Grand Willys Project

[bruggz351]

Very ingenious Gojeep.

It's almost as if they knew it was going to happen eh, too easy.

[Gojeep]

Gives you a better idea of the sub frame that holds everything under the uni-bodied Grand Cherokee. Just held in place with four big bolts. I will be doing the same so I can bolt it under the Willys frame.
Paint damage in the front corner is from the battery acid leaking on to it after battery was split in the impact with a tree after being hit by the Harley.


Just got to workout how I will make my new engine mounts once I move them 175mm back on this frame to centre the axle under the wheel arch. As the frame drops away steeply, cant just weld the old brackets back in place. Also going to end up over the top of the rear diff mount on the far side.
Going to be fun setting it exactly right too as the mounts are 16mm lower on one side and 18 mm further across than the other side. Cant centre it otherwise the front driveshaft would hit the side of the transmission. They also have to have a 5.5 degree tilt to match the stock engine angle.

[Gojeep]

What's up with the way they routed the hose along the bottom of the cross member? Starts in the middle of the fan when in place, then goes across all the way to one side, then the other side, back part of the way and then over the cross member before entering the steering rack!
I take it is something left over from a LHD to RHD design change? Can't see any other reason for it.


Taken the front diff out. Nice finned alloy cover and axle housing.


Got a nice alloy oil pan on the engine too standard. If you can see it after it is installed, might have to give it a polish!


Here is the sub frame stripped bare.

[Gojeep]

Before I removed the engine mounts, I made up this little jig to make it easier to setup the new ones. They tilt 5.5 degrees back and are different heights left to right to match the mounts on the block, so felt this was the way to go.


Removed the engine mounts and mocked up the front cradle 175 mm further forward than it was before. Good news was that the oil filter change of position cleared the steering rack easily.


Even with the steering shaft roughly in place, there is still plenty of clearance around the oil filter.


The only thing I ran into was making sure the left engine mount cleared the diff support bracket.


Got to make sure the new engine mount does not interfere with the front diff pinion support inside this bracket.


I set the floor and firewall up in place to make sure previous measurements were correct. They were exactly right but it was still nice to confirm before I go welding in the engine mounts in next.
Also checked the radiator position to see how it would all fit within the engine bay.

[AJ]

Out of interest, What do you do normally for work? I'm really envious with your attention to detail

[Gojeep]

Number of trades including: Blacksmith/farrier, boiler maker ( including jobs for the military ), brake mechanic, LPG conversions, structural steel, roofing, building trade etc. among others.

[Gojeep]

I setup my engine mount jig 175mm further back so the engine sits the same distance off the firewall but centres the front axle in the wheel wells. Had to raise it 3/4" above the what it was in the sub frame originally to clear the diff mount, but is still an 1" lower compared to the original floor height.
Having it this far back will give much better front to rear weight balance for better handling as well.


Good old OJ carton use to make a template for the new mounts.


Knew it would come in handy one day. Brought this home when doing the structural steel work on the Hoppers Crossing College back in 1986! Bit overkill being 102x150x6 mm RHS ( 4"x6"x1/4" ) but had the perfect internal size to match the engine mounts on the block.
Who would have thought that one end of this would be holding up a college building, and the other a HEMI!


Clean up the tubing and placed my template over it. Made sure the bolt hole on each side matched perfectly.


Don't own a oxy or a plasma, so out with the 9" grinder.


Fitting up nicely.




On to the other side. Healthy Choice meal box this time.


Just managed to squeeze in the other side from the same piece of RHS ( Rectangle Hollow Section ) tubing.






Fitted like a glove and just pushed the bolts through with my finger.


Other side. Haven't gone for anything fancy as impossible to see them once installed in the Willys. Strong and functional though.


Sorry about getting carried away with the photos, but feel it is my first bit of construction on the project.