Looking for some farm vehicles to check cows this winter other than our trucks. Ive found several XJ’s that are rough or have engine/tranny problems. If I understand the sticky correctly, 84 through 2000 engines are interchangable. Is this correct? Looking at a 92, a 97, and a 99. Looks like i can get 2 good ones out of the 3. The 92 is manual, the other 2 auto. Thanks in advance-
Lee

 

need some more details on the 3. i would assume all of them are 4.0's? it may be an easy fix, someting as simple as a sensor.

 

Sure they're interchangeable, but with varying levels of difficulty. If it were me, I'd look for:
84-90
91-99
00-01
The years up to 90 are different enough from the 91+ years that it may be a lot of extra work to swap between them. The 91-99 years used a distributor and 00 and 01 were distributor-less. There were changes that make it difficult to use other parts as well, so if you want to go further, 91-93, 94-96 and 97-99 are very similar within those years. I'd avoid using an engine from a 00 or 01 without being sure if the head was replaced already - look up "Jeep 4.0 0331 head defect" if you're not familiar with the issue.

With the years you've mentioned, I'd be looking at the 97 and 99 - but as WyoCherokee mentioned, it may be less serious than a full engine swap to get one of them up and running. You'd have to take a close look at each and go from there. Also, you can always get a rebuilt or junkyard 4.0 for a good price if there's one that's in really good shape except for the engine, so don't rule that out as an option to consider.

 

Pre 87 likely has a carb and unless it's a 4 banger might have the dreaded something or other v6, (308?) The 4 banger "hurricane" actually is a decent engine though, cast iron head. 87 to 99 4.0's share almost everything. Trick is you need to match the sensors to the computer for your year, which you probably don't want to change. Stuff like the trans stuff, evap and smog ect gets sticky. I gather the block and head on the 4.0 interchange between 87 and 99, then the 00 0nd 01 gets sticky with different exhaust manifolds and the 0331 head prone to crack in the middle. The AW-4 auto trans is durable and reliable. If the manual in the 92 has an interior clutch slave cylinder, that can be a real headache.

 

The OEM tranny in the 92 would be internal slave.

​​​​​​​That said, who knows if it was ever swapped out for a 94+ tranny with the external.