I have kept an eye on an Eagle behind a barn near my house since I moved here in 2006, I discovered that one of my wife's friends parents live there and parked it after they weren't offered enough in trade when they bought a new Odyssey in 2006. So before I chase it down give me the good the bad and the ugly.
Hi there.
I have an '84 Eagle wagon with a swapped in stroked 4.0, AW4 and NP231.
It is good.
It is bad.
It is ugly.
For more specifics, you will need to be more specific.
Waaay ahead of their time. Great snow cars. 258 I6 long block is indestructible but induction and exhaust aren’t the greatest...at least according to the Jeep crowd. They were always searching for a Weber or something to better the stock carburetor. I believe exhaust manifolds could be problematic too.
we had one in drivers education. 1987. Painfully slow even by ‘80’s standards. I’ve heard the wagon weighed about 4600#. Not out of the ordinary today but a real porker in contemporary terms.
ps and I’m not sure about the weight. Just what I heard back in the day.
Weight for the wagon is about 3500lbs Mine is closer to 3650
Cooter, was hoping you would stop through. What should I be looking for? It would be a casual weekend and field/forest vehicle. It's sat for at least 14 years, so jeep parts swap across?
The 4.0 is a relatively easy swap. The just parts that swap for upgrades are mostly from the XJ/YJ era and later. It's a driver side drop for the IFS front diff (which is an Eagle Only part, as are the front suspension and axles) The 258 from an earlier Jeep product is a straight swap if you already have one in your Eagle. The AMC Torque Command 998/999 is the same as in the 258 powered CJs.
Biggest issue? Rust, especially in the front frame rails. This is common to all of the Hornet based AMCs.
Which version of the Eagle is it? I would love to find an SX/4 or a Kammback.
Rear hatch hinges on the wagons are prone to breakage, and can be difficult to find.
Bumper ends for the SX/4 are even more difficult to find.
I think balljoints have started to become a problem to find according to things I have heard on the FB groups.
Door handles can break on all of them, as they do on all AMCs. If you don't mind them being black instead of chrome, the handles from half door YJ and TJ Wranglers can be used.
Cooter said:
Hi there.
I have an '84 Eagle wagon with a swapped in stroked 4.0, AW4 and NP231.
It is good.
It is bad.
It is ugly.
For more specifics, you will need to be more specific.
Bonertown. I've wanted an eagle since forever, but in ohio it nice ones don't really exist.
I'm in Ohio, an hour north of you.
I can tell you how much I want one. Years ago I was eating lunch in Libby, MT and saw an older gentleman get in his Eagle Sundancer, drop the top and drive off on the snowy mid-winter roads. Deep down I'm a 3 door guy though, so the Kammback Eagle SX4 would be my cup of tea. Just give me fuel injection, AX15 and NP231.
I was working in the Nash dealer when they came out. Wonderful, horrible cars. The first year with the viscous clutch and no low range in the transfer case were just seamless...or at least as seamless as a car with lousy rust resistance, lots of wind noise,a Carter BBD and an antique engine could be. We all said, "AWD is going to be really common in the future."
Former '87 Eagle Wagon owner. This car didn't do anything great but it did everything well.
Had T-case shift fork replaced, musta been made outta bubble gum.
Steel emission tubing like to rot out.
Delay wiper switch E36 M3 the bed, as in absolutely no wipers at all. Couldn't locate one anywhere.... but there is another pig tail built in the wiring harness for the non-delay switch. Easy-peasy change.
Ball joints were ready to change at 100K miles.
Heater valve went, easy change.
One exhaust, to be expected back then. Brakes were easy, rear shoes were the same as XJ.
Had the trans fluid and filter changed at 125K, trans went out at 128K, my bad. And that was the end, it went to the salvage yard.
Owned a lot of cars since starting driving in'73, this is still one of my favorite DD's ever.
Believe it or not, there was a couple year time period in the ‘90’s when Four Wheeler (not Petersen, the other one) was a fantastic magazine. They once did a step by step build where they put an AMC 360 into an Eagle. It would seem an easy job since Jeepers do it all the time. It wasn’t. But they detailed every step necessary. I’m going to try and find that issue in my garage today since I’m “sheltering in place”. I interface with customers and my schedule is blank until June right now.
Since it's Hornet based, how feasible would it be to get a Hornet and a Eagle, swap the underpinnings of the two, and have a sick AWD Hornet and a lowered hot rod Eagle?
Found it. October 1997
Not as easy as you would think, as the floorpans are different between the two to accommodate the transfer case.
Biggest issue with the V8 swap is the center section of the IFS D30 attaches to the engine. A custom crossmember will solve that issue, however. But IMO, the 4.0 makes more sense, especially sice that aforementioned D30 IFS won't handle a bunch of horsepower, and stock vs stock the 4.0 is a better engine than an AMC 360.
Looking around these days, AMC was just 30-40 years to early to the party.
As long as we're talking stock to stock, the 4.0 is better than just about anything.
maybe a hair on the thirsty side but just sayin...
I got 24+ MpG out of Chico the Street Eagle on the way home from California, which I consider to be pretty good for regularly pushing the upper limits to keep up with traffic on CA-99.
Thanks guys, going to go look it over today if I can finish these conference calls during daylight.
American Parts Depot has lots of AMC stuff. They're on 127, south of Greenville, Ohio. Google it. The owner's dad had AMC dealers, and when Chrysler bought them out, they purchased tons of parts, for pennies on the dollar. They know AMCs better than anyone.
In reply to A 401 CJ :
As long as you get the right year. There are a few bad apples on that big tree. Thirsty though? I've managed 26mpg over a full tank in my bone stock XJ.
not sure I'd do better than scrap prices, the frame is rusted through behind the spring on the pass side and at the kickdown on the driver side. I'm contemplating. It is an 86, interior look surprisingly good, floors don't seem horrible, glass seems pretty good.
NMNA Just going to drop this here for you Eagle fans:
https://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/cto/d/monterey-1983-amc-eagle-30-4x4rare/7095386823.html
Woof, that's nice
buzzboy said:In reply to A 401 CJ :
As long as you get the right year. There are a few bad apples on that big tree. Thirsty though? I've managed 26mpg over a full tank in my bone stock XJ.
I don’t argue mileage with people. This one wouldn’t get close to that even before I lifted it. Not even close.
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