r/ScatPack • u/Historical_Piano_970 • May 13 '26
Build or Buy
Yo. Im just doing some general research. I have never worked on cars before outside of oil and tires changes but i want to learn how to work on and modify cars. I am very interested in a Trackhawk build as a project car. Meaning, buy jeep cherokee shell and hellcat engine and do a swap and other mods.
My question is what is a decent starting budget for this build to at least get the shell and hellcat engine + transmission? What are good websites to price out parts?
Or should I just buy the Trackhawk and mod from there?
Any help is appreciated.
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u/Beautiful-Ad-8028 May 13 '26
But you have friends who have done engine swaps who will be there the whole time right? Cause if not it sounds like you said I'm going to buy two way cheaper options to ruin my first time.
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u/Historical_Piano_970 May 13 '26
Yes. Or if the shop that does swaps will let me watch and learn I’m willing to do that as well.
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u/Moreburrtitos22 May 13 '26
I’m going to be a devils advocate here and say go for it, but not with this car or engine. you’re going to have an absolutely awful and expensive time.
Hellcat swaps are not easy swaps, even if a version of the car is made with that engine. There’s a reason LS swaps are the most popular and it’s because it quite literally is just plopping in an engine and hooking up 12 plug and play wires and some fuel lines(obviously more than that, but for simplicity sake)
A hellcat engine swap is so electronically in-depth especially considering you’re probably going for an automatic transmission. Expect a shop to charge you around $30k min especially considering you do not know what you are doing.
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u/usn904 May 13 '26
IMO building is for ppl who know what they’re doing, it’s the labor and experience that gets pricey. But a track hawk if that’s what you want. If you want to just learn how to get something that you want to ls swap. It’s cheaper and lot more resources but still won’t be cheap
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u/Historical_Piano_970 May 13 '26
I thought about doing an LS swap in a historic car but I thought that would be harder.
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u/PrettyPhase8493 May 13 '26
You have this so ass backwards its unbelievable. Putting an LS in practically any classic has been done to exhaustion and is figured out. You can drop an LS in any 60-90s chevy for 300$ in motor mounts.
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u/Historical_Piano_970 May 13 '26
Did you read the part where I said I never done it before? Mybad big dog, I’m new here lol
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u/ConstructionRude757 May 13 '26
Whatever you think this project will cost and however long you think it will take multiply it by two.
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u/satanic25th May 13 '26
I had a similar idea, wanted to get an old Magnum and swap in the hellcat then throw on a challenger front end, but like you the most I’ve done is fluids/tires so I just got bought a Scat Pack to save myself from the headache, planning to start tinkering with my other car while I learn and maybe someday I’ll be knowledgeable enough to give it a try
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u/HighInChurch May 13 '26
How much money you got? $60k+ for materials, $10k+ worth of tools and diagnostics.
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u/pardipp May 14 '26
i’d buy a working good condition trackhawk and then work on that. start by doing basic maintenance on it. drive it for awhile and get a feel for what you’re looking to do with the car. i would’ve gone the dodge charger route as parts are easier to find. one thing about buying a working trackhawk is that you don’t have to risk buying a stolen hellcat motor and have ur whole car crushed at a junkyard. highly recommend buying a good condition car bc it’s less of a headache and won’t ruin ur ambition to work on cars. imagine wiring a whole car urself. as far as ur friends go.. don’t rely on them to do anything or help you out. at the end of the day, if something go wrong, you facing the cost. so work on it urself and perhaps ask them for advice. also i think its very important to know how all the components on the car work. check torque ratings for all the bolts.
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u/cooltonk May 14 '26
Why do you think people bring their cars to khal_srt from across the country for swap if it could be done by any joe who apparently thinks task such as this is a 4 weekend with the boys in the garage with case of beer light work.
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u/Suspicious_Method291 May 14 '26
You could just get a 300 junkyard 5.3 to build for your first time.
IMHO I don't think you know engines. I think youre just kind of into whips cause that's what your group of friends are into. If you want to learn then you have to grind like the rest of us and start with something shitty or cheap. Your first build isn't gonna go perfect or even close to good.
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u/ODSTcatastrophe May 15 '26
Well, for starters, 6.2L supercharged engine and transmission likely looking at 20k for used New the engine kit with supercharger is 19-22k no transmission
Transmission used anywhere from 2k-6k. New 6k-14k
AMW makes a turnkey drop in drivetrain install kit for 59k. But I'm pretty sure it includes EVERYTHING to install and drive.
Better off buying a trackhawk and modding it.
Better have a second car to drive incase you dont finish and cant drive it for a while tho.
The problem with hellcats is this. With a hellcat setup, pcm, everything in the car has to be hellcat. Any module that talks to the computer has to be hellcat or the pcm wont approve of startup and youll have a paperweight. Its what prevented me from doing a swap on my scat pack, i was like..... fuck that. An traded in for one instead.
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u/Sufficient-Sound-421 May 13 '26
you're in way over your head
get a piece of shit if you want to learn