Does an Atlas T-Case fit in an XJ?

[@LaunceBugbee]

Another great tutorial… thank you for the awesome content!! ❤

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@LaunceBugbee You are welcome! Thank you for the compliment! There's more coming, stay tuned!

[@forreststrong797]

I have the 4 speed atlas in my xj. I actually went with a cable shifter, the TJ cable shifter bolts to the xj floor in the stock location no cutting or anything. Im still using a center console and full interior. The only thing I had to modify is the shifter arms i had to unbend them and tweak them slightly but I have an older style console maybe the 97 and newer console wouldn't need the tweaks i had to do. Also on the aw4 they say to plug the weep hole on the extension housing with silicone. The weep hole is there to show you if the seal in there failed but the atlas is sealed and doesnt need it also some people get leaks after install because the atlas may not engage the extension housing seal like the stock transfer case. What i did instead of silicone is i drilled and tapped the weep hole and installed a 1/16 NPT plug. This is an awesome video theres pretty much no videos showing an atlas in a Cherokee especially an install video.

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@forreststrong797 Thank you for that info! I had not heard about the weep hole; we'll have to look into that. We agree, there's almost no current info about doing this swap in an XJ. Hopefully our video can help other people doing this swap in the future.

[@99xj2door]

@forreststrong797 will the 4 speed atlas clear the body? Or does it need to be lowered? Will be purchasing one soon

[@forreststrong797]

@@99xj2door well it depends on what angle you clock it. I've seen someone's who wanted it more flat in an xj and they cut the floor out some. In mine it required a little massaging of the floor with a hammer, there's the protrusion on the back of the case that covers the internal shifter rods this is where there is clearance issues and I had to hammer the floor a bit I wasn't willing to angle it another hole over with the clock ring. Also I had to modify my crossmember a little to clear the front driveshaft at full droop but I have a lot of droop so much I had to modify my driveshaft for more angle and I also have an aftermarket crossmember, the stock crossmember or another crossmember may not need modifications and this was easy modifications just a little grinding nothing that needed to be reinforced or anything. I would highly recommend using the TJ cable shifter if your a little worried about cutting out the floor around the shifters. I'm really happy with the cable shift setup it was a clean install but took some time to really learn how it all works and I had to do slight modifications the first thing I had to do was bend the 2 shift levers in a different way they are made of flat steel and essentially I flattened out the bends in my press but you could use other methods then I adjusted a little with test fitting. The base bolts in it's just the shifters weren't straight so I adjusted the bends. If you have a 97 or newer console and floor it may fit a little different I have an older model but it will still bolt to your floor you will probably have to bend the shifters a little like I did but it turned out nice. Then down at the case I had to use the offset cable adapter that comes with the cable kit it's meant to be used with a certain transmission in a certain way, I had to grind a tiny bit of aluminum off the block that comes with the shifters that bolts to the back of the case so I could use the adapter block the other direction. There's no permanent mods to the actual case or anything just small easy things to the shifter components and it may fit a little different if you have the ax15 I have the aw4. I also didn't do any sort of transfer case drop. A few tips I wish I could have found or found easier is when installing the atlas you need to plug the weep hole on your extension housing this is the stock piece between the trans and t-case that the t-case bolts to. Instructions say to use a dab of silicone to plug the hole but I drilled and tapped mine to a 1/16NPT thread and used a 1/16 NPT plug for a cleaner more solid install this can be done in the vehicle. This weep hole is no longer necessary with the atlas because the atlas is sealed and this hole can leak because it's possible the atlas may not ride on the stock seal which is ok. You also use a thin layer of sealer on the mating surface when bolting up the case on final install. Another tip I wish I would have known because I ruined my brand new carpet kit and had to buy another front carpet piece is do not cut the carpet at all without test fitting your console if you're running a console, and if you cut the carpet only cut side to side like door to door ways not front to back you want to make a flap do not cut the carpet flap off or anything until your certain it won't show on the edge of the console and just know it's ridiculously close to the bottom edge of the console im sure you'll be able to figure it out now that you know to look. Your newer console may be more forgiving if it's a newer model just pay close attention. This was a little harder for me because my new carpet kit wasn't pre cut. Then the studs that come with the atlas are a tight fit you really have to work hard to get them in all the way they are meant to stay for good. So what I did was get a few studs for test fitting I believe it's a 3/8-16 thread that way I could install 2 or 3 studs with my fingers and test fit because I fit the case and removed it I think 3 or 4 times to choose my angle and hammer the floor a little. I had nuts to finger tighten on the temporary studs each test fit and that made it easy it takes some patience. Also to get the t-case on I had to lower the back of the transmission quite a bit then slide it on and raise it up. I had a hydraulic stand thing under the trans and another for the t-case and my wife helped me with the test fitting and install we had it in its final spot in about 1.5 hours taking our time. I can't think of anything else at the moment. If you decide to run a drop fitment is even easier but I didn't want to drop it if I didn't have to. If you decide to go with the solid linkage shifters like the standard shifters the same advice applies with the carpet but I would wait until you have stuff in the car to trim the floor I know this might make it harder but I would want to trim away as little floor as possible. I actually purchased the solid linkage shifters the standard ones first then I realized I could probably make the TJ cable shifter work and purchased that because I really wanted the cleanest install because I have a really nice interior and I'm picky. If you want to give me your email I can send you pictures if you'd like and maybe help with some questions. I had a really hard time finding anything online about installing the atlas in a Cherokee there's practically nothing. Also I don't think the guys at advanced adapters have worked on a Cherokee for a very long time because they didn't know the TJ cable shifter would fit even though it says xj in the fine print. From my research it's also my belief that the 4 speed fits better than the 2 speed in an xj but I could be wrong. Anyways let me know if you have any questions or want some pictures.

[@99xj2door]

​​@@forreststrong797 This is the 3rd attempt at replying idk if youtube is taking my comments off because I'm putting my email in them idk I appreciate your reply! I'll reply on there haha but your 100 percent correct there is zero information about the 4 speed in a xj!

[@forreststrong797]

@99xj2door I sent you an email.

[@ghost-nn5yv]

I'm thinking about installing one of these in my XJ and was curious how long did this take

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@ghost-nn5yv with interior already out, approximately 3-4 hours.

[@ghost-nn5yv]

@@IronRockOffRoad oo that's not bad at all thank you

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@ghost-nn5yv You are welcome. If you have any questions, give us a call 9-6pm central 952-210-7185.

[@moejr14]

Can you do a front dogs with the atlas?

[@forreststrong797]

Yes you can do front digs

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@moejr14 Yes. We have a similar Atlas transfer case in our orange LJ nicknamed Project OverTime. The front dig is very useful.

[@moejr14]

What are you doing for axles?

[@IronRockOffRoad]

@moejr14 The XJ project will use Superduty axles. The front is coming soon so stay tuned! Everything we are using will be available on our website to make 1-ton swapping your XJ very easy.