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Enthusiast III
I would like to start out by saying I did not name the car that (haha). My jeep club that I was in at the time of purchase was responsible for that. Ok, onto the build...
I am 21 years old and in college, so this is not a high budget build by a long shot. I have, however, managed to get a lot done in my one year of ownership.
So lets start with the basics...
It is a 1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4
4.0L
AW4 Auto
NP231 Transfer Case
Dana 30 front, Chrysler 8.25 rear
Stock 3:55 gears
No ABS
Purchased with 160,000 miles.
![IMG_1021.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12941-628ee8a79d6a5294809034904951ab0b.jpg)
This is the first picture I took of her right after we signed the paperwork.
![IMG_1015.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12949-3bca058aef70bc7f944059d65d421886.jpg)
I wanted to include a picture of where I began with the engine bay the day I bought it. I am quite OCD about cleanliness especially in the engine bay so I plan on making quite a bit of changes to this old 4.0 mainly geared towards fuel economy and how efficiently I can make it run with this kind of mileage... and of course I will improve the looks a bit as well.
![IMG_2015.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12963-0ecf0f16b3457a5a617592a011a71b37.jpg)
I decided to begin with a valve cover gasket because it would not only allow me to stop a leak but also improve the looks a bit and more importantly inspect the rockers and springs looking for things such as even distribution of oil on top of the rockers. All was well so I decided to try something new and sand and paint the valve cover a professional grade wrinkle blue color.
![IMG_2266.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12966-e21f64183caa4f72dc9254b4da1804b3.jpg)
Next up was to tackle the famous cracked stock manifold! I chose a Dorman manifold and decided to wrap it with titanium heat wrap in hopes of stopping heat soak. It functioned great for about 8 months when all of the welds failed on the manifold. I have since moved to an ATP performance header and so far it is working out great!
![IMG_2097.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12965-2f1ad659869d9fde0a5380bcc1e28302.jpg)
After that I wanted to take a look at the ignition system. So a set of champion plugs, and Accel wires, cap, rotor and super coil were installed.
![IMG_2300.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12973-87145edeca0ca8a2a8a8cf3657d0fc9f.jpg)
I then decided to put my trust in the forums and give a shot at upgrading my injectors. So with a lot of research on flow rates and such I ended up with Bosch 4-hole injectors out of a Volvo. They are pt. #0280155832 This is one of my favorite mods. I also cleaned the throttle body and intake manifold.
![IMG_2351.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12977-fe6f3d849d9f9341bc1c87bfd40bfdb1.jpg)
Once an optima red top and K&N air filter were installed the engine bay is finally getting on track! Can you tell I like color?
I am 21 years old and in college, so this is not a high budget build by a long shot. I have, however, managed to get a lot done in my one year of ownership.
So lets start with the basics...
It is a 1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4
4.0L
AW4 Auto
NP231 Transfer Case
Dana 30 front, Chrysler 8.25 rear
Stock 3:55 gears
No ABS
Purchased with 160,000 miles.
![IMG_1021.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12941-628ee8a79d6a5294809034904951ab0b.jpg)
This is the first picture I took of her right after we signed the paperwork.
![IMG_1015.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12949-3bca058aef70bc7f944059d65d421886.jpg)
I wanted to include a picture of where I began with the engine bay the day I bought it. I am quite OCD about cleanliness especially in the engine bay so I plan on making quite a bit of changes to this old 4.0 mainly geared towards fuel economy and how efficiently I can make it run with this kind of mileage... and of course I will improve the looks a bit as well.
![IMG_2015.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12963-0ecf0f16b3457a5a617592a011a71b37.jpg)
I decided to begin with a valve cover gasket because it would not only allow me to stop a leak but also improve the looks a bit and more importantly inspect the rockers and springs looking for things such as even distribution of oil on top of the rockers. All was well so I decided to try something new and sand and paint the valve cover a professional grade wrinkle blue color.
![IMG_2266.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12966-e21f64183caa4f72dc9254b4da1804b3.jpg)
Next up was to tackle the famous cracked stock manifold! I chose a Dorman manifold and decided to wrap it with titanium heat wrap in hopes of stopping heat soak. It functioned great for about 8 months when all of the welds failed on the manifold. I have since moved to an ATP performance header and so far it is working out great!
![IMG_2097.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12965-2f1ad659869d9fde0a5380bcc1e28302.jpg)
After that I wanted to take a look at the ignition system. So a set of champion plugs, and Accel wires, cap, rotor and super coil were installed.
![IMG_2300.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12973-87145edeca0ca8a2a8a8cf3657d0fc9f.jpg)
I then decided to put my trust in the forums and give a shot at upgrading my injectors. So with a lot of research on flow rates and such I ended up with Bosch 4-hole injectors out of a Volvo. They are pt. #0280155832 This is one of my favorite mods. I also cleaned the throttle body and intake manifold.
![IMG_2351.JPG](/forums/data/attachments/12/12977-fe6f3d849d9f9341bc1c87bfd40bfdb1.jpg)
Once an optima red top and K&N air filter were installed the engine bay is finally getting on track! Can you tell I like color?
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