ok just a couple questions most of what i found under search pertained to pre-'97...
ok my jeep runs fine normal driving...on warm days when i'm going to work (half hour trip roughly) and the temp stays just under 200 but when i stay at idle even in neutral the temp slowly rises but the weird thing is when it hits a little over 210 the gauge bottoms itself out and it beeps and says check gauges...plus i have never seen or heard my electric fan come on and i mean never...

also how do you tell if a clutch fan is good cause i read when its warm it should be harder to turn and mne is harder to turn when its cold

 

Sounds like you need to check out your efan. Check the relay and the power to it. If you pull the relay it should come on if it works. Also make sure you have all your shrouds in place.

 

all shrouds are there so your saying if there is no relay in there the fan will come on

 

If you pul it, it defaults to the on position and it will come on with a check engine light that will go off when it is replaced. It is an easy way to check for power and and fan function.

 

do you have a/c? if yes, turn it on....does the e fan come on? It should and you will hear the compressor cycle.

can you put in a cooler thermostat? say a 180F

 

well i turned my heat on today to try to cool it down and the ac clutch was kicking for some reason but the e-fan still did not come on and i could try since its summer time but would have to change again for winter

 

did you have in the defrost setting?

 

yes

 

ok well following advice i pulled the relay for the e-fan and it did not come on then i pulled the relay above it thinking i got the wrong one and the jeep turned off and i got a cel (will see what it is) i switched the relays and the jeep started and ran but still no e-fan and i switched the relays back and left e-an out and it still wont go on...

plus my fan clutch is easier to turn when its hot

please help i dont want to pop a head gasket

 

The engine shut down because you pulled the Auto Shutdown relay. It provides battery voltage to the ignition coil while the engine is running. It also plays a role in the fuel and emissions systems.

The mechanical fan clutch should be easier to turn cold than hot. Provide 12 volts to the electric auxiliary fan to determine if the fan motor is bad.

210° to 215° is about normal. I wouldn't replace the thermostat for a 180° until you've fixed the auxiliary fan situation. You need a hot engine for the PCM to go into closed loop. A cool engine in open loop will suck the fuel.

 

ok my e-fan is working and im still runnin a little to warm and i dont have a thermostat in. what degree thermo should i run?

 

The only time you put a 180 degree t-stat in is if your running a programmer like the 1 from jet.Try hooking your e fan to a battery, or try this if you have a electrical plug in on the t-stat housing you should be able to pull that and your fan will kick on in a minute if its good, bad thing you will get a cel,(not sure if your xj has that connection) good luck

 

yeah i got a ect in the t-stat housing its a '98 so i will pull that and see if it turns on since pulling the relay didnt work

 

ok well just pulled the ect wire the temp dropped down but still no e-fan and i already had a cel from pulling the ASD relay

 

195°