Looked at it today, it's got a boatload of small problems and I'm not sure I'm up to it.

-The gauge cluster is strange. It has Voltmeter, Oil Pressure, and Temp gauges, a Large Speedo, AND the monster gas gauge.... I've never heard of or seen this set up. Has anyone?

-Clock and blower motor both act dead. Are they on the same fuse, maybe?

-The driver's seat is loose, and rocks back and forth. Is this a common problem?

-The dash switch for the transmission modes is broken. it just flops around. Is this simple to replace?

-It has no center console, is swapping one (maybe even a 97+?) pretty straight forward?

-The power window and lock switches in the driver's door are "loose", like if you touch them they feel like they're ready to fall inside the door. Window switches work (except driver's door), power lock switch is dead on both passenger and driver's side. Any leads? Passenger door lock MANUAL switch is loose and flops around like it's unhooked. The passenger door doesn't open from the inside.

-There's duct tape wrapped around the steering column. I'm guessing the tilt wheel function is broken and the wheel flops around. Is this pretty common, is it simple to replace or is the whole column coming out?

Well.... any ideas?

 

The guage cluster is normal,the rest of your issues can be resolved easy either by repairing what you have or the local jy,I just put a 98 console in my 89 to have drink holders,pretty simple.
The steering colum is easier to replace tha tighten the 4 bolts that hold the colum tilt,I just did for about $37 and an hours worth of my time. The clock and blower are not on the same fuse,the clock is either on the radio or dome.
The seat is normal also but you can pick one up at th jy for about $40.
If it runs good and has good compression,buy it if the prise it good.

 

Ok, I'm just used to seeing either Large gas, Large Speedo with 4 idiot lights OR Tach, Speedo, and 4 small gauges. This one surprised me when I saw it was a mix of the two of them.

Any ideas or common reasons the blower motor and clock would be out?

Any ideas on how simple it is to replace the dash switch for the transmission mode?

It's got 60k on a rebuilt 4.0L. It ran well even though it's been sitting for a while and shifted fine. It seems like a good vehicle, just needs some time invested in fixing alot of the non-crucial little bs problems.

 

I would check the blower from the fan back until you find the problem,the clock may just be a light burnt out or the clock,I would also just check power to it.
The trany switch just need to remove the guage cluster bezel and you will stt the screws for the switch,just remove the housing and the switch pops out. I always get my parts from the local jys.
The guage cluster you have is not as common as the one with the rpm guage.

 

All sounds pretty straight forward.
How much you think I ought to offer him? He's asking $800 and said he's VERY flexible on the price. What should I throw out there?

 

id say no dont buy it my reasons are if the motor has high miles and rusted out panels i recently bought one 6 months ago with 80 thou on it figured not too bad so far ived dumped 400 bucks into it prolly will have to dump another 400$ into it. tracking down rust panels which one side was gone even underneith the car to the main frame some idiot kid i know tryed cutting a mounting my panels on and had them backwards everything is rusty or frozen and wants to snapp keep in mind 20 years old these are. the plastic coolant box has pieces chipping off of it inside exhaust leaks in front at u. power window dotn work on pass side clock is busted shocks were rusty chucks of metal fallen right off brakes fuel lines oil pressure gauge stuck burryed engine idleing too low stalling. There is alot to think about man a tps is almost 80 bucks and one other sensor is over 70 bucks so not cheap to replace one of those if u got low miles maybe. i was happy with the soccer van i had before started right up lol j/k

 

If it had rust I wouldn't even touch it. Rust isn't a major concern because it was a Colorado car (they don't salt the roads there) and a California car its entire life. Undercarriage looks pretty clean, even to my California standards. It seems to run fine, I drove it around for about 20 minutes. Suspension felt a little loose and had a couple squeaks, but engine and trans felt fine.

 

If he is flexable I would offer him maybe $600,I would not insult him. It just depends on what it is worth to you. Ask what his bottom line is,and go from there.

 

I offered him $300 and he said the lowest he'd go is $350, that's it, rock bottom.

I think I'll pick it up today.

 

i have a good condition Power-comfort tranny switch / rear wiper switch... assembly, if you want it.... $10/shipped

 

If you talked him from $800 to $350 go for it. Those are all pretty simple fixes and you can spend some time bonding with your new XJ while you restore it. Heck, that seat may just need it's bolts tightened and any electrical issues, like the window,clock,and blower motor are usually simple matters of a fuse but you can find operational ones at JunkYards pretty easily. You mentioned no rust - that's a big plus on an '89. Its an arid climated here in CO so there probably isn't much hidden rust either. I bought mine from the east coast and I'm still finding rust here and there.

 

Nice Post some pics.

 

I have yet to see a '89 with a clock that works.. seems to be a very common issue..

 

i have yet to find a clock that does NOT work, the 10 or so i have messed with had have burnt out bulbs

 

it works just some of the numbers are half burnt out and i dont see how in colorado they dont salt there roads ??? what magical treatment do they use to remove ice in the winter???? and thats cheap for a cherokee its worth 800 all day long especialy if its a 4wheel drive 4 door