1991 Jeep XJ Limited Briarwood
 

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Hello! I am looking to purchase my first XJ. Its a 1991 in rough cosmetic shape but with minimal rust. I wanted to get some feedback from forum members based off the pictures I am posting of the XJ in question.

Its a 1991 XJ Limited. Apparently its on a 3inch lift and the owner claims it is having some death wobble after mounting "new" tires recently. It has 204,000Km also the car sat for 10 years at a dealer which they used it to plow snow only but the owner has put thousands into restoring it they claim. Any advice or comments are appreciated.

First things first, what's the asking price?

I don't know where the "thousands" was spent in restoration, but I just don't see how that could be the finished product. It looks like its been well used, shows its age, and I think that is some floorpan rust / rot in that one picture.

What is this vehicle going to be used for? Will it be a DD, or an offroad only vehicle?

Call me crazy, but I would stay away from one that was used to plow snow. The XJ is not a full frame, its a unibody. When you are plowing, it puts a lot of stress on the vehicle frame, suspension, and drivetrain. It would be possible that there may be damage or weakness you do not know about. There are plenty of guys who try to push the whole pile of snow, instead of a little at a time. My neighbor used to move snow around his lot with a wrangler. Used to watch him hit the pile of snow and stall the truck out (stick shift).

I would not pay over $500 since most likely everything needs to be checked and potentially rebuilt if it is going to be a daily driver. You will probably also need another car in the meantime.

Death wobble is generally track bar related.

I'd be concerned with the plowing as well. Also, are you sure it's a 91? That looks like a Renix closed cooling system (87-90) - I thought they went to the open style system in 91.

Poke around the floorboards and rockers with a screwdriver and make sure the floors are sound.

Bear in mind that a nearly 30 year old vehicle, even if it was kept in a climate controlled garage is still a 30 year old vehicle. It will likely need attention.

I'd take it to a reputable mechanic and have them go over it and give you their opinion. I might say for 1500 U.S. if it checks out would be reasonable.

The VIN checks out as a 1991 but it also says its a Briarwood which is odd because it says limited on the car itself. Is it possible the VIN is for another car? The car is located in Ontario.

The car does come safetied already so it doesn't need to pass anything and emissions wont be required either.

Yes it looks just like 89 or 90 Renix with closed cooling system but this cooling system has been modified by someone - just look at the cap on the plastic expansion tank and the top hose from the tank running over the valve cover to where?
It also looks like the lower expansion tank hose has been capped off.

So it looks like a closed to open modification which may be perfectly fine, but should be verified it's working OK.

Not trying to be negative, just cautioning to check it out carefully (rust?). It may take some work before this XJ becomes a "daily".

Note from DJ
Your 10th number should be M if it’s a 91
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Note from DJ
Your Engine Bay Should Look Like This
Not like your photo; this is a big RED FLAG
Your Engine Bay Photo is from a 1990 back.

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That rust, though.

Honestly, with everything mentioned already here, I'd steer clear. just a few too many discrepancies.

Yeah, that doesn't look like "minimal". The problem with people saying "low rust" is what do they mean? Are they talking about VISIBLE rust or do they *really* mean low rust? While visible rust on the exterior sheet metal is bad, it's trivial compared to the rust that you can't see by standing next to it and looking.
The passengers floorboards are extremely prone to rust, the rockers are common, the bottom of the rear quarter panels. If the other years are similar to my 95, once a hole rusts out in the rear quarters, there's nothing between that and the inside of the trunk. The P.O. had repaired the floorboards prior to me purchasing my 95, but I found *extensive* rot in the cargo/trunk area that needed to be addressed.
Then there are things like the control arm brackets in the front. These can crack and separate from rust. The leaf spring brackets in the rear.

All of this is not simply ugly to look at or an inconvenience, it's an issue of safety. While separated control arms are obviously an issue of safety and driveability, even the rocker panel and floorboard rust is dangerous since exhaust gasses can enter the vehicle and make you very sick or even kill you.

Now that said, anything is fixable - but at what price? Do you have the skills and equipment to weld? Do you have the time and ambition to rip out much or all of the interior trim, seats, carpets etc out and do the cutting, prepping, welding and surface protection to make sure the cabin is sealed - then put it all back together? Body work can get expensive fast. You can easily spend more money doing body restoration than having a rebuilt engine replacement done.

Just some things to think about.

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Here are a couple more pictures and proof and work done. Also they owner says that it has a new batter, light sockets, front and back calibers and brake hoses, complete cap rotor plugs, park brake cable, upper ball joint, front drive shaft, new wipers, and an automatic starter.

Asking 1200 CAD now and the car is safetied in Ontario so its been inspected but im not sure how reliable that is really. Thank you for all the replies!

Is that one the only XJ available in your region? Yes, a lot of work might have been
done on it, but once it is yours, are you going to want to put a lot more in to keep it
going a few years? Why not hold off and look around some more?

Honestly, from the one picture, that rear shock does not look new. Being that the carpets are that stained, my guess would be the floor was often wet, and could have rusted from the top as well. The bill also lists a used cylinder head, was it even rebuilt? Also, these are not the cylinder heads that are prone to cracking, so it may have really overheated. Honestly, look around some more. This may seem decent, but if you wait, save up a little more money, you can probably get a better jeep to start out with. Because I have the feeling this one will be nothing but headaches. Try to find one with less rust and less things wrong. If you factor in the money to repair the floorplans and potentially other serious rust, it gets expensive quick, especially if you are not doing the work yourself.