So I'm wanting to buy a Jeep TJ for my first/second car, I'll likely choose which based on the kind of responses I get here. My goal is to built an overland TJ Jeep by my mid 20s, I really love working on cars in all aspects so I want something I can customize cosmetically, internally and in the cabin now in my early life, but I live in an area where it snows so I don't want to get stuck driving some JDM car through the snowdrifts. I'm trying to weigh the pros and cons of buying a lower end TJ with one of the 4 cylinder engines and building that out and swapping the Engine vs buying the i6 off the bat. Both are going to need heavy maintenance and lots of work to get them to where I want them to be, so the only real difference is end cost to performance. If I end up going with the V8 I'm going to need to buy a car for the time being but if I got the i4 I could start working on the lower cost stuff. Any opinions welcome, and I am new here so feel free to call out anything I might not understand or any rose tinted glassed I may have from seeing cool TJ builds and not really thinking about what it'll actually take to own something like that myself.
DropTopDon
TJ Enthusiast
Buy a 4.0 (inline 6). Also by the way if you're referring to the inline 6 as a V8, it is not a V8. If you want an overland build it sounds like you are gonna be adding a lot of weight to the TJ so for sure get the 4.0. Depending on where you live I don't think the price differences are going to be that drastic based off of engine size. Just search for a good deal and you will easily find a good 4.0 TJ in your price range.
Thanks! I might've mistakenly said V8 at a few points but I meant the 4.0 i6. I know that for overlanding the 4.0 is obviously the better choice between the stock engines, more asking about a swap, but if the 4.0 is sufficient I think I'd rather go with that
DropTopDon
TJ Enthusiast
Well personally to me it wouldn't be enough money saved buying a cheaper 2.5L TJ and then buying a 4.0 on top of the overlanding mods, plus putting in hours to swap it (depends on how mechanically inclined you are). You would save yourself a lot of hassle just by shooting for the 4.0 off the bat.
I would base my decision on the overall condition of the Jeeps available.
You already have plans to swap to v8 engine, so in the long run i6 vs i4 is irrelevant. i6 with stock 3.07 gears is as much of a turtle as i4, it is splitting hairs between which shit stinks the least. But a Jeep in great condition vs one that is beat to shit and is rusted like a titanic, that is a day and night difference.
As far as overlanding - TJ sucks, up to this point for every trip i have taken i wished i had more space.
I6 consumes fuel like it is free and it gives nearly nothing in return, so from overlanding perspective it sucks.
6 vs i4 , i6 is decent enought because i4 option is not decent enough, that is it.
To save time and effort, i think you need to get a Jeep 1st, and then go from there. Live with it and see how it meets your expectations. Many tend to do it backwards, they have some sort of mystical dream and then get a Jeep to fulfill it. Few month later their Jeep is on the market for sale.
You already have plans to swap to v8 engine, so in the long run i6 vs i4 is irrelevant. i6 with stock 3.07 gears is as much of a turtle as i4, it is splitting hairs between which shit stinks the least. But a Jeep in great condition vs one that is beat to shit and is rusted like a titanic, that is a day and night difference.
As far as overlanding - TJ sucks, up to this point for every trip i have taken i wished i had more space.
I6 consumes fuel like it is free and it gives nearly nothing in return, so from overlanding perspective it sucks.
6 vs i4 , i6 is decent enought because i4 option is not decent enough, that is it.
To save time and effort, i think you need to get a Jeep 1st, and then go from there. Live with it and see how it meets your expectations. Many tend to do it backwards, they have some sort of mystical dream and then get a Jeep to fulfill it. Few month later their Jeep is on the market for sale.
Definitely get the I6. I go on "overlanding" trips in my TJ a few times a year, and space quickly became an issue. I first tried adding a roof rack and piling all of my stuff up there. You gain the hauling capacity you want, but now you've got 150+ lbs of gear at the worst possible location.
After one trip with that setup, I purchased a Dinoot trailer kit and built a trailer for hauling my crap. It weighs ~600 lbs dry, and probably close to 800 lbs when the cooler is full and we've got a week's worth of supplies on board. With this current setup, I find myself in 4-low when on trails I could easily do in 2-high simply because I want/need more low end torque for plodding around at 5-10 mph (I see a re-gear in my near future just for this reason). I'm also downshifting on the highway a lot more pulling the trailer. I imagine that this problem would be worse with the I4.
The short of the long is that if you think you're truly going to get into "overlanding" as you get older, you're either going to sell the TJ for something that can haul more, or you're going to graduate to pulling a trailer behind it. If you go the latter route, you're going to need the 4.0.
Welcome to the forum.
After one trip with that setup, I purchased a Dinoot trailer kit and built a trailer for hauling my crap. It weighs ~600 lbs dry, and probably close to 800 lbs when the cooler is full and we've got a week's worth of supplies on board. With this current setup, I find myself in 4-low when on trails I could easily do in 2-high simply because I want/need more low end torque for plodding around at 5-10 mph (I see a re-gear in my near future just for this reason). I'm also downshifting on the highway a lot more pulling the trailer. I imagine that this problem would be worse with the I4.
The short of the long is that if you think you're truly going to get into "overlanding" as you get older, you're either going to sell the TJ for something that can haul more, or you're going to graduate to pulling a trailer behind it. If you go the latter route, you're going to need the 4.0.
Welcome to the forum.
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