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Help me settle on an engine

Still going in circles, but sounds like a 4.8 LS would suffice? Keep the rest of the drive train with minimal relocation +/- drive shafts. Sound plausible?
 
When I was looking I kept an eye out for a 4.8 or 5.3. I just happened to get a better deal on a 5.3 so I went with it. The 4.8 would do great in a Jeep as well. Just not as much low end torque as the 5.3. In my area there are a lot more 5.3s around.
 
And yes, the rest of your drive train will be fine. I didn't have to cut my tub to make it work. The shifter just sits a little further back kinda like the factory T5 did. No big deal.
 
Ron84cj said:
When I was looking I kept an eye out for a 4.8 or 5.3. I just happened to get a better deal on a 5.3 so I went with it. The 4.8 would do great in a Jeep as well. Just not as much low end torque as the 5.3. In my area there are a lot more 5.3s around.
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Being in Phoenix, my guess is that there are plenty of both to go around, but I do worry about hammering the t176 with the 5.3 (especially on 33s and 3.73s - it'll be the weakest link in that chain). The 4.8 should be just about right if not a bit excessive. Which I suppose is better than not enough.
 
Having just swapped a 258 for a 4.0 and finally having it run like it should (took much longer than I thought due to some nagging issues) I would give you my 2 cents.

4.0 parts are dirt cheap (almost every sensor in stock at every blue/green/red store).

The Hesco Harness and parts are not (but are worth it)

The 4.0 starts / runs / revs much better than the 258 - but the torque curve has moved. I'll prolly have to regear (was going to happen anyway due to tires)

Having ridden in Jakes 4.7 stroker; I don't think you would want more power or torque that it puts out.

After I was don't I did wonder if a crate 350 would have been a better choice. ATK has a kit on summit racing that is pretty complete (or so it appers) for $4600. I know this is old tech compared to the LS; but it still would have been plenty of power for what I do with it. 383 stroker version is only a couple hundred more.

I think the 350 has less issues with the transfer case / drive shafts than the LS (I'm not an expert here).

OBD1 computer isn't super easy to monitor live data; guessing aftermarket FI controllers are better / more adjustable.

My 2 cents
 
Since he is running a manual transmission there will be zero driveshaft issues. Since you need to have the shafts modified anyways find another rear driveshaft to run on the front so you have the bigger tube that's stronger. That's what I did and I have tons of room. The clearance issues happen with the automatics. The 700r4 was common behind the 350 and the 4L60 was behind the LS engines. Both are basically the same trans only the 4L60s shifting was controlled by the computer instead of a cable. Now I bought a used motor with 86,000 miles on it and the entire swap including the price of the engine, harness, adapter, exhaust, etc. ran me around 2,000.
 
Ron84cj said:
Since he is running a manual transmission there will be zero driveshaft issues. Since you need to have the shafts modified anyways find another rear driveshaft to run on the front so you have the bigger tube that's stronger. That's what I did and I have tons of room. The clearance issues happen with the automatics. The 700r4 was common behind the 350 and the 4L60 was behind the LS engines. Both are basically the same trans only the 4L60s shifting was controlled by the computer instead of a cable. Now I bought a used motor with 86,000 miles on it and the entire swap including the price of the engine, harness, adapter, exhaust, etc. ran me around 2,000.
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I think my circling is getting a little more concise now. I'm doing some back of the napkin math based on transmission sizes, and the T176 will probably be 1-2" forward of where it is now. I don't think that'll be too big a deal - except for the skid plate. Any thoughts on how that might work? Redrill the pan to advance everything forward?

How did that work with the AX-15? Which TC are you using?
 
The skid plate I just simply redrilled. I'm using the stock dana 300. Since I'm running an Ax15 I had to get a clocking ring to bolt up the TC to the trans. It worked out really nice because the clocking ring makes up the difference for the long output shaft on the Ax15 and the TC is now clocked almost flat which gives more ground clearance.:bacon: The Ring was only like $40-$50 on eBay.
 
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