pull it out and put a 4.0 V6 in or a 5.0 V8 depending on how much power you want... lol... or if you want it to feel like it has more power regear the axles... I dont think there is much to do to a 2.9
according to TRS there are several things that can be done. i am looking to liven the motor up a little. i was just wondering which would be the most cost effective options, and if anybody has tried any of these. i would like to swap to a 4.0 but thats a big project and i dont have time or resources to swap motors right now. unless somebody has a complete running 4.0, with the computer and everything they want to sell to me.
Your biggest problem is the fact that it uses a speed density computer which will not make any adjustments for increased airflow thru the motor from ported heads,bigger cam or other mods. To make more power you need to get more air & fuel into the motor....getting the air in&out is the easy part but adding the required fuel is the tricky part. Yeah you can add headers,exhaust,free flowing intake stuff the help it breath easier but the power gain will be very small and most likely only from making the engine run leaner.
The 2.9 is OK motor but tryin to get serious power out of it is pointless. I think the best and easiest option is to re-gear the truck and multiply the little power it already makes.
2nd best option is a motor swap. A 4.0 is a major upgrade over the 2.9 but your still stuck with a garbage trans. Swapping is a 5.0 is alot more work but it opens up your options for a much stronger drivetrain like c4's,c6's or even AOD's.
The 4.0 is a good motor and with a good cooler the a4ld isnt that bad of a trans but there are also adapters out there to mate a 700r4/4l60e Chevy tranny behind them.. which both are better tannies then the a4ld because of the lower 1st gear they have.
so bottom line im not gettin much power out of it, im ont going to get much more power out of it and i dont have the money to swap to a 4.0 or bigger so im just stuck right now.
im a little desperate, you mentioned fuel flow, the tech article says something about swapping 19lb 5.0 injectors, MSD coil and advanced timing. would the injectors add more fuel to the mix to get more power? im not too familiar with this kind of engine work.
What size tires you using and what gears you have? Prolly the best and cheapest way to go is just change the gears.If you have some 3.45's in there and you pick up some cheap used 4.10's it will feel like you added 100hp.
right now i have 3.73 and 30x9.5 tires, id like to go to 4.10. doing that in the rear would be no big thing but the front is a deferent story. 4.10 d35s are hard to come by and i dont want to pull the front axle apart unless im going to upgrade or if i get a D28 4.10 pig REAL cheap.
how dod yours handle on the road with the maxis tires? could you get the torque converter to lock up much? i dd mine but i would keep the MTs next to the garage unless i plan on using them.
There is a junkyard in Deerfield Mi called Nagy's Auto that told me a few months ago that they had a few 4.10 d35's layin around. I ended up pickin up 4.56 instead.
I dont use the Buckshots on my Bronco2,those are on my 99 Ranger and it drives like a stock Ranger.Handles fine{no sway bars} and rides like utter shit {add-a-leaf and cranked up t-bars} but none of this are the tires fault.
My B2 with 3.73's and 33" I do have to lift off the throttle to get the converter to lock up a lot of times.I drive it 80 miles round trip to work everyday.
im really just looking to boost my low end torque a little to help cruise with the torque converter locked up. thats the biggest concern, slightly faster acceleration would be nice too.
i have seen how to set up a K&N on the 2.9 manifold but i am afraid of it getting water and mud in it. is that a real concern or not really? or were you about a factory sized KN?
My truck had a replacement K&N in it when I bought it. I removed the air box and sealed off the bottom inlet that faces the motor. Then I cut two new 2x3 holes,one on the rear and the other on the side facing the fender. I have had this thing thru some seriously deep shit with no problems.
Hey, I ran a kn fipkit intake on my cherokee with no problems and I took it to the mud run a few times at fowlers in south haven. I just wouldnt run through water that is up to the hood. If you run through the mud a lot just have to clean the filter more and the recharge kits are less than 20 bucks.
has anybody tried anything else, im trying to get every bit of power out of it i can, from what i know the 2.9 is a good motor but it just doesn't have as much power as i would like either, i'm going to try some of those mods i read about on TRS just for kicks, maybe the blaster coil, thermostat, 8mm wires, 5.0 19 lb injectors, early throttle body, and high flow intake and exhaust, advanced timing,maybe an electric fan if i can find one at a decent price. i don't want to drop money on a cam or headers, but if all that doesn't work ill be pissed i wasted the money but what ever. part of the fun for me is working on it, another big part of the fun is trying different things, everyone swaps in the 4.0 0r 5.0, maybe i can get a little power out of this thing.
have you done the port matching? i think that wounds like a good one, if you id how do you do it or how muh did it cost you? the plenum spacer looks like a good one too.
ive never done the port work but ive read about it on TRS. The bigger TB with a k&n cone filter makes the engine breathe better and adds power. You should be able to do the port work at your school, just take the engines class.
ok heres a question but what rpms are you turning while your wheeling it? what are you mostly wheeling it in. mud, sand, rocks. the 2.9 is not a power motor, its an rpm motor. get the revs up and let the bitch run til shes floating the valves. i ran a 2.9 off the valves floating for as long as it took me to get a 4.0. still bounce that off the rev limiter. you want power dont go with a 5.0 unless its a newer one out of a explorer or mountaineer. but make sure use the trans that comes out of the truck. those dont have distributors so they are optimal for water.
2.9=scream the rpms
4.0=rev limiter
5.0=heavier then 4.0 and not a ton of hp gain over the 4.0
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