I heard that a 4x4 conversion is possible on my jeep Liberty KJ 03.

Current Specs

2.4l 4c
Chrysler 8 1/4 Rear Axle
NV1500 Manual 5Spd

From all the research I have done I need.

2x hub assemblys (left/right)
The left and right axle Shafts
4.10 Front differential
Rear and Front driveshafts
Select-trac Transfer case

Now heres the quirk because so far getting all the parts has not been an issue all but one. The 4.10 Front differential seems like it is rare.

Does anyone here have any recomendations or local salvage yards that might have the part. I am at a complete standstill due to that one part!!!
If anyone who knows of a junkyard or parts retailer that has the part for 200-400 or how hard would it be to replace the 3.73 gears to 4.10? I hear that the pinion shafts that are mopar only are what make the front 4.10's so difficult to find along with the fact that the 2.4l where not common to begin with and even less of 4x4.

Please help! 4x4

It would be cheaper to trade it in a get a 4x4 model.The selectrac t-case won't work with the 5 speed manual also.You are missing alot of other things to,all the mounts for the front diff,I'm sure a new cradle will be needed unless all the mounting places for the front diff are there.Have to remove the tranny and replace the rear output shaft with a shorter 4wd one and the 4wd tail cone,t-case linkage and shifter.If you are really wanting to do this it's going to be pricy,good luck.

If you're swapping in a new transfer case, you might as well put in one from a Rubicon. Mmmm, 4:1 low-gear ratio...

The 4.10 gears for the D30a front are pretty hard to come by. It seems like the best thing to do is call around and ask if the salvage yards have any 2.4L KJs.

Sorry I can't offer any further advice. I think I'm going to agree with the above post and say that it would be much cheaper and easier to trade in for a 4x4. You can get KJs pretty cheap now--I've seen them going for under $8,000. Anyways, good luck with whatever you decide to do.

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Ryan
<B>'03 Limited 4x4</B>

Anything is possible if you have time and money. I'd say look for a totaled 4x4 kj with good drive train to use for the donar parts probably be the cheapest way.

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02' Sport- SOLD

07' Dodge Ram Quad Cab 1500 4x4
Yeah it's got a hemi!

See I had alot of people tell me that. My liberty is almost paid off and I do not really want another car loan to be paying off another year of payments. I have seen it done on the 3.7L with the auto trans, everything seems to bolt in whether or not the KJ comes with 4x4. I will take pictures and do some major calling around this weekend.

If I can find a 2.4 jeep KJ to salvage the front Drive train + Drive shafts I am hoping to gather all the parts and hardware to get the job done for 300-400$

Are there any full-time Transfer cases compatible?

Here is a little more crazy of an idea. Replacing the rear differential to a 3.73 gear set whitch would make it sooooo much easier to get parts for the front. How much of a difference will that .37 difference in the gear ratios possibly make? I know its seems radicle but maybe not because I can get a hold of them all day for 150-200$ Found the front steering components for 100$ for both the left and the right. 50$ a pop for the hub assembly, +250 or so for the front differential 3.73. 100-150$ for the front and back driveshaft

The 4:1 Low-Gear ratios sound very appealing. Im going to look further in or if you guys know what works and what doesn't with the NV1500. I feel that Command-Trac part time looks like garbage.

No way you are going to get all the parts for $300-$400. You need the front diff with 4.10's or just buy one with 3.73's and put a 4.10 ring and pinion in it. The front and rear have to match. There is $400+ right there. You need the transfer case. Both drive shafts, the 4wd shifter lever and linkage. You need the spindles and or the 4wd hubs the axles. Like TJKJ says possibly a different cradle (i dont know) and whatever is needed to mount the transfer case up to the trans. More power to you if you get it done. But every time i start a project and get an estimate on how much it's gonna cost. It always cost at least 3x more than what i estimated.

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02' Sport- SOLD

07' Dodge Ram Quad Cab 1500 4x4
Yeah it's got a hemi!

I have seen this question asked several times in 4X4 mags and the answer is always the same
sell the 2wd and buy a 4wd and go from there ,cheeper in the long run
I saw a write up a while back on a guy who did what you want to do with a XJ he got a TJ that was totaled in a crash
for $500 in the end he spent over $3000 and that was from a rig that most of the parts mached and is considered easy
I would not consider IFS 2wd to 4wd easy
and 4wd KJ's are not a dime a dozen

I think you guys are all definetly right on the money there. Im probably going to end up dropping the project because I guess I didnt fully understand what really whent into it parts wise and cost wise.

I may just take the 1 grand I have for the project and dump it into a 02-03 Jeep 2.7l w/Select Trac. Ill go ahead and find out what dealers are willing to give out for it!

Thanks for all your input, Its not a huge letdown but more of a change in decision but I will see what I can get real quotes on for especially the 4.10 diff if I can find.

cradle is the same, spindles are the same, hub assemblies are the same. But yeah, it ain't worth it to swap to a 4wd. Maybe if you scored a CLEAN 2wd XJ for uber cheap, since you can grab 4wd XJ's for super cheap too a 2wd-to-4wd swap would be financially feasible, but not with a late-model vehicle.

It's not that it can't be done but it makes more sense just to get a 4wd to start with.You can go to 3.73 gears but you'd be sucking with that 4 cylinder,if you can find a front D30A with 4.10's in a junk yard your looking at $400+ easy(they are highly prized),or regear the front diff about $500+,or buy a new one with the 4.10's for about $1400.As far as the fulltime t-case it will cause binding issues with the manual t-case,you can't get the select-trac with any manual in a Jeep and it's weaker then the 231 command-trac anyways.If you could find a wreacked donor vehicle to get all the parts off of would be nice but look at spending at least $3000+ for a wrecked KJ with useable parts.

x2

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Brian

'05 Yellow TJ Rubicon 6spd

Click here for my Jeep Mods

Redneck Yacht Club for life!!

If you have or haven't seen Truck TV on Spike network. On a couple of occasions when answering letter from those who have written in Have asked them the same question. His response just like here, said unless you have real deep pockets and life will have no meaning unless you do the 4x4 conversion "It's not worth the time nor money you would be far better off getting a true 4x4 if you have to do a project find a very used or salvage vehicle and go to town on it." Read on to other parts in this forum there are part of the country where the dealer has a 2x4 Jeep or truck on the lot and can't give them away. Trust me if they could economically do the conversion in house to get rid of they would in a heat beat. But unfortunatley it isn't.

You're forgetting one case where it actually makes sense to turn a 4x2 into a 4x4: when you're going to do SAS anyway.

You'd be throwing out most of the components anyhow, so it really doesn't cost you any more to start off with a 4x2.

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DIRTY KJ :: flickr photostream
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