ok. well i did some searches on the site, and some say it might be a sending unit, or a ground . you be the judge .

i have a 97 xj , have had it for about a year and its been fine, fuel gauge works great .

but now, once theres about a half a tank of gas left, the orange gauge is at 1/4 tank . i know my jeep. i get about 330 miles to one tank. when im at 220 miles to my tank and the orange light comes on for 1/8th of a tank, i know its full of crap . it seems accurate to about 1/2 tank.
i think that clue alone should tell us what the issue is. when i fill it up , it goes right up , and hits the hash marks every 50 miles, like it always does, UNTIL it hits 30-50% tank. ..

funny thing is , right before i turned it off today before work it was at the E mark (empty) . then when i started it up after work to go home it was at 1/8th mark, where it should have been respective to the gas in the tank .

what we think?

 

Could be a sticky float. It'd be kind of a PITA but pull your fuel pump and check it out.

 

There was a recall on the 1997 Cherokee sending unit for this very reason.
My 97's fuel gauge has been acting crazy since I bought it in 2007. But now it's worse than ever. I have to use the GPS to keep track of my mileage, to estimate where my fuel level is. I found the part cheap on ebay.
US $39.50
Here is the recall info:
Jeep Cherokee

ID Number: 97V194000
Component: fuel: fuel tank assembly: gauge: fuel
Potential Number of Units Affected: 209,000
Year: 1997
Manufactured From: Jul 1996 To: Jun 1997
Year of Recall: '97
Summary: Vehicle Description: Multi-purpose passenger vehicles. The fuel tank mounted fuel level sending unit accuracy can degrade over time, indicating significantly more fuel in reserve than is actually present. Owners may not be aware that their vehicle is low on fuel increasing the risk of a vehicle crash if the vehicle stops due to no fuel.
Source: AutoTrader.com

 

well thats great !
whats the part name you got? just the sending unit ? my guess is i have to drop the tank to do it huh .... ugh .

also , i just go off my odometer. when it hits 300 miles or so i get gas. . . cant you just do that ? or does your odometer not work either?

 

I had that problem, but mine was showing to have 1/4 tank left, but was actually empty. It was the float. Got lucky and it was fixed under warranty.

 

You shouldn't have to drop your tank to pull your pump. It's on the front side of the fuel tank (behind the rear axle).

However, they do suggest you drop it and clean it just to be sure.

 

Believe it or not I used a product called

JECTRON

it is a fuel injector cleaner, I put that in the tank with less then 1/4 of gas and drove it till i HAD to get gas... When I filled up the gauge worked properly ever since..

 

NEW FUEL SENDING UNIT 1997-2000 JEEP CHEROKEE
My Haines repair manual just says to remove the electric fuel pump housing from the tank. The fuel gauge float/fuel gauge sending unit disconnects from the electric pump housing.

Ebay
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...90131285#rpdId

 

My odometer is off so I have Garmin Nuvi tell me when I go 300.

 

Depending on the year you have to drop the tank, i have to on my 98 to access the pump and sending unit.

 

fuel injector fixed it up eh? i was thinkin about that.... maybe puttin a whole ting of seafoam in there at a 1/4 tank .... maybe clean off that sensoron the sending unit slide.

mine doesnt show that it has fuel and there really isnt... mine just goes to below E when theres 100 miles on it or whatnot . maybe it IS the float. .. .

 

Oh, I didn't know they did that. They must have changed it in '97. My ZJ is top mount, but I thought all XJs were side mount. Learn something new everyday!!

 

mines a 97 , with the recalls and warrantys , you think they might honor it at my local jeep service place/dealership? get it for free?

 

Mines, a 97 too I'm gonna swing by the dealership and ask. Can't hurt.