Cherokees....

[aero]

What is there to look for when buying a Cherokee? Just so I can keep my eyes peeled when I get rid of the miata. ... Maybe the 4runner as well and just get a mud vehicle and some kind of car :)

I know some have tranny problems, some are better than others... and there are always certain problems to look for. So any help would be great. I like them better than wranglers obvisously for the price, and at least it would have a little more space to carry junk.

[95w_bTEG]

i dont really know what the common problems are on them.

mine got 160k miles, and it runs like a dream, gas is not that great though.

[Jeepin']

Muhahahahahaha...

When your shopping for an XJ (designation code for Cherokees 84-01) You need to break down what it'll be used for. This is key. This will clue you on in what to look for, to avoid, and how to build it up.

1984 thru 2001 Cherokee chassis remained 95% unchanged. A 84 hood will fit a 2001 and bisavera. Cherokee only saw 1 facelift in its lifetime - 1997 (same year I happen to own) Because of this, key body panels & interiors will not directly bolt up. So basically if your gonna beat on it, get a pre 96. Easier to find bones in the yard.

Engines - Only go with 1 - the 258ci Inline 6 banger. The toruqe to power is dead on. It can be enhanced with the typical breather mods for added power of course, and it is possible to bore it out to a 4.7 litire. Stroker kits and superchargers have also came out in the last year for it. It a tough motor to beat offroad. Its a sinch to work on and was built to be punished, and will serve well over 300,000 with regular upkeep. If your gonna go Jeep, don't settle for anything less.

However other motors were available. The seccond most common was the 4.0Ls little half retarded brother, the 2.5L inline 4. Unless you plan on doing a motor swap, stay away from this little grunt. Shes good in Wranglers because it came stock with the 2.5L and a 4:10 gear ratio in both axles, but that wasn't available on XJ.

One last motor was a rare one, only came as an option for 2 years, but really not worth the time. It was the 2.8L iron Duke.. don't ask why.

As far as axles, you have the benifet of SOLID axles, not some wasted CV design. Same accross all the boards. A Dana 30 upfront, and a Dana 35 C out back. While these are commonly swapped, they can handle up to a 35" tire and a mild locker without major issues. BUT - before you buy, check for a factory Jeep tow hitch. If it has one, check the fill/check plug on the rear diff. If its a 3/8 rachet instead of a rubber plug, you've found a RARE XJ with a Dana 44 rear axle. Major league stuff to roll with.

All XJs 84-01 came with the NP231 Transfer Case. It'll do you fine.

Transmissions - only 3 were offered. If its a an auto, its the tried and true AW4. A 4 speed w/ overdrive. Very dependable tranny. If stick, it depends on your motor. If you find a manual with a I6, your tranny is gonna be a AX-15. A tough tranny to beat. But if you get the 2.5L I4, your getting a wasted ass AX-5 Perqut designed peice. STAY AWAY!! I've rebuilt 2 already in Wranglers. Its simply not worth the headache.

XJ came in 2 chassis styles - 2 door and 4 door. 4 door is nice, but compared to todays SUVs, offers little room to rear seat riders in my opinion. However XJ was the first SUV to ever be built unibody. This makes us incredibly strong.

Suspension wise all XJs are rear leaf sprung and coils upfront. This works for off pavement if you setup correctly. (I'll go into details another time)

Those are pretty much the highlights. One last note - look for rust buildup above the rear hatch and above the passanger front doors. It happens to every single one.

Any further details of if you want picutres of my rig build or offroad shots & tech help, let me know..

Welcome to the dark side.....

[95w_bTEG]

^good info!

[pdexta]

Brandon, let me know when you get serious about buying one. I've got an x-gf that has one and has been talking about trading it in for something else. I think it's a '99, it's a 4.0L auto, I can guarantee it's never seen dirt, well maintained, never wrecked. Might be worth lookin into.

[aero]

Sweet, thanks for all the info.

I figured the 258 i6 was the way to go. There is a cheap wrangler (91 4cyl) on craigslist now ($2000).. but I dont think i would want the 4.

If I got one, it would have to be somewhat daily driveable. I only drive about 10 miles round trip a day though, so gas really isnt a problem.

I would like something relatively new, like the red one that is in the "stuck pictures" thread. But as long as its the boxy style, its all good. Probably would want a 4 door just to have them. Dont care too much about whoever is in the back :)

Guess I just gotta get the miata out of here for now, and then we can see what I can find. Ebay here I come!!

[aero]

Brandon, let me know when you get serious about buying one. I've got an x-gf that has one and has been talking about trading it in for something else. I think it's a '99, it's a 4.0L auto, I can guarantee it's never seen dirt, well maintained, never wrecked. Might be worth lookin into.

aiighty. But it'll probably be more on the beater side of things since I will be trying to keep it as cheap as possible when the time comes. But thanks for thinking of me. And like I said.. miata will absolutely have to go.

[95w_bTEG]

check out floridajeepers.net.

theres a couple xj's for sale there.

[Jeepin']

Also look for auctions. Mines a former Charlette County Police vehicle. It served for 5 years, then sat in their compound untill 2006. A guy bought it at auction for his daughter, but she thought it was ugly and refused to drive it, so it sat in his wharehouse for a year. I picked it up for $2500 with 84,000 on it.

Since it was a specialty batch made for goverment use, it came with some things that were'nt offered on stock XJs. Full skid plates covering the gastank, T-case and transmission and entire steering linkage protection. It also came with a transmission cooler and a limited slip in the rear.

Mines a DD as well. I started with a Rough Country 3" lift kit. I then added Rubicon Express coil spacers for the front and Teraflex drop shackles for the rear. The truck now has a little over 5" of lift. Tires I went with 31" Goodyear Wrangler MT/Rs (Have to rep where you work) These things are nuts, but wish I had gone with 33"s.

I also removed the fender flares and chopped 2" off each fender. Up front I slapped on a Renwood 10,000 lbs winch. Since it was a goverment fleet, they didn't bother putting a roof rack on it. So I fabbed one up using an exsisting kit and bolted that on the roof. Since a 31" is over 5" bigger then stock tire size (P225-75-15), a offroad spare doesn't fit in the stock location, so it now rides on the roof. Other doo-dads include a CB (a must have!) and roof lighting.

Jeeps are the awesome period. This is my 4th one already. Previously had an 89XJ, 97ZJ (Grand Cherokee), and a 92 YJ(Wrangler).

[+Juan]

Grand Cherokee FTMFW

[STiDriven]

Wow, this is the first real technical discussion we've had in the offroading section. This section FTW.

[Kris_TM]

Jeepin ina 97xj: You are very informal! Glad to have you on the site!

Also The red Jeep that I posted pictures of in the other thread is a limited and has all of the luxury options. Leather, power seats, Wood grain. which is all fine but in the offroading aspect it sucks. The seats have gotten wet and broken and the leather in it gets horrible when dirty. Definately go with a pre 97 for the interior aspect.

The 4-door is my fav. even if you dont need extra people the rear seats fold completely flat so you have alot of room, and its easier to load and unload with the extra doors.

One problem I have seen is the vaccum setup for the 4x4 go bad. all the lines and peices get worn out and leak. look for that while looking for an xj. and if the 4x4 doesnt work on one that is most likely the problem.

Dont settle for anything less than the 4.0. Friends of mine have had all of the different motors in xjs and they are all slow besides the 4.0. the 2.5 I4 could not even spin the tires in the sand, same with the 2.8.

[aero]

Damn, I am glad I started the thread... although now I am sure I'll be buying one sooner than later! Hopefully ya'll head out this weekend, cuz I'll probably tag along just to get the 4runner dirty. I've tried a few times on the "under construction" roads in the cape, but its not very fun :)

[Kris_TM]

Yeah let me know if you guys go and I will bring my buddy with the red xj. as long as its not sat, gunna be in orlando for drift night!!!

[95w_bTEG]

http://www.floridajeepers.net/viewtopic.php?t=47756


$4500 for this one!

[+Juan]

VICTOR!
I SEE YOU. trying to upgrade.

http://www.floridajeepers.net/viewtopic.php?t=48304

[95w_bTEG]

:D its not big enough!

[aero]

http://www.floridajeepers.net/viewtopic.php?t=47756


$4500 for this one!

Yeah, I saw that one yesterday when browsing on there. A little too high for my price range now, but then again... if I could just find one like that and them be looking for a 4runner...

[aero]

Another question...

What is the realistic gas mileage. I know I shouldnt be too worried about it, but would like to know.

And how much will a small lift + decent tires drop the mpg?

I'll probably wait and see if I can pick up something in addition to the 4runner instead of trading it in... been watching ALL of the classified sites lately. Although I probably would get rid of the 4runner the end for a cheaper and better DD... until then, its up for more mudding after I cap off my "DIY Intake mod" aka big hole cut in the front of it :)

[STiDriven]

VICTOR!
I SEE YOU. trying to upgrade.

http://www.floridajeepers.net/viewtopic.php?t=48304

So nice.

[Jeepin']

God honest truth- its all about throttle control baby.

I've got the I6 w/ 5" and can get around 22-25mpg. My truck loves running at 55mph at 1800rpm. She sips gas. Slow starts, calm driving (hard for anyone on FMR to do I know :) ) and don't let the tach go higher then 2k when accelorating.

My girlfriends WJ gets on the books roughly 18 mpg city. I threw a K&N filter in it and she gets 20. I can get in it and knowing how to drive it, can get an average of 30 mpg out of it. Its all about driving style.

[+Juan]

13-15mpg on my jeep :(

[95w_bTEG]

12 on a cold day.....

6.5" lift with 33x12.50x15.

[AminalPlanet]

jeeps are for queers.

[STiDriven]

You're outnumbered and outperformed... *Popcorn*

[AminalPlanet]

ha
haha
hahaha
hahahaha
hahahahaha

gimme some m/ts or even a/ts and we'll see who can go where even with their aftermarket suspensions and retarded "jeep thing" motto lol

[STiDriven]

Dude. I didn't understand the "jeep thing" till I wheeled with brent and trevor in there wranglers. Brent's STOCK wrangler was doing things that a bigger truck like mine couldn't dream of doing.

I'm a r00k at offroading but I was super impresses with them.

[AminalPlanet]

lol you haven't been with many rovers then.

we're always outnumbered, but never outgunned my friend.

[STiDriven]

lol you haven't been with many rovers then.

we're always outnumbered, but never outgunned my friend.

Judging from that vid of you guys all offroading that one day... not so much. :tongue:

Also, it seems like you rover guys have alot more to lose than most jeep guys. It's hard to all out when you are siting on 30k+ of machine.

[AminalPlanet]

lol the window sticker is in my driver door.. 46k for it back in 2004. yeah, i wasn't about to go submarine stock like rintintin or victor, however, i did go water over the hood for a bit. ask nick. lol

[03scgt]

lol you haven't been with many rovers then.

we're always outnumbered, but never outgunned my friend.



sounds like your saying you have a small penis no joke

[aero]

sounds like your saying you have a small penis no joke

Gotta make up for something with the big bad range rover :)

Yeah range rover/land rovers might be better than jeeps, but for the money, you cant complain. I guess if my parents bought me a rover, I wouldnt mind beating it up and repairing it daily...

[Jeepin']

Listen - there is nothing wrong with a Rover. Period. I love em'. If I could ever get my hands on one I totally would. To me, their the next best wheeling rig. From the factory they sport a breakover angle of over 60*. I tell people if I wasn't into wheeling Jeeps, I'd have a mid-90s Land Rover in bright yellow with some modest 31"s. I'd be freakin perfect. Problem is I don't have room time or money for another toy right now.

Put it this way - A Jeep can go anywhere. Period. A Land Rover can go down the same trail, only difference? The Rover has his windows up, A/C on with a heated coffee mug and soft Jazz playing as he relaxs in full leather. I've got no beef with Aminal or Rovers.

[AminalPlanet]

haha i agree completely. i've got no beef with jeeps, i've seen them go places i wouldn't try with my rover (don't wanna ruin the leather or paint haha). i was in a shit talking mood, juan and victor know i'm always cracking on jeeps and the jeep thing motto lol

[R3d foreman]

i probably would opt for the high output 4.0, but i wouldn't go as far as saying the 4 cyl is garbage. my friends brett and cameron had jeeps, brett had the four banger and cameron had the inline six. maybe cameron was retarded but when i rode with brett we crawled circles around cameron. brett always got every fluid change after every session though, and that seemed excessive. the only problem he had was a pulley falling off when he was on the highway lol

[Jeepin']

as I stated before, I've owned 4 Jeeps - 3 have been the 4.0L, one was a 2.5L

I'm not even gonna try to give it a saving grace. Its a peice of garbage. I hated it with the passion of 10,000 burning suns. Its tourqey and lighter, but its backed by a semi-retarded french transmission. Mine was in a YJ, not gonna lie - it proformed decent offroad, but onroad? It couldn't get out of its own way.

The only survival factor the 2.5L has is it came with 4.11 gears both front and rear. Maybe Jeep felt bad or something. We'll never know.

I live eat and breathe Jeep, don't get me wrong. But 2004 was the last year of a good fullsize Jeep & 2006 of a Wrangler. After 2004, Grand Cherokee joined Liberty, Commander, Compass, Patriot as being a "IFS" front suspension design instead of solid axle. Gag me with a spork please.

As of 2007, Jeep Wrangler, for the first time in 65 years is OFFERED in 4x4. Not to mention they retired the tried and true 4.0L I6 with the 3.7L Dodge Caravan motor. Egh!!!

So basically, if your gonna get a Wrangler, go pre 2007. If you get 07', go Rubicon, its at least got the axles which makeup for the soccer mom motor.

If your going fullsize Jeep, 2004 WJ Grand Cherokee is where you stop.

[+Juan]

i hate those goddamn new jeep wranglers. look like ass.

and the new grand cherokees look like theyd look badass lifted , but no one would ever offroad them because theyre too "pretty"

[04gunmetalGT]

i dont really know what the common problems are on them.

ok well my first car was a 96 grand Cherokee. to be honest u can get them for bout same price for those year models. sold mine for $3500 w/105,3xx miles on it. sold in 4 hours. it was a great suv. as far as problems their known for... the fan clutches go out around that milage. the sunroofs go, and 13 mpg. and mine was in excellent condition. but as far as wht u pay for... their reliable, nice interior, excellent ride and offroad capabilities. and enormous space. (i know u wanted to talk about cherokees, i dont know all the differences sorry. but i had mine for a year and it was worth recommending.):thumbup:

[AminalPlanet]

i like the JK wranglers alot, but they seem to perform like ass for what i've heard compared to the older models.

[aero]

http://fortmyers.craigslist.org/cto/787068295.html

I was so excited... about to go check it out, then I saw 2WD :(

Maybe next time. I need to drive around to some of these buy here pay here places, and see what they got lying around.

Miata is going on ebay if it doesnt sell this weekend so at least I'll have reason to get something else :)

[STiDriven]

fail

[aero]

Found a nice 4x4 4runner on craigslist.. 1994 with some damage in the front for cheap. But the 3.0 engines are commonly referred to as 3.slow... grrr

[AminalPlanet]

...there is nothing wrong with being slow. all you want is torque lol

[Kris_TM]

I am actually going to go look at a white cherokee today that is already lifted but it still has stock tires. It is atleast a 4.5 inch lift. I see it everyday on my way to work. Its at a buy here pay here place. i think the window says $1,450. So i'm going to see if they will take my car for a trade straight up.

[+Juan]

wow EVERYONE's getting Jeeps!!! hahaha.

FTW

[Kris_TM]

AHAH So i think this is a 4.5 inch lift but i could be wrong...

What do you guys think?


http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/manhattan9633/101_0262.jpg

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/manhattan9633/101_0261.jpg

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/manhattan9633/101_0260.jpg

[aero]

Details details...

Looks pretty funny on stock wheels/tires.

[Kris_TM]

Details details...

Looks pretty funny on stock wheels/tires.

dont really have any lol 4.0 litre automatic 4x4 and a/c doesnt work. he knows its lifted but no clue how much. didnt have a chance to go look at it due to my washer deciding it hated life...

I'll take plenty of pictures and get as much info as i can. I think they are closed sat and sun so ill go look at it on monday.

[aero]

dont really have any lol 4.0 litre automatic 4x4 and a/c doesnt work. he knows its lifted but no clue how much. didnt have a chance to go look at it due to my washer deciding it hated life...

I'll take plenty of pictures and get as much info as i can. I think they are closed sat and sun so ill go look at it on monday.

not if i get there first!!


Just kidding :tongue: But I'll sell you a miata for cheap that you can put a lift on...

[Jeepin']

Real Jeeps are built, not bought. :)

Looks like a 3" to me considering the stock wheel size is the same. Mileage? Has the rear main seal been replaced? Their claim to fame is going out, and big time.

[vr_unreality]

[QUOTE=Jeepin ina 97xj;89977]Real Jeeps are built, not bought. :)/QUOTE]

Very true. Same goes for pretty much any other rig. Buy the rig cheep then build the hell out of it.

[88_shfonda]

[QUOTE=Jeepin ina 97xj;89977]Real Jeeps are built, not bought. :)/QUOTE]

Very true. Same goes for pretty much any other rig. Buy the rig cheep then build the hell out of it.

That is the plan but like i said i drive past it everyday and its cheap for a cherokee that runs good. I'll keep you guys posted.

BTW this is SaturnKris...

[95w_bTEG]

that one is in nfm, i seen it, looks pretty good for the price.


anybody know anybody selling some bad ass axles? im hitching to go bigger and stronger:D

[aero]

Imma bump this thread to keep it all in one place.

Body parts...

Since I have a 98, will fenders/grilles fit from older ones? I have heard 'with modification' which I dont mind, but how much modification are we talking about here. I would like to find some parts, not sure when I can get to the junkyard though.