFE. :yup:

With that said, I really am sorry to hear you've had such a bad experience with Motech and I think it's great that you post up your experiences here. To the best of my knowledge, I don't believe I have ever discouraged it.
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To be clear, it was a general statement, not directed at you or anyone else specific. And not even specific to automotive topics. Houses, electronics, firearms etc., but those are whole other topics.

wayoflife said:
If we're all good, allow me to say once again that I'm glad that you're finally getting your JK built the way you want and I look forward to the results :thumb:
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I'm good. Thank you for your support and I do hope my JK is headed in a better direction, but honestly only time will tell.
 
Irish JK said:
Again, Sharkey and now apparently you take this as a personal attack on yourself and and Brute. It was a statement I clearly said is "my belief" and was a generalization to not only motor swaps, but large modifications in general.

[]

I don't know Brute, have never brought his name up anywhere and I haven't said more than a "cool" in passing on his projects, so not sure how he got brought into the conversation. But after looking quick through his JK6 build, I'd definitely be willing to say he committed serious capital to the project which again is to my point, to have a V8 swap run reliably in any condition you run a Jeep in, you have to have significant resources for the project.
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I never said you were personally attacking Eddie or Brute. I simply pointed out that they both seem to be quite happy with their swaps and neither of them are in a position where they are "stuck" with what they have done. (Which means neither of them have a reason to be anything other than honest about their experiences.) Clearly, there are at least some people in the "club" who have very useable rigs after their swaps. Does it take time and money? Of course. You are transplanting a motor from one manufacturer into the body and electronics of another. It should be expected to be a process.

Either way, I hope you get your issues sorted out.
 
Sharkey said:
I never said you were personally attacking Eddie or Brute. I simply pointed out that they both seem to be quite happy with their swaps and neither of them are in a position where they are "stuck" with what they have done. (Which means neither of them have a reason to be anything other than honest about their experiences.) Clearly, there are at least some people in the "club" who have very useable rigs after their swaps.
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Exodus Jeeps said:
I think I have named dropped Motech before regarding swap issues, around the time he started having issues with his swap, but since then I’ve had issues with RPM Extreme as well. Ever since then I’ve refrained from characterizing one company as having issues, and just refer to LS swaps in JK’s as a whole with having issues.
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Clearly, there are plenty of people in the "club" that are having issues. But thank you for pointing out two people that are not. One that at least from what I can tell has poured significant resources in (pointing to my original argument last night) and another that has posted about some, albeit much more minor, issues here.

Sharkey said:
Does it take time and money? Of course. You are transplanting a motor from one manufacturer into the body and electronics of another. It should be expected to be a process.
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Sharkey said:
I believe he currently has three Jeeps running V8’s, each of which probably cost more to build than your last two Jeeps combined.
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Please, since you don't want to move on and you know how many more times another member has spent versus me,.....how much time and money should one have to expect of the process?
 
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