Tranny/motor question

[korisu56]

Will a 30rh 3 spd transmission bolt up to my I6? Is it a bad idea?

[Jerry Bransford]

The 30RH is a "less robust" version of the 32RH which is what is used on earlier I6 4.0L engines. Not that it will fit due to input shaft spline count differences, I wouldn't do it just for strength reasons. It likely wouldn't hold up long to the I6 4.0L engine even if its input shaft was swapped to fit the 4.0L engine.

[korisu56]

So what's a good plug and play auto tranny? I had a line on what from a totalled TJ. Not wasting my time on cheap shit though.

[Jerry Bransford]

You aren't giving many details about your Jeep but if you want an automatic and you have the 4.0L engine, the 32RH is going to be the simplest one to install and get working. I completed my conversion from my former 5-speed manual transmission to the 32RH almost a year ago and it went pretty well. The 32RH is pretty much a bolt-in transmission. It also has a very good reputation for reliability. I only suggest you add a deep pan kit to increase its ATF capacity if you offroad on steep terrain. Summit Racing, the dealer, Skyjacker, Currie, and several others sell the same identical deep pan kit for $60 or so.

[korisu56]

Sorry brother, most people know about my hunk-o-shit on here from the youtube videos and bad mods .

04 Wrangler X
4.0L
NV3550
NP231

Do I have to worry about wiring and stuff as well? Is there a writeup out there anywhere?

[Jerry Bransford]

Sorry but once you get to 2003 and newer, I just don't know if the electronics/wiring is there to make a 32RH work in your rig. It is there in 2002 and older TJs but in 2003, Jeep went to the 42RLE 4-speed automatic transmission which is a totally different beast, especially computer and wiring-wise. For your 2004, I'd go for a used 42RLE and install the automatic version of the engine computer (mounted on the firewall behind the battery) to make it work. The wiring to run the tranny (it is very electronic) will already be present in your wiring harness. Good luck man, an automatic is very cool on tougher trails. Most of the competitors in rock crawling events went to automatics years ago.

[korisu56]

Oh I definitely want to go auto, just not today. I don't know if you saw in this section, but I'm getting re-acquainted with my Jeep . I'm familiar with the transmissions, just didn't know how different the wiring hookups were at the year break. Now I do. I found a 42RLE for 400 bucks on ebay, but it's so far down the line I'm not sweating it. Baby steps friend, baby steps....

[Jeffb_79]

I still think your transmission is probably ok... just noisy like a lot of other nv3550's. I'd try filling it up with mobil 1 5w-30 and see if it get's better before swapping a new trans.
If you're going to go from a stick to an auto, don't forget to pick up a new computer as well.
There's a website out there that specializes in parting out wrecked jeeps.... I forget the name off hand, but if I come across I'll put it up. Might be an easy location to get a new trans, computer, and any other associated wiring you may need.

[korisu56]

Yeah, I'm tracking all of this Jeff_79. I'm sticking with teh 3550 for now, but an auto has been in the cards since a trail ride a loooong time ago.

[tellish33]

daveysjeeps.com is a guy out of Salem, OH and he parts out wrecked Jeeps and sells R-title Jeeps as well. I have been to his place and it is pretty awesome the amount of stuff that he has. I dont know if that was the site you were talking about Jeffb_79 but that is the ine that I know. Good luck in your hunt.