Cherokee Overheating
 

I have an 01 Cherokee Limited. In the last 3 months I have replaced the Head, Head gaskets, Radiator, Water Pump, Replaced the thermostat with a 180 degree thermostat, and replaced the lifters and hoses. I'm having an issue with it staying cool. It seams to run at the correct temperature when going down the road but when stopped the temp gauge goes up to a little over the 210 mark and the auxiliary fan kicks in, causing the entire jeep to vibrate and idle a little rough sounding. I don't know what else I can replace to keep the thing cool! Today I flushed the system today just in case and it didn't help. Anyone have any suggestions for me? Thanks.

How's the mechanical fan clutch and is your shroud in place? E-Fan have dirt or mud on it, or a broken or chipped blade? When they vibrate they are either out of balance or the bearings are shot.
FWIW Mine will hit 210 when I'm waiting in traffic. The E fan comes on and drops back to 190-200, it cycles back and forth between 190-210 until I get moving again. I'm not sure that's too abnormal. My fan clutch is old, so I may have a bit of an issue there too.

There is nothing wrong with running at 210, it will get a little warmer when sitting still. Put a new HD fan clutch on it, otherwise you're just chasing your tail for nothing. You should have a 195 degree thermostat in there, the 180 will not help. It sounds like the electric fan has something wrong with it, like a broken blade.

I also replaced the mechanical fan clutch, forgot to mention. If I have a thermostat in it that is a 180 degree thermostat, why would it still run at 210?

Thermostat temp just denotes when it opens not maximum temp its gonna run . what temps it run going down road ? Clutch fan pulling a lot of air at idle ? Deff vibes indicate fan issue.

What r your ambient temps? As stated, t-stat only controls minimum temp.....the rest of the cooling system and it's condition, along with ambient temp and other driving conditions determine maximum temp.

djb383 just think heater don't work posts are just around the corner....lol....

......and it won't be soon enough for me. I'm tired of triple digit weather already. LOL

Around 210 seems to be normal for the 4.0's from what I've seen. I wouldn't worry if it got just a little over 210.
You should have put a 195 t-stat in it, not the 180. And it sounds like something is wrong with your electric fan.

FWIW, my MJ with the 4.0 will run around 210 according to an aftermarket gauge, where a factory gauge says it gets a little hotter than that. I trust the aftermarket gauge a lot more than the 24 year old factory gauge. And it doesn't have an electric fan at all, never did.

Gotta love my 2.5, it never hits 210 unless something is wrong.

To the original poster: Your Jeep sounds perfectly normal. The e-fan is noisy and will sometimes cause a vibration. Make sure it's firmly attached to the horizontal support bar just behind the header panel.

On my 97, the factory gauge runs at 210 even in cool weather.
I checked with two cooking thermometers, that got a reading of 195,
so I believe my factory gauge is not very accurate.

Just to test my electric fan, I ran a jumper wire from the battery to the blue wire ( I think) on the fan to see if it was good, (it was)..:thumbsup:, no vibration..

How can any gauge with only 3 numbers be accurate?:mellow: It's a typical factory gauge, so if it's pointing somewhere close to the middle and functioning as designed, it's simply telling u coolant temp is within normal parameters set by the engineers. An aftermarket gauge will tell it like it is.

I'm afraid to know the truth.

I hear ya bro. I think I've post this before but here goes again. This is how the 2 factory temp gauges on our '05 Buick LeSabre display. The typical factory analog temp gauge has a "C" and "H" at opposite ends and the needle never wavers from the middle of the gauge once the motor is warmed up regardless of summer or winter. The second gauge is what GM calls the DIC (haha) or Driver Information Center. One of the numerious GM DIC displays is coolant temp in 1 degree increments. Depending on ambient temps/driving conditions, the DIC will display coolant temps from a few degrees below the t-stat rating (say 190F in winter, using the heater) up to 230F (highest I've seen displayed) in 100+ summer ambient temps, using A/C, in stopped traffic. 3 guesses and the 1st 2 don't count where the goofy factory temp gauge needle sits year round........yep, never wavers from the middle.

To keep "low information" drivers from bugging shop foreman to death, the GM DIC also displays the word NORMAL as long as coolant temps are with-in engineered design parameters, even when displaying 230F.:yes:

......and fwiw, the ScanGauge in our XJ shows basically the same thing as the GM DIC in the Buick.......winter time driving using the heater and coolant temp is at, maybe even slightly below, the t-stat rating......summer time driving, in triple digit ambient, running a/c, as high as 230F momentarily.......and the idiot light never flickers.