We just bought a 1984 Cherokee Pioneer with 187,000 miles on it for my son yesterday and it has a few problems. 1st off the turn signals do not work but the hazard lights do. Checked the fuses and everything was good there. Not sure why the hazards would work but not the turn signals. Secondly, the battery does not stay charged. Could this be an alternator issue? Lastly, the Jeep sometimes starts right up. Usually when it is cold. It seems more difficult to start when it's warm but I am thinking that maybe the difficult starting may have something to do with the battery/alternator issue or ignition switch? The previous owner had put a new battery in it in March but did not drive it very often so maybe only now is the battery starting to die because of the low use. Thoughts?

 

Hmm... I might be able to help, lets give a try... I recently bought an 88, and lights were a big issue from me also... u checked the fuses, so unplug all of the fuses and bend the connectors inwards a lil... then put the fuses back in... this what my fuse block looks like....

The second thing is ur gonna have to check the grounds... I found a ground under the dash, clean the end out and try finding a better location for it... and then there's another ground by the driver side tail light in the back behind the cover...

Hope it helps

 

^
Disconnect the battery first

 

Ah yes that would be smart to do first...

 

Ok. I disconnected the battery and bent the connectors in a bit AND replaced all of the fuses with new ones. That didn't work. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

 

Checked the bulbs?

And what about the grounds?

 

The hazards work so yes, the bulbs are good.

 

Swap the flashers see if turns work theres two on older models .

 

Ok. I removed the flashers and put them back in. This time it worked - the turn signals are now working.
Now for the battery/starting problem. As I had mentioned before, the battery is not staying charged. Thought it was an alternator problem until this happened this morning: After removing and reinserting the flashers, I turned the ignition and it started right up. However, I turned the ignition off and then tried to restart and nothing. Completely dead. This seems to me to be more of a wiring issue than an alternator issue. I went back through and checked the fuses and they look good. Any ideas what this could?

 

I forgot to mention that I had charged the battery all night. As mentioned before, the battery was purchased in March but if the prior owner had been using it periodically with a bad alternator then maybe the battery is shot? I guess I could get the battery and the alternator tested at an auto parts store sometime this week.

 

"However, I turned the ignition off and then tried to restart and nothing. Completely dead."

No headlights, nothing? Are the battery terminal connections green, or otherwise trashed? What about the ground connections in the engine compartment?

 

On my 85xj the ground from the battery terminal to the engine block(attached to one of the mounting bolts under the a/c compressor holding that bracket to the engine)was bare for most of the length up under and behind the alternator. I bought a new ground terminal with I think #4 cable and attached it to a bolt beside the one the old cable was connected to. It was easier to get to the other bolt slightly to the rear of the original one. Starter seems to be turning stronger now.

 

did you watch the commercials or just the show?