Howdy all,

Would appreciate help ASAP, as I need to be on the road…but currently can't move. Muddy and snowy out, so I haven't crawled underneath yet...

'98 XJ Cherokee, 4.0, 4x4, manual transmission. Took a trip over Thanksgiving, and Jeep has been parked since (I've been out of town). Went out to start it today, and I get an electronic machine gun/ratcheting sound when I engaged the starter. Engine doesn't turn. Jump starting gets the engine running, no machine gun sound, but requires a couple cranks. However, once the engine is running it won't idle. Take my foot off the gas and it dies. Let it warm up and the same happens. Won't start without a jump, then won't keep running. Engine sounds different than I remember - can't quite put my finger on it.

I'm thinking starter solenoid, but don't really want to go out and spend a bunch of $$ and roll around in the mud and snow until I've got a better idea of the problem. Any thoughts? Thanks!

 

How old is the battery? Could be a dead cell and won't hold a charge, most auto parts will load test it for free.

 

100% official I'm an idiot. It was the battery. Load tested, totally dead.

Never have heard machine gun sound from the starter with a dead cell, usually just a click.

New battery and everything is happy.