I am looking for a 97+ Cherokee for around $4500. Does this look like a good one? (Not paying more than $4000 for this one though.)
It lookes like...
AW4?
np231
Chryco 8.25 (Flat bottomed in one pic)
Lots of miles..but the guys says highway miles. im looking at it tomorrow.
I plan on a 3.5in lift, t-case drop, 30s or 31s

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/cto/1784734995.html

anything to look out for? Thanks for all the help guys!

 

rust, and how it was serviced

 

nice

 

take a look under the oil cap look for water,also check the dipstick the 00-02 #0331 heads are bad for cracking.

 

looks well maintained.
x2 on rust, get under there and starting shakin' anything you can grab....
drivelines (u joints)front axle shafts(u joints)make sure theres no leaks
no spare?
and your right on the chryco 8.25", make sure the TC is in working order also.
01' is gonna have head that is prone to cracking....
has a tranny cooler so could have a tow package or up country package (possible LSD, 3.73's, no rear sway)
id say a good deal...bring him $4000 cash and drive home happy!

 

wait...so do you mean the plastic valve cover is prone to cracking? actually i am unsure whether it is black painted metal or plastic..but would this be a good investment to fix the problem? After market Valve Cover and he says there is no rust, it has been in the rust free south its whole life..but i will check for that for sure!
Is the 231 TC a good tcase? is it weaker or stronger than 242(cant remember exact #)? i dont THINK i will miss part time 4x4 that much?

 

I saw that one on Craigslist. It looks great from the pics..

 

no i mean the 2000-2001 head is prone to cracking, not the valve cover, the head itself.

 

or in other words...does the head really crack that often? is there a part that will replace that? other than the entire head? i thought it had basically the same 4.0 all of them have just with the better intake manifold?

 

Sorry man...hope im not competing haha


but thanks a ton for the info! this forum is great! and easy to find what your looking for!

 

how will i be able to tell if it has a cracked head or not?

and how can you tell it has a trany cooler?

 

never mind..you can see the mini radiator in front correct?

 

correct.
and not all year 4.0 have the same head. different years have different castings and different valve trains. 00-01 are aluminum i believe and are prone to cracking, and the only thing that fixes a cracked head is a new head, preferably one from an earlier year.
and a head only cracks if it gets to hot, so dont overheat it and you should be fine.
oh and as far as being able to tell if its cracked all ready:
the compression will be off so it will run like shiz
probably be leaking
crack will most likely be visable at that many miles, so inspect the head and engine block carefully

 

It looks good but I wouldnt give 4900 for it. I gave 3400 for my 01 and it had 140k on the clock.

 

okay! thanks for all the help tanner! hopefully ill be posting pics of my new jeep on Monday night!