You will need to drop the oil pan and sample some bearing clearances. If this has been going on for a while, I would expect bad news.

Start saving for a different motor. Salvage yard is a good option here, be darn sure you don't swap in another 00-01 with a factory 0331 head!!

 

Geeze . Are you a rockefellar or a bush? Give me your money and I'll burn mine.
Find out where the antifreeze is going first. He's already stated that the oil was fine.
Do a pressure test!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yes you can do it! Rent a tester at Autozone or whatever your local parts place is called. You can even get a flourescent die you put into the antifreeze and it shows up under blacklight. Simple and VERY CHEAP way to find out where the coolant is going.

Your going to look awful stupid tearing apart your bottom end and finding nothings wrong but you got a pinhole leak in your radiator.

 

Yeah, and if you shine that blacklight up your tailpipe and it glows, you know you're in trouble.

 

In the vast majority of cases, the oil will look fine (it won't test fine with an oil analysis) with a cracked 0331 head; the way this head cracks routes the antifreeze out the exhaust port. And a pressure test doesn't always show it. I've worked on a handful of 0331 failures already.

Best to remove the valve cover and perform a thorough inspection in the cylinder 3-4 area with a pressurized system.

If you are not leaking coolant, (be darn sure) you are burning it. And if you have an 00-01 with a coolant consumption problem, and you can't find a leak, the primary suspect is absolutely a cracked 0331 head.

Perform the inspection with the valve cover pulled off I described. Some can even see a crack through the oil filler cap. If it's cracked, then sample bearings. I never recommended swapping or rebuilding the motor without verification.

 

At least than he'd know for sure.
Wouldn't the $15 be cheaper than the time and money spent on a gasket set and the crap in his face just to find out he does't have a cracked head?

 

if i owned a 00-01 cherokee and bought it before i knew about the 0331 heads then i would have started shopping for a 02 1/2-04 WJ 4.0 that same day... since they seem to be cheaper then a TJ engine of around the same years... still a grand for a used motor... i had a 99 WJ i bought with a blown 4.0... was thinking of doing a cheap 4.0 swap since they were a dime a dozen... little did i know they were different... won a 04 WJ on ebay for $1k that was t-boned... parted it out and made more then my $1k back... swapped the better motor in and sold it for $4200... made about $3200 on it... just a thought... get your motor and it paid for too! just a bit of time and labor...

 

hes right in reality you want the thinnest oil possible

 

I'm off to college next year so I dont want to sink a ton of money in the cherokee before I leave. How much do you think it is worth in this condition in an otherwise flawless xj. 145k miles. Just a rough estimate on what I could expect to get out of it if I sold it.

 

needing a motor? uh... $1k... coming from the classified mod who spends to much time in there and spending the rest of my time on craigslist... i bought a 97 4x4 with 4.5in RE full leaf lift kit... JKS disconnects... Jasper transmission... stock motor... brush guard... tail light guards... side steps... for $600 that had a blown 231... body was kinda beat up so thats where i see your $1k at...

 

Yeah $1,000 is about right.

 

When I go to do the lift this winter- i'll be i Nevada I'm gonna change the head on my 2000- might as well get it all done at once.

 

Excellent idea. Swapping on a new head isn't that difficult or expensive if you can do the work yourself. And getting that factory 0331 head off an 00-01 will help you sleep better, so you don't have to worry about if or when you might be the next "victim" of a cracked head.

 

I wouldn't sell it. Id do all thats stated already and if it is a cracked head i heard these guys are good...
https://www.alabamacylinderhead.com/...ail.php?id=109