Auto Parts: jeep engine swap

Question
What is the best jeep v8 and automatic transmission to swap into my 84 jeep CJ7 ? i will still keep my dana 300 transfer case !

Answer
Factory Engines
For 1980, the AMC 258 I6 was now the largest engine available in the CJ platform. AMC left behind the thirsty AMC V8s formerly available, as fuel economy standards and increasingly complicated emissions controls took their tolls.

And, new for 1980 was a four-cylinder, not seen in the Jeep CJ since 1971. This time around, it would be the GM 151 CID "Iron Duke". This engine remained available through 1981. However, AMC had it in use just as a stop-gap, and in 1982 they released an entirely new I4 engine. This was the AMC 2.5L, carbureted four-cylinder with 105 hp. Both engines were offered with fuel economy in mind, but they both were comparatively meager in their output; a four-cylinder in a quarter-ton truck is just that, and the efficiency and longevity problems with operating their engines past their abilities has been fully experienced by too many for too long.

Little argument need be made about why an individual with one of these smaller engines in their Jeep may feel the impetus to upgrade.

As for the 258, it was always a good motor, though never wholly exciting due to core design drawbacks, including those of long-stroking I6 and the effects that has on power and economy, vis a vis the broader revving power ranges achieved by other fundamentally different platforms like the V6's & V8's.

Factory Transmissions
Jeep SR4
Jeep T4 or T5

It might be said that the 1980's did not treat Jeep very well in transmissions. Transmissions for the 1980 and later CJs were all new, comprising:

   The Borg Warner SR4 Transmission was the base four-speed available with both the 151 and 258 engines through 1981. This light-duty transmission was short lived, in durability and production.
   In 1982, Jeep introduced the Borg Warner T4 & T5 Transmissions, respectively four and five-speed gearboxes, the latter featuring an overdriven final gear.

The above transmissions are not appropriate to retain in a V6 or V8 conversion. Novak made a bellhousing adapter for them for a short time, but the futility of adapting an engine to a gearbox that just would not last became self-explanatory. Because of these transmissions' weak service records behind stock Jeep powerplants, we do not offer any conversion to V6 or V8 power. This is essentially a small car transmission in a truck. The customer's time and efforts are best spent converting to a stronger transmission.

   A factory option available with the 258 I6 was the Tremec T176 Transmission, rated as medium-duty. Though a rarer option, individuals with this transmission available may retain it in their conversion. Our #G176 adapter assembly allows the adaptation of a conventional Chevy and other GM bellhousings to the T176.
   An even rarer option than the T176 was the TorqueFlite 999 as introduced in the CJ in 1982 with the 258. This transmission evidenced AMC's increasing courtship of Chrysler. The transmission was similar to previous 999's but had a dedicated case for the 258's bolt-pattern and a 4wd tailhousing.

Transfer Cases
Dana 300New for 1980 was a history making transfer case, provided by Dana Spicer as had been its Dana 18 & Dana 20 predecessors since 1941. The pinnacle of quality, gear-to-gear transfer cases was reached with the advent of this Dana 300. The Model 300 was, by a long shot, the strongest link in the Jeep powertrain chain in the 1980 through 1986 CJ's. The most successful conversions retain the gear-driven Dana 300 due to its strength, compact design, refined operation and serviceability. More on this later.