DYS Maintenance
 

I'm pretty new here. I bought my first Jeep 6 weeks ago, and have been reading stuff on this site since the week before I bought it. It's a 2000 Cherokee Limited. 163K miles

It's been treated to some truck-bed liner underneath and is fairly low rust. I see a few tiny spots bubbling here or there on the paint, some underside but the pans and frame are great.

My question is about maintenance. I have swiched to Rotella T6, and the lifters are silent now. It does not use oil. The transmission and transfer case are quiet and work fine. The rear-end is quiet, with no clunking. The brakes work better if I put in neutral coming to a stop sign?

What is most important to learn now? I want to do some stuff myself. Are there grease zirks, or however you spell it, to be aware of? Stuff like the wheel bearings and what about changing the oil in the transmission and transfer case. Other? Do you know of video links to show some of this?

Thanks!

Change all fluids:
-Dex/Merc in the trans (it is an auto, yes?) and transfer case
-75W90 or 80W90 in the axles
-DOT 3 brake fluid
-conventional green antifreeze
-either PS fluid or ATF in the PS
-grease any zerks present


Do a tune-up with copper plugs (NGK), good wires (I like Belden), and cap & rotor with brass terminals (Echlin are good). It wouldn't hurt to replace the upstream O2 sensor if you don't know its age.

What is your question about putting in neutral when braking at a stop sign? You are saying the brakes do work better or you are asking if they should work better?

The 2 things that I would look at working on first would give it a complete brake job since you say that they work better if you are out of gear. Also do a complete cooling system check/up grade since more then likely you have no idea how the cooling system been maintained. The main reason I say this about the cooling system is that your year came with a crappy 0331 head on it and when they over heat they have the tendency of cracking. You should read up on the 0331 head problem.

That's good advice about the cooling system. I planned to flush it this spring, before hot weather.

The brakes aren't grabbing or noisy. But it seems like the engine pulls on the drivetrain enough during a stop that it just feels better in neutral. It might be that I've been driving the same car, with all around disc brakes for 10 years, and just am not used to the weight of the truck? I will look over the brakes, that too is good advice. Could the automatic transmission not be acting just right during a stop, you know, not correctly adjusting to the lowered rpm's? I am pretty ignorant, but I learn fast.

As of now, I think my 0331 is OK, it does not seem to lose any antifreeze. I don't want any issues either!

Thanks for the replies so far!

How does the anti-freeze look? Is it nice and bright green like it should be? Don't get me wrong about the 0331 head. It can crack with a simple over heat but not all of them crack right away. Some guy have gone for several 100k without a problem. But it is always good to know the bad as much it is to know the good. Also keep an eye on the oil. If you get a milky look on the underside of the oil fill cap it's time to start doing some investigation. As far as the brakes a brake inspection will do you good and it may be like you said that your just not used to them. No other vehicle rides like a jeep.

The antifreeze looks old. It's not bright and new looking, but it's not brown or grey. The oil is clean looking and the fill cap looks normal.

The transmission fluid is not glowing red either, but not too dark yet.

I am going to search for videos on draining and refilling the transmission and transfer case. I did see a video on lubing the differential joints somewhere.

You are right about the feel of driving a Jeep. It's not fast or zippy, but there's a feeling of the torque and energy of its drive-train. And the gentle, log-wagon way it takes bumps; I'm in love! I will always own a Jeep for the remainder of my life, why did I wait until 43 to get one? I know where theres a '48 Willy for cheap...solid, mid restoration...might be a cool project...my wife would kill me, nevermind.

Thanks for the advice!