HopWorks

I searched here and did not find the info I needed recently so I am posting. I have found a lot of great info here in the past so her I am. If I missed something, please link the post for me, and in that case, I apologize for asking again what was already addressed.

I have a Jeep Cherokee 98 Sport 4x4, Straight 6, Forest Green with metal flake, and I love her with all my heart.

I am trying to get her back to where she was when I bought her new, and beyond.

She has a lot of issues, mostly cosmetic and electrical. A few mechanical issues but she runs strong and true.

I will be posting often, but one issue at a time until solved. I'm not the high-flying, rock crawling, hill-climbing high-performance jeep-head you are use to here. Also, I am not the 4x4 want-a-be that never goes off-road either.

My Forest Green baby and I have been a lot of places, and I owe it to her to get her back to the singing sweetness she once was, and this forum seems to be a great start to help that task. I have a ton of questions about the weird STUFF I have encountered over the past year or two, and hope to get these issues fixed. OK, let's get at it! In order of priority.

Summary of issues I have at the moment...

Recently fixed: Brake calipers failing on the driver side front. Turned out to be a bent spindle. All fixed now, and cheapest part was from the dealership if you can believe it. Online was a LOT more! with labor, it was still cheaper than the part online (parts geek, rockauto, etc.) Now with an alignment, she's driving true again.

Still haunting me:

• No heat in the cab. Jeep runs WAY too cool, at about 140°-160°. 195° thermostat is in her. I did NOT bench test the thermostat and yeah, it might be bad out of the box.
• AC/HEAT Blower does not work. Resistor is good. Looks like the connector to the blower and still looking for that connector so I can rewire it.
• Shocks are weak. Found Monroe shocks online at a few places. Listed as "Police Package" for $40 apiece. Read about bolts snapping. I am not good enough at these issues yet so I'll ask my shop to install them.
• Bushings are shot. Need to replace with a kit but not sure what to get. She will eventually be lifted 2". Will my choice of bushings matter later on?
• Jeep leans to the driver's side. Is it a spring? Could it be that replacing the shocks will fix this?
• Need to find a kit that replaces ALL the exterior trim. Wheel flares, runners from them past the doors, etc.
• Dash instruments go all to zero. A hard hit on the dash fixes this. Wiring behind the dash, a ground wire probably. How to fix?
• How hard IS IT to replace the heater core and fix the dash problems? Removing the dash? Am I looking at a month-long project? Rent a car? lol
• Should I be scared of the air bags? There are explosives in those systems right? How can I safely disable those systems so I don't have to worry about my teeth being sent through my skull as I remove them? *LINKS PLEASE!*
• Regulators! Thanks Chrysler for feeling like I needed power windows. I need to replace the driver side front, and the others will fail eventually. Suspected part? The plastic piece that ties the system together to the regulator screw drive.
• VACUUM ISSUES! Cruise control comes on randomly, and the accelerator actually engages sometimes. Probably trying to reach a set speed I never set. I need to look at what I can do to refresh the vacuum hose system, and the canister. Why is the reservoir installed in the bumper anyway??

That's it for now. There is more if you can believe it. If you got to this text line, I have to THANK YOU for taking the time to read all this stuff.

Am I at the right place? The right forum? I hope so.

Thank you for your time!!!!

Fred/N0AZZ

Pick one you want to start on, you have a lot of different issues listed.

As for the leaning goes it sounds like you need new leafs and coils, might be a good time to look at a 3" lift or so about the same cost of stock ones and come with new shocks also. Check out Rustys Off Road full leaf/coil 3" lift kit, don't even think about a an AAL kit.

HopWorks

OK sir thank you. I will start looking at that as my first project. I have a local shop some friends of mine have used to lift their Jeeps. I called them and they said there was no problem with me providing the kit I want, and they will install it, and even include me in the installation. This is great because I want to learn. What would you think would be a reasonable labor quote for this? I am not versed enough with this sort of thing and do not have the tools and savvy to do it myself.

EDIT: I will be looking at a 3" or 3.5" lift. After looking at a LOT of images, that seems to be the best lift for what I want to do with her, and looks the most proportionate at making her look and feel "balanced".

Also, I have to address the clear coat paint issue soon. Summer is coming and she's not looking great with the perma-snow look. I have heard everything from "just wax her" to "you need to get her repainted!". I want to get her back to the factory paint she had when I bought her new. Forest Green with metal flake. Thank you for your time!!


Thanks for the reply Fred. I appreciate it!!

SatiricalHen

I have a rough country 3 inch lift with 31x10.5x15 tires on rims with 3.75 backspacing on my 1999 jeep cherokee. Thought you might like a picture or two of a forest green cherokee



And as far as heater core goes I'd try flushing it long before replacing it... Heard its a nightmare and mine flushed out fairly easily.

Fred/N0AZZ

Of the entry level kits Rustys Off Road has a higher quality leaf/coil springs American made not like most of the others that tend to sag in a short amount of time. Make sure you get a full leaf spring and not an AAL setup where you add a single spring to your old leafs. His kits do come with new shocks also that fit the lift and hardware. His 3" kit is the one I have ran for some time and still run the rear 3" leafs with 1 1/2" Boomerang shackles for my current 4 1/2" lift.

BimmerJeeper

For your heater blower, replace the relay behind the glovebox.

GreenClassic

Unplug the battery before messing with the airbags and you'll be fine. Just don't be throwing them around or anything like that, lol. I changed the clockspring so i could install cruise control, and the only thing the factory service manual said to do was unplug the battery. I also pressed the horn after unplugging the battery to drain any residual electricity from the system.

HopWorks

Sorry it took so long to get back. Real life stepped in and our 95 Honda Accord screamed for help and sucked the life right out of my dream to fix my Jeep issues. Participating in this thread would just add to my heart break of having to spend our hard-earned money on that car.

Still doing that with the Honda, but we got our tax return (WOOHOO!) and I can now address a few issues safely financially, so I'm back to this thread.

That is one awesome Jeep! I love that image you posted!!! That is exactly what I am looking for. Not too high, perfect balance of tire size and clearance. Is this repainted? I am looking for a place I can get my Jeep's original Forest Green paint job re-done.

I am going after that heater core this coming week. On vacation and need to address that and the A/C blower connector. Also doing shocks and bushings. The lift is probably going to have to wait for next year. Bushings and shocks are shot and cannot wait.

Thanks for the awesome reply sir!

HopWorks

Great info and exactly what I am looking for!! Thank you so much!

HopWorks

Thank you everyone for the great info! I'm ready to do the shocks and the bushings. From reading, I picked a set of Monroe w/ Police Package shocks. I didn't pull the trigger yet, wanted to hear what you guys have to say. I found these on PartsGeek. It is the top two...
http://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/199..._absorber.html

I am a little lost when it comes to what bushings to buy. It makes me sick that I am only getting these for a year or two (or even this year) before I do my lift. My baby absolutely needs new shocks and bushings though. Any recommendations?

Thanks again for your feedback and posts, and taking time out of your day to do that. It gets old I'm sure, telling noobs like me basic stuff. Just know that your posts are extremely invaluable to me though, and I'm sure it is to others that happen by way of this thread!!

EDIT: I didn't list it, but had a nagging issue with the front left brake for about 10 years now. Fix it finally. It was a bent spindle!! Cost a bit, $320 for a new one, but now my brakes, and ride, are what they were when I bought her. Two new issues surfaced during this mechanic visit. The rear end is leaking fluid slightly and was told that the rear axle had to be replaced, and the valve cover gasket needs replacing. A friend told me to stay away from aluminum covers and stick with the plastic one. His thinking is that the plastic bends and forms to the head where the aluminum does not, at least not as well. He has lifted a few Jeeps and rebuilt an engine or two. He also told me that the rear axle didn't need to be replaced, just rebuilt with new bearings probably. It's a seal issue I guess. Good news, the transmission is just fine and nothing wrong with the main seal. WOOHOO!

HopWorks

I found a better price at RockAuto. About $5 less per shock. Now looking for a complete bushing kit.

SatiricalHen

yes, my jeep has been repainted, but it was done by a previous owner and to be honest not the best paint job, it has some orange peal and the clear coat is chipping around the cargo window. But definitely looks pretty good. And thank you for the complement on my jeep! I try to keep it nice and clean looking.

JeepJess

My '93 was leaning to the right when I bought him too. He was also the faded forest green. I put a 3.5" Rubicon Express kit with new leaf springs, coils and shocks to fix the lean. You'll need a new track bar and a t-case drop kit and/or SYE. I'm not sure if you'd need it with the 3" kit.

I also prepped my whole Cherokee for paint, and had Macco spray it. Door jams weren't painted, and there are a few little chips since but overall they did a good job for the price. Prepping is a LOT of work. Way more than what I thought. haha. ...and I was driving a partially sanded XJ for about 4 months until it was all done.

They're projects, but I want my boy to be beautiful and reliable for years to come.

JeepJess

Daystar generally makes good bushings and has a lot of different applications. Energy Suspension also makes mushing kits, but I heaven't heard as much about them. I prefer the black of Daystar over the orange/yellow/red of Energy Suspension bushings.

HopWorks

Beautiful Jeep my friend!! And yeah, I'll probably have a primed and prepped body too for a few months. Hell, I have a small piece of oak wood holding up my window (driver side front) until I find a regulator I can trust to be a LAST FIX! LOL.

Great info and I absolutely LOVE the guys here that continue to post in my thread. No slamming at all for me resurrecting what looks like a stale thread. This project overall will take time, and this thread I visit often. Everything you guys offer, even though it might be out of my reach as far as extreme (lifts, etc.) is AWESOME INFO and I certainly do appreciate it!!!!!!