ALH 1949 willys cj3a

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
I am planning of putting a VW diesel in the jeep. Im in the early stages but I think it should be a good swap. I started working on the adapter plate. I have the template made, I just need to finish it and bolt it all together check the alignment before I start making chips.. It is physically the same size as the l-head. It has obvious performance gains. I think it will be a good fit. The plan is to make the back of the VW block/crank mimic the L-head. The adapter is pretty simple and once I get the flywheel depth figured out I will start making the crank adapter. If all goes as planned I wil use the stock willys bell,clutch,starter(gear reduction) and stock the t-90 trans.
Here is what its going in.....


(I cant get my IMGUR pictures to post in the correct size. They take up like 10 times the normal size)
 
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Exenos

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 29, 2014
Location
Ontario
TDI
02 Golf
you need to resize the picture in imgur once you upload them. Need to click on the pencil thingy. I always just change the largest dimension to 1000px and leave it at that.
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
nice project! i would bolt a dial indicator to the crank and rotate it inside the bell bore to get center ... the rod in the pilot bore might seem like an accurate way to detect center but just a tiny angular error at the crank can equal way over spec at the bell bore
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
The hardest part at the moment is clamping the bell to my adapter to get it centered. Im not drilling any holes yet. I may lay the engine on its nose to remove gravity from the equation. :) An extra set of hands would be helpful.
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
what is your measurement method ?

I used two different dial indicators. I indicated the crank like you said then the did the same thing with the dial indicator attached to my test rod as well to compare my findings. I got about a extra 1.5 thousands out on the rod... but im still only at like .003-.004 all the way out at the trans. Im happy with that.
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
any centering method that does not incorporate rotating the crank in reference to the bell bore has inherent inaccuracies... very simple rig, you can borrow mine for a security deposit
 

jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
I used two different dial indicators. I indicated the crank like you said then the did the same thing with the dial indicator attached to my test rod as well to compare my findings. I got about a extra 1.5 thousands out on the rod... but im still only at like .003-.004 all the way out at the trans. Im happy with that.
sounds good
 

1.9ZOOK

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2015
Location
Downstream of a Volcano
TDI
ALH Samurai
No,everything seems to be fine,no clutch chatter or tranny input shaft bearing noise.That's the most likely places a misalignment issue will show up.
With an older vehicle like yours,you will probably be chasing body rattles.
I started with the loudest and slowly eliminated most of them.
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
Well My crank adapter is almost done. I still need to counterbore the holes for the VW crank and drill the holes for the willys flywheel. Slowly coming along. Forgot how long things take when aiming for perfection. This is my second part. I was not pleased with the first one so i started all over. This one is spot on so far... Fingers crossed I don't mess up on the last hole. Still a mile long list, but Im trying to only take it one thing at a time.



 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
I finished the VW side of the crank adapter. Counter bore is done. I mounted it on the crank and it actually fits! haha! I put the indicator on it and It looks like i have about .003 run-out on the side, and just a tiny bit over .001 on the face. Im pretty happy with that. there is a little surface corrosion on the cranks so I will polish that before I do the final install. That could change my reading slightly. I was just happy it fit and all the bolts lined up. Since the VW crank is an eccentric pattern I didn't use the rotary table. Tomorrow I will drill the holes for the willys flywheel and then its done! My aluminum plate for the trans adapter will be here Thursday. That should be pretty straight forward since I already have my template made. I just have to transfer it to the plate. Milling the 1.000 thick alum will be a slow process on my little machine. But I really like working with aluminum. Should be fun. Then I will set the engine in the frame and figure out all the stuff its going to run into! I know the vacuum pump will be a problem.








 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
The jeep supposedly has a curb weight of 2215 lbs and that is with the heavy cast iron flat head engine. Im told that weighs in around 500lbs ready to run. The ALH should shave a little weight of that number.
 

Jetta_Pilot

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 14, 2005
Location
West Hill, Ont.
TDI
2015 Passat Highline TDI Candy White (SEL Premium) long gone 2002 Jetta TDI
It's absolutely amazing what people adapt a TDI too.
Planes, trains ???, boats, automobiles. Only thing left is in a submarine.

Nice job on the jeep, betcha Kayser/Willis never dreamt of that.
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
THanks! Im kinda at a stand still at the moment. I have several issues that i need to sort out. as small as this engine is it really doesnt want to fit in the willys. Main issue is the steering box/oil filter, firewall vacuum pump, and starter/Turbo clearance. Other than that it fit right in haha!
 

1.9ZOOK

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2015
Location
Downstream of a Volcano
TDI
ALH Samurai
I know a lot of people move the drive train forward 2" which really helps with everything
firewall related.Then eliminating the air conditioner pump and tensioner and using a shorter belt and homemade adjustable idler wheel.And it also makes room for the exhaust to wrap over the top of the bell housing.This is what I did for the rear heater out let...

I kept the 3 coolant glow plugs.
Idler wheel tensioner
 
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bwk9087

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2016
Location
MI
TDI
2007 Jeep JKU 1.9 ALH
I know a lot of people move the drive train forward 2" which really helps with everything
firewall related.Then eliminating the air conditioner pump and tensioner and using a shorter belt and homemade adjustable idler wheel.And it also makes room for the exhaust to wrap over the top of the bell housing.This is what I did for the rear heater out let...

I kept the 3 coolant glow plugs.
Idler wheel tensioner
Hey Zook, I went looking for your pics of the coolant plugs you kept in your conversion, but all you pics are fubar in your thread. Do you still have pics of where they are? Or are they on the other side of the rear heater outlet not show in this pic?
thanks
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
Thanks zook, I read every page of your build very cool and informative! Google chrome extension lets you still see the pictures.

I plan un running the auto transmission water neck from a 2003 alh without the glow plugs. I have a plan to run a single pully with a v-belt to the alternator. No power steering or anything. I had to delete the alternator from the stock location to clear the frame rail.
 

bwk9087

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2016
Location
MI
TDI
2007 Jeep JKU 1.9 ALH
Thanks zook, I read every page of your build very cool and informative! Google chrome extension lets you still see the pictures.

I plan un running the auto transmission water neck from a 2003 alh without the glow plugs. I have a plan to run a single pully with a v-belt to the alternator. No power steering or anything. I had to delete the alternator from the stock location to clear the frame rail.
Hi, what extension do you run to see them?
 
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