Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

I have a CJ5 at another house, and im wondering. Would a 12A, and a mazda transmission fit into it.

This is aloong time from now,looongg, and still hypothetical. but I am curious if it will fit.

Its a 1970's jeep.

Think itll work?

EDIT-ADD. it has no engine in it now.. and the transmission is highly messed up.

85rotarypower

hmmm, this would be an interesting swap. Getting tranny and engine mounts done up wouldn't be much of a problem, but mating the tranny to the transfer case is another story. I think a custom tailhousing would need to be made, and the output shaft modified to work with the transfer case. Other than that, it probably wouldn't be too hard to do. Everything else would pretty much be like any other swap. As for physically fitting into the engine bay and tranny tunnel, that shouldn't be a problem. I know of people that have swapped small block V8's into a CJ5. They came with an I6, so I'm sure length is not a problem, as well as height as the I6 was very tall. Going by my 91 Wrangler that I used to have, there is plenty of room between the shock towers as well.

Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

Its not a fancy jeep.

Rusty is spots. gauges are rusty and stuff. Its one of those, Fix er upper keeps.

Rotary engines compared to small block engines are really cheap. same hp though.

kgray

small block v8's will have conciderally more hp than a stock 12a

Naegleria_Fowleri

I was thinking the same thing, and no where even near the torque. I mean granted you can always do a 12a up to have more horsepower, but still no where near the torque. It would be an interesting build, and it would be cool to be able to say you have a rotary powered Jeep (most people outside the rotary world would laugh, and quite possibly a lot inside). I say when you have the time and money to do it go for it, but just make sure you upgrade it to compensate for the weight and everything of the original vehicle.

Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

umm. a small block 4 cylinder. if a 4 cylinder is called a small block.

I didnt think anybody would ge confused on that one.

A CJ5 is tiny, I think a rotary would do good.

2800-3000 pnds.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Less torque, more noise, slower.

Jeff20B

iTrader: (13)

Change the gearing to work in the engine's happy range.

Naegleria_Fowleri

Well in that case, go for it. You'll still be wanting more power though. Think of it like dropping a 12a into an FC since the weight is comparable to that. If all you have to work with is a 12a then go for it, but if you have the choice between 13b or 12a, I say go for the 13b.

Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

my bad, 2665 lb. thats with the 4 cylinder. take that off , including air conditioning, everything is off. its litteraly stripped.

it has a rear end, drive shaft. and it has a steering wheel connected to the front. and its the same design as the FB steering so im guessing all that is gonna have to be replaced :P.


Oh and im gonna have to weld on the windshield because it rusted off of the jeep :P.


I just figured id ask the 1st gen people, because some people had 12as, And 13bs. not just one.

So thx for your help.


any more pointers would help.

gsterror

Remember, you'll also need a custom exhaust. You can run the stock manifold or normal headers, but the shape and size of the little Jeep is different than the RX, as well as the whole rear end, so you'll need to figure out a custom exhaust.

Rogue_Wulff

Making it fit, and making it work are 2 totally seperate issues. Both are doable, but will require effort. Make sure the intended transplant vehicle is worthy of the effort required. Those old jeep cj's are very prone to rust, and often they can rust to the point that the body is not saveable.
Even if the jeep body is still in decent condition, this task will require a lot of effort, and fabrication. If you do not have the tools/equipment and ability to do the fabrication, you need to have the funds to pay someone who does.

saltyslug

I think it all depends on what your gonna do with it and how big of tires are gonna go on it. You wouldn't be able to run much bigger than 31 inch tires with the torque that the 12a makes, gearing only works to a point and the 12a tranny is pretty low geared but just not enough.

You got to remember to turn big tires when you NEED to(dead stand still in mud, sand, over logs, thrugh mailboxes and 200ft long picket fences)you need TORQUE INSTANTLY at 1500-2500 rpm no matter what. So it all goes back to what your turning.

I had a 76 blazer with with a 350 and 42inch swampers and it did ok, would mash through the mud and sling it 10-15 ft in the air. I stepped up to a 427bb and 44 inch tires and it would shoot chunks of mud big enough to break windshiedls and glass at 40+ft away from a dead stop, and I could crawl over anything I wanted.

You better not say your gonna waste a cj5 on a street car either


get a small car for the rotary and save some cheese for the small block chev. its been tried and true and you wont have probs

I am running a 12a in my baja with 31 inch tires in the rear but my tranny has been built to deal with big tires and a low torque engine, plus the turbo will help, lol

Dr_Jeff

considering that Mazda put the engine in a bus, it should be fine

razorback

ive read a few articles with rotary engines in jeeps/offroad vehicles and the people seemed impressed. they didnt have so much tq they broke the tires loose and got good traction.

rxtasy3

iTrader: (2)

actually, u'd be better off putting a streetported 13b into a 4x4 samari.

saltyslug

again those use different tranny's designed to turn big tires. you think that bus had a regular 12a tranny???? BTW it cam with a 13b not a 12a(less torque in the 12a due to displacement)

he asked about the stock tranny and most of those rigs are strictly off road vehicles with alot of weight reduction.

try it and see what happens. the ONLY way you will know for sure is if you try.

Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

Its not gonna be any offroad mega machine. not raised

I wanna get it looking original. With the willis tires (thin) and everything.


I see your point saltyslug.

The body is perfect if you dont count the rust in the rear. but that can be replaced easily.

The front is great. the Front bumper guard(huge) has to go. and the pully is all screwed up. rusted out.

But I think I will try to restore it. thanks for the motivation yaull.

It probally wont be started this year, I still have to finish my car. next year will probbaly be the year.