jeep questions

[94mightymax]

i'm picking up a 88 jeep cherokee pioneer, 4.0 inline 6, 4x4,automatic.

i was woundering what are some of the major problems with these jeeps that people have had or heard of just wanna know so i can completely go over it before i get it and have it break down on me.

any help will be appreciated and repped.

[fizzer]

the 4.0 is the best thing chrystler ever did.... The motor will run forever as long as you change the oil.

[2000EK9]

Over heating problems. That's about it. Oh & it might ping so after 100,000 miles put premium gas. The 4.0 is the only motor you can over heat till it blows out all the coolant, wait till it cools off alittle, fill it back up & drive & repeat. It's a bull proof motor, they're AWESOME & strong as hell.

There's A LOT of stuff you can do to them. I love mine.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i260/NicSuperman/DSC00387.jpg

-Nick

[fizzer]

I hydrolocked my 4.0 and still drove the bitch over 30 miles to get home. When I tore the motor down to see the damage this is what I found. Never the less.... the bitch will run forever,.... even with this severe of damage the truck started perfect and ran like a champ
http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n249/chopperdan1000/rod001.jpg

[CRXSiR]

Oh & it might ping so after 100,000 miles put premium gas.


in my manual..it says that 87octane is the best for these motors and that anything higher could potential hurt it..?

[Mattism78]

I'll just further reinforce what everyone else has said. The I6 4.0 is a TOUGH motor. I drove one from the east coast of Florida to the West coast of Mexico. It had 160k miles on it before I left. It never missed a beat. My only complaint was gas mileage. I actually ended up getting a TJ wrangler a few months after I got back.

[skunk2racing97]

the 87-90 XJs had a a Renix ECU, which was usually not a good thing (tho some people love em)

any XJ up to '92 had a vacuum disconnect front axle, which is known to act up on occasion.

you will probably want to swap in a gauge cluster with four full gauges instead of 'idiot lights' if it doesnt have a full cluster.

look for rust. XJs commonly rust on the front floor panels, around the windshield (especially near the gutter rail in the front), and the rocker panels inside the doors.

the chrysler 8.25" rear end is SIGNIFICANTLY stronger than the Dana 35 rear end (the 8.25" is, arguably, comparable to the D44). let me know if you need help identifying rear ends.

make sure the A/C blows cold soon after starting. i've heard that there is one part of the system that goes out on these occasionally and its expensive, i think its the evaporator, but i dont remember for sure.

Once you get it:
-full tune up; use the OE spec champion plugs, new wires, dizzy cap and rotor, along with air filter (these make the biggest impact on mileage)
-FULL fluid change. no excuses. you will want to drain and refill the front & rear axles, TC, and engine. use 10w-30 and a good filter. depending on condition of the trans, you may want to do a full flush.


i just bought the '97 country 4x4 in my sig in march. i joined jeepforum.com and naxja.org and both are EXCELLENT resources for new jeep owners. if you search of jeepforum you will find 100s of "what to look for when buying an XJ" threads.

and as everyone said above, if you maintain the drivetrain on these, they will last forever.

feel free to ask any questions.

[jstone8952]

i have no complaints at all with mine and its got 170+ on the odometer. any plans to lift it? i might be able to help you out

[Tony G.]

I got a cherrokee with 170k on it. it gets driven everyday. other than oil changes tune up brakes yada yada the only thing we have done is. harmonic balancer, the belt, and a/c compressor. I may have done a water pump on it. but dunno. will run forever just keep good oil in it.

[Sourskittle]

My 87' 4.0L Cherokee has 277K miles on it, and besides all the crazy noises it makes ( sqeeking from the pulleys somewhere, and all the body/suspension bushings are wornout, and blown shocks ), it seems like a good truck.

I think most the 87-90s have the D35 rearend. It may not be as strong as the C8.25 but parts are very avalible for it, and unless your thinking 35'' tires, it should ever be an issue.

A big thing is that the stock leafs in the rear suck ass. They sag, and cause the body to sit uneven. Lift options are fairly cheap.

Mine has the stupid dumby lights instead of guages, which is retarded...

I gutted the cat, installed a new serp. belt, installed new motor mounts, and made a custom fan shourd for electric fans and ditched the stock clutch fan ( I hate those ). You should check the motor mounts for sure.

ALso, they are known for cracking exhuast manifolds.

I was going to do a full tune-up, only to find the plugs, wires, air filter, cap/button, and oil had just been changed recently.

Mine started to drive its self last week ( like I'd take my foot off the brake and it would drive its self to 47mph and stay there without me pushing anything at all !! ). I pulled the air intake and cleaned it out with some carb cleaner and it stopped. I also added some grounding straps, as the stock ground in my truck only connected to the motor, and not the body.

The CPS ( crank P sensor ) is an issue from what I've read.

To lift it, your looking at rear leaf springs ( $240 cheapest I've found ), a simple set of front coil springs ( like $130 ish ), and some shocks ( $40 a peice ).

I also have the auto locking vaccum operated hubs. Mine work fine, but I've heard bad things about them.

I need to do a diff/ TC/ tranny flush and tranny cooler, but... Time has been short lately ( mostly b/c I type long replies of message boards sometimes :lol: ).

-Bryan

[Country Boy]

Some come with a stainless header stock but they all crack. I dont Ive seen one that wasnt.. lol

[Cecil]

Some come with a stainless header stock but they all crack. I dont Ive seen one that wasnt.. lol

lol.... mine's cracked right now.... gotta replace it. :nerd:

[Country Boy]

My Dads is too. We looked at everyone we seen in the junkyard and they were all cracked also.