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Hey guys, I'm new to the forum but not to jeeps! I've been rolling in a mildly built TJ for the past two years and needed something a little more spacious and fuel efficient while still being capable and fun, so what better than a brand spankin "new to me" Cherokee?
1996 sport 2 door, 5 speed AX-15, Chrysler 8.25 in the rear. Bone stock, never wheeled, previous owner used it as a family hauler. Completely clean, and free of rust which is amazing for my neck of the woods(Ontario/Quebec). Chassis and underbody was sprayed with bedliner and anti rust treatments every year. 300,000km/185,000 miles and runs even smoother than my TJ! New exhaust(stock), battery, plugs. air suspension, fluids, aftermarket hitch. Owner really loved it and was sad to see it go, I frankly felt bad taking it off his hands!
Only downside is the AC has a leak and will need to be taken care of one of these days, and when loading it onto the flatbed I accidentally cut one of the brake lines like the idiot that I am.
Paid 2k for it, what do you guys think? I'm happy as a flea and hopefully she'll be just as trustworthy as my TJ
I also graduated from a Wrangler (leased it, bad move, was a '96, I think) to a XJ (bought, '99, no doubts there). Lost my XJ to a texting driver but am on my way to a '00 WJ (because all the sweetest XJ's are gone, uber modified, priced out of reason or just plain basket cases).
I'd love to keep it stock for as long as possible because the second I start doing work to it, it's downhill from there. The 3.04 gearing helps with the incentive of not upping the tires too much, it feels sluggish compared to the TJ! That being said, a few things I hope on doing before winter are:
-full chassis reinforcement by HD off road
- more powerful alternator to keep her running in the frightful winters along with a stronger AGM battery
-repaint semi gloss olive drab
-upgrade the wiring harness and put in good fog lights, I live in the boonies so that is priority number one atm.
Respray the underside in Bedliner to keep it rust free
-29 inch bfg AT KO2s, I love the original KOs and can't wait to try these.
Once I finish up school and can retire her to a trail rig, it's gonna be the whole shebang with lockers, 5.5 inch lift with 33inch mud terrains, also thinking of either a V8 or Cummins 4bt but the Cummins will most likely end up in the TJ(who doesn't love torque, mpgs and rolling coal?!). Ultimately I'm aiming at building it as an expedition vehicle to explore the great countryside we have in Canada.
I also graduated from a Wrangler (leased it, bad move, was a '96, I think) to a XJ (bought, '99, no doubts there). Lost my XJ to a texting driver but am on my way to a '00 WJ (because all the sweetest XJ's are gone, uber modified, priced out of reason or just plain basket cases).
Best of luck and many happy trails to you.
I totally understand what you mean! I've been scanning the market for 5 years on and off! Any vehicle that garners interest here gets marked up excessively. All the cherokees I have found either came with an automatic, rusted to Hell and back, or have been modified and wheeled, so finding a bone stock manual with the Chrysler rear end was a huge find for me. Anyone selling an XJ that's bone stock, non rusted, and unabused know what they have and will list them for no less than 5k! I drove 4 hours away to pick her up with a flatbed but I think it was totally worth it.
I had the same predicament when I was younger, financed the TJ when I was young and stupid and making lots of money(relative to my age) and lost my job. Was Hell trying to make ends meet without losing the TJ, but she's a total joy and like the XJ I want to keep them to hand them down to my grandkids.
Sorry about your loss, I do hope you come across another Cherokee, You just can't beat em!
That's a nice xj at a great price too looks like it was well cared for. A luxury unfortunately many of us don't have. A clean early model xj is like a unicorn. You are very fortunate my friend great buy.
When I bought mine it was already lifted (paid $3,500.00) and the guy put 33's on it, The XJ was such a dog on the road and on the trail it was worthless. It is nice that yours is un-touched, I have re-done several things but I think I'm pretty lucky mine was pretty nicely put together lift wise.
We decided to retire my sons XJ. It had an auto so the axles were geared with 3.55 gears. So I took them and stuck them under mine, got rid of my Dana 35 for the 8.25 and got a little steeper gearing. Since you have the 8.25 already you can wait till you decide what to do with it and re-gear accordingly. I am happy right now with 31"s and the 3.55 gears but some day want to back to go to 33"s and 4.56 gears.
I love that yours is a two door and so clean. One thing that I would change if I could is I would put flat BushWacker fender flares instead of the ones I have (Came with the XJ when I bought it) but what can I do? Right?
That's a nice xj at a great price too looks like it was well cared for. A luxury unfortunately many of us don't have. A clean early model xj is like a unicorn. You are very fortunate my friend great buy.
Thank you! I was kind of self guessing my buy even though I know it's a steal, glad to know the general consensus by the XJ gurus here is positive I'm very aware of how rare they are getting and it utterly saddens me. They are the perfect combination of practicality and capability, with the only modern equivalent being the JK wrangler which isn't my cup of tea. I know I got lucky on this one and will hold on to her for many years to come.
When I bought mine it was already lifted (paid $3,500.00) and the guy put 33's on it, The XJ was such a dog on the road and on the trail it was worthless. It is nice that yours is un-touched, I have re-done several things but I think I'm pretty lucky mine was pretty nicely put together lift wise.
We decided to retire my sons XJ. It had an auto so the axles were geared with 3.55 gears. So I took them and stuck them under mine, got rid of my Dana 35 for the 8.25 and got a little steeper gearing. Since you have the 8.25 already you can wait till you decide what to do with it and re-gear accordingly. I am happy right now with 31"s and the 3.55 gears but some day want to back to go to 33"s and 4.56 gears.
Originally Posted by JandDGreens
I love that yours is a two door and so clean. One thing that I would change if I could is I would put flat BushWacker fender flares instead of the ones I have (Came with the XJ when I bought it) but what can I do? Right?
I put in a huge effort to find one that wasn't modified because I know things spiral out of hand very quickly, and I like to make sure things are done right the first time around. I couldn't possibly imagine how sluggish 33s must feel on 3.05! My tj rolls 31 AT KOs on 3.73 and it feels like it needs more pep, 5th gear would be totally useless with 33s! 4.56 and 33s is a very nice sweet spot and I won't/can't roll bigger tires due to restrictions on lift size in Quebec as well as the exponentially large upgrades needed to handle 35s. That being said, I don't know of any vehicle that looks better than a lifted XJ on big meats! Yours looks amazing! Long term I'm hoping to build her for 33s and LSDs up front and back with 4.56 gears. It should provide the best of both worlds and let me conquer everything from snow to mild rocks.
The nice thing about the TJ is a lot of the things I've learned on it carries over to the XJ and am 100% with you on flat fenders! They look great and provide the tire coverage I need for the ever so stringent laws we have here
08-24-2015, 11:41 PM
Just got my first cherokee, how did I do?
I'm very aware of how rare they are getting and it utterly saddens me. They are the perfect combination of practicality and capability, with the only modern equivalent being the JK wrangler which isn't my cup of tea. I know I got lucky on this one and will hold on to her for many years to come.