im looking at a 98 cherokee sport with the 5 speed. 166k miles. has some new parts but it needs new leaf springs, possibly shocks, new brakes, and some minor ins and outs. i drove it today and it felt very wobbly. engine seemed pretty smooth. the transmission shifted pretty smooth and the clutch seemed to grab well. i need some advice on what to look for. its listed for 4k which seems too much right? the 4wd shifted from 2 to 4 smoothly but had a bit of trouble going back to 2.is that regular or a sign of a problem? engine isnt real real clean as far as what you see when you open the hood but its not bad. i know these engines are good but is that too many miles? is that regular or a sign of a problem? iv always been a sports car guy this is my first SUV interest. and first interest in jeep. what would be a decent price to pay?

 

you said wobbly, a condition known as death wobble is fairly common https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/bad-shake-123268/ go to the last post.
There are 3 common oil leak spots on the 4.0, 1. Valve Cover 2. Oil Filter Adapter O-Rings 3. Rear Main Seal. Cooling system is a common point of failure, but mostly due to neglect, how was the heat? $4K Seems kinda on the high side, with what you have stated, miles aren't that bad, given it wasn't abused, or neglected to bad, the 4.0 can tolerate less than stellar maintenance, but only so much. A fair price with what you said, $2500-2800 in my opinion. The shocks, etc is a easy fix, lift it!!

 

I would jizz my pants in front of the owner if I found a 98 5 speed for 4 grand.. Even if there was stuff wrong with it. Cheapest one I have found recently in the portland area is 7 grand asking price. I can find autos for 3 all day long, but just to hard to find the 5 speeds... Only reason I havnt gotten a newer cherokee with less problems yet is because mine is a manual.. lol.

 

then I shouldnt tell you about the 96, 2 door 5 speed, I picked up for my first Cherokee, around 2 weeks ago, with almost no rust, nice body, new tires, 1 elderly lady owned since new, & has all paperwork, & service records for $1,100 however it is a 4cylinder.....

 

Yeah 4 cylinder ruined it, poser =P

 

I found a Super rare factory 5 speed ZJ, a couple hours away from me.

 

I didnt even realize they made any. Not that I would want a zj over an xj anyways. lol

 

From what I found, they made very few 93-94. Nor would I, but thought it was cool.

 

That really doesn't seem like too bad of a buy in my oponion.

I found my 98 4.0, four door, 4wd, 5-speed with 137k on it and I paid $2,900.

That being said, I looked for almost 7 months for that set up without rust in my area (Stl) until I found it. Also the guy who listed it listed it for $2,700 but got so many calls in the first hour he bumped it up 200. At this point I would have done anything to end the hell that is a used car search.

If the one you are looking at is rust free, or mostly rust free.... buy it. They are only getting rarer. Also, the search process SUCKS...sifting through semi-literate CL ads drives me nuts.

Also, through that search, I walked away from dozens of cherokees for one reason or another, mostly for rust and one of them was a 95 Zj 5speed. It was pretty neat, but driving a Zj without a V8 and seeing other ones with a V8 would have eaten away at my soul.

 

great information, i will talk to the guy and see what i can get him down to. one concern i had is that only the autos came with the towing package. would the manual tranny be alright towing a small boat? and should i not be concerned that it is pretty difficult to put back into 2wd from 4?

 

Its usually a linkage issue, as long as it's not grinding. Beside your already in the right place for help.

 

I just went and drove the jeep again. drove well, the only thing i really noticed was a fast clicking sound when the motor was revved up a bit. i heard it most when accelerating on the highway. any idea what this might be?

 

I recently bought a 2001 Sport, 4.0l, 5-speed manual, NO rust, perfect paint, a little dirty, but cleanable. Allright tires, aftermarket stereo, etc, etc. 146,xxx miles. Paid $3900.00. This is in the Denver metro area. FWIW.

Also a question about the 4wd to 2wd shifting. Do you mean from 4lo to 2hi? or from 4hi to 2hi? You say you're a sports car guy, and may not realize that shifting from 4lo may be a little tricky, depending on whether or not you're sitting still or coasting at 2 to 3 mph's.

Just a thought.

 

alright im probably going to get the jeep this week. im going to look at it once more and check it out as best i can. we already agreed on a price of 3200$ assuming i dont find anything major before i buy it. im probably going to put some new joints in right away as well as changing every drop of fluid in it. what are your thoughts? did i make out ok?

 

I would have tried to get less than $3000. Sounds like a few of the problems it has are fairly common, saggy leaf springs, etc....one of the first things I would do is take it and get it aligned...most reputable places will let you know if you have any wore out suspension parts..most are fairly inexpensive to replace. As far as the 4wd sticking...they are stubborn to get in and out of gear sometimes, just the nature of the jeep tc.