I recently bought a 99 Cherokee Sport. It seems these vehicles almost live up to the Ford acronym of Fix Or Repair Daily. Did Jeep purposely build a vehicle that causes SO many problem? It appear they never stop. My ball joints upper/lower on both sides are shot, the bushings on the track bar need replacing, or the whole thing, not sure, along with the steering stabilizer. Hopefully this, and a good alignment, will eliminate the death wobble that came with the Jeep. Don't get me wrong, it will get me places I wouldn't dream of taking my 08 Subaru Outback, but it does have a list of problems that most vehicles don't. Am I wrong in saying what I'm saying?

apw5746

 

not at all ive had all those plus way more... so right now my jeep is worth around 7k but i bought it for 900 haha
but loved every second of owning it

 

First off...WELCOME to CF!

Sorta wrong...

You bought an 11 year old vehicle and probably don't know if it ever had any maintenace or service.

Soulds like relatively minor/normal wear type issues.

You'll be a lot happier after a little front end lovin' and massagin'.

 

Them subarus are great too . People would be amazed with what they can do too. Xj's di need fixed alot but cheap to repair and will run forever if you take care of her .

 

Does not sound like unusual issues for any 12 year old vehicle to me. I had a Acura Legend that required almost an entire new front end at 100K miles.

And don't ask about when the head let go.

 

YUP!! You got a an XJ from some one that just drove it and didn't do any maintenance. Now you'll pay for poor upkeep of the previous owner. While it may seem overwhelming now, it will get better. I'll admit I have a love/hate relationship with mine. Cherokees are not buy, beat, n forget. it's a long term thing. Have a brew, study on one issue at a time and have fun working it out. If it's no fun, what's the point.

 

well...
1) find a subby that can do what a jeep does...
2) find a jeep that has head gasket issues like subbys really cool 2.5L...
3) find a jeep with cancer spots like a subby
4) find a jeep with exhaust issues like a subby (actually just heard a loud old subby go by...)

tht being said... there are some things about jeep that re frustrating. BUT! your issues stem from the fact that these parts that are failing you (u joints, bushings, etc) are probably orriginal and have been uses and abused. unless that jeep hasnt been offroading and was driven to church every sunday by granny, and unless youve been driving it the same then yes. be ready to replace stuff. how about control arms/bushings? they are probably a little damaged around the mounting point to the axle. lets see, what else is going to be an issue... suspension? how is it? i know you had already mentioned the track bar... just replace the bushings. also the sway bar bushings, they usually go... SIDE NOTE: im from VT. our "state car" is the scubby. literally 1/3 of VT drives one. but I WILL NEVER OWN ONE! my roommate has gone thru 3 engines due to bad head gaskets. the first one she let run dry (ok, driver error...) the next one came from factory w/ bad gasket (it was cl. 2 and 4) so now here she is on #3. its a 2001 legacy L. its got more rust than id care for... and about enough clearance to drag my ***** under, on a cold day... so theres my .02... once you take care of thoes little issues and get out in the woods, you will see why we love ore jeeps. also! get good tires! they make a ton of difference. AND! check those fluids!!! all of em!!! AND, be ready to replace axle joints (or on my case, the whole front axle, $85 at JY)...

 

x2!!!

 

X2..... I bought a 98 Jimmy a few years ago, $600 for front end work,
$ 1,100 worth of intake gaskets (replaced 2x before learning about DEX-Cool), all this with 55k on it, oh yeah rear calipers.

91 XJ, Wife got it from her stepmom who bought it new, 1 water pump, 1 CKPs, 1 Valve cover gasket, normal wear and tear items (tune ups, pads, tires, sold it in
06 with 267K on it it. I still see it on the road. You have to remember the newest XJ is 10yrs old. I think they are one of the most reliable vehicles built, as stated, after a little TLC she give you many years of service if treated right.

 

Thanks for all your comments. They were appreciated and taken to heart.

Have done quite a few things since my first post. Changed all fluids. Oil, trans, transfer case, and diffs fluids, looked original as they were super dark, and smelled. Can't locate the drain plug/petcock for the radiator, so I'll pull the lower hose. Replaced track bar, tire rod links, all shocks, and getting leafs replaced, as back end sags, and new BF Goodrich AT's, then a good alignment.

Took it on it's maiden run this past week (400 miles) and ran good, and will change all fluids except diffs. Only problem was that the cruise control disengaged whenever going up a grade/change in elevation, and a/c would go from vent to defroster as if it had a mind of its own. Could the latter two be a vacuum leak, and should I start looking?

My comments on trying to compare my Subaru to the Cherokee was wrong. The two are different as night to day.

Again, thanks to all who made comments.

apw5746

 

Haha... A good buddy of mine calls them "jewbaru wagons." Love your jeep and it will return the favor. Your jeep will speak to you when something starts to go. Listen to it.

welcome to the addiction....

 

Vacuum leak indeed! Lots of post on here. Do a search, you get plenty of results!!

 

Welcome to the forum I am on 2nd. xj #1 92 form 01 to 10 #2 00 from july of 10 the jeep xj definately falls under fun to drive my 2cts.

 

Don't trash it. I'm sure it was abused. It does sound like typical wear and tear. I just replaced every bushing on my 99' Lexus GS400, 67K mile one owner car before I bought it. Had Death Shake and all the bushing were shot too. It was done at 67K miles! It's not a Jeep thing at all.

Have a 99' Cherokee 4x4 4.o now and love it. I'll replace my swaybar bushings and LBJ to "maintain" it at 137K miles on her now.

 

Wasn't able to find anything by doing a search (more than likely, I don't properly know how), but did find information by doing a Google search. Looked under the hood carefully today, with engine running, and finally noticed the vacuum line running down towards the front bumper, on the passenger side, is old, cracked, and feels like it has a hole worn in it. Will go to local Advanced Auto or Auto Zone, and get some replacement lines, and extra T's, in case I have the similar problems down the line.