jscheutz

I just bought a 1998 Jeep Cherokee Limited (black with grey leather interior)

The thing is in good shape, runs and drives awesome. I've always wanted a jeep!

It has 170,000 miles and so it has some little stuff to do on it and I need help prioritizing about what I should do first. I can do limited repairs as I am just learning and I have a good mechanic that I work with who does more serious repairs. So any advice on what to do first and whether to try it myself or take it in.

I just bought new tires for the front (back ones were newer (235's) and got an alignment, drives smooth.

I also replaced valve cover gasket (was seeping at back left corner)

Here are the things that it needs.

1. power steering pump hose is leaking

2. catalytic converter is shot, in bad shape, and needs replaced

3. rear and front differential are leaking very small amount (could be seal or plug?)

4. radiator has dirty fluid, when I took the cap off the top and stuck my finger in there was a bunch of the sand / stop leak junk in there, radiator may need replaced, i'm afraid to even flush it!

5. hood needs repainted, sun spots and some peeling (should I do some hood vents or scoop to help release some of the heat?)

6. rear universal joint makes small clunk every so often when accelerating from a stop (maybe once a week or so I hear it)

7. Slight anti-freeze smell when running the heat, maybe heater core replacement? going into spring and summer I can probably put this off until fall but I noticed a slight fog on the windows the other morning.

I have driven it on a couple 250+ mile trips and it is awesome, getting 20-22 mpg on the highway so I'm really happy with it.

The most obvious thing to me is the exhaust leak at the cat. but other than that the jeep runs and drives like a dream. I just want to address the things that I know are issues on it before they get worse.

I also want to do a 2'' lift (budget boost?) I already have oversized tires (235) but it is my daily driver and I am planning on some light off road / camping use. We are buying a wrangler as well so I'm not sure which one we will get more serious about the off road capabilities (lift kits, snorkel, etc...)

Anyway, any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

91familyxj

Well welcome to CF. Well it seems like you have a good list to work on. I would also change all the fluids in the jeep. Even if the PO said they did it just redo it and write it down so you have that peace of mind.Im running a 3.5 inch lift on my DD and love it. Post up some picuters of the new XJ. Keep us up dated!!!!!!!!

lliamsdad

welcome to CF from alabama. sounds like you better jump on it. lol

kapowsinpunk

welcome newbie from sunny washington state, just like me, just joined today.
i just bought my first jeep (2001) cherokee about a month ago!!! always wanted a jeep too...
i bought mine with the intention of being able to hit some medium duty trails, so the first thing i did was buy tires, wheels and i put a 3.5" lift kit on it. i too am doing all the work myself because why pay somebody to do something you're capable of? there are plenty of people out there to help you get through what you need... they've done it, so use them!
my rig is a daily driver too, and i couldn't be happier with how the lift turned out.
since you don't sound like you'll being doing much 4x'ing, i would definitely make sure the daily maintenance is taken care of and as already mentioned, get the fluids changed, make sure the serpentine belt is in good condition etc. etc.
HAVE FUN WITH IT!

Tural

1st priority, radiator. once you flush out the stop leak and all other junk out of the radiator, u might possibly have more antifreeze leaks, it's not that hard to replace a radiator.
then get to the power steering hose. they're not that much.
depending on the state your cat. might get u a rejection sticker. magnaflow makes really nice universals. just get someone to weld you an O2 sensor fitting on it and clamp it on there. while you're at it throw in a little more muula and get a new muffler.
most Jeep differentials leak a bit. keep an eye on the fluid levels, but it's not that big of a deal.
i don't know what you mean by rear univ. joint makes a clunk every once in a while, but it might need to be replaced. also not that hard at all. but before you replace it, make sure it's not something just dangling down there and making a noise every now and then.

wewsel

The dirty fluid in the radiator sounds like your heater core is leaking and the PO put some stop leak in the coolant system. Heater core replacement can be a PITA. I did it my self and it took most of the day. The dash has to come out, a/c disconnected, vacuumed down and recharged. So I'd leave that to a professional, unless you know someone who does a/c work.

jscheutz

Here is a picture of the new jeep on our first trip.

We named him Denzel

I'm hoping to flush the heater core and coolant system and see what happens. Hopefully I can get away with not having to replace the heater core. I have a cat from the PO that he gave me but it is a bit smaller than the stock cat that is on the jeep. Am I still able to install this and have someone weld it on? It doesn't have an o2 sensor fitting, how hard is it to have someone weld one on there?

91familyxj

Looks good man!!!! As far as all the welding its not hard to do just so fitting and welding. lol Do you know someone with a welder?

Ogre in KS

Exactly what he said, make sure the major things are taken care of first, then you can worry about the smaller stuff, welcome to the site and all things Jeep Nice looking ride you got, wish mine was in that good of shape,lol.

joshhill

Good Stuff on this thread. how is the easiest way to flush the radiator? Or maybe the best way? Thanks for the help.

ClutchKimball

What I just did is: I took out the Thermostat housing, Removed the Radiator cap and the lower Radiator Hose, and let everything drain. Then I took off both hoses for the heater core, and flushed them with a garden hose from both directions over and over till they come out clean. Then I Flushed the block and radiator repeatedly, holding my hand over the lower hoses and letting them fill up with water, and then letting them dump. Make sure you get both sides of the radiator (from the filler neck and the upper hose). The coolant bottle comes out pretty easy too, you might as well clean that out while you are doing it. Mine was filled with a rusty colored Jello-like sediment.

Replace any hoses that look like they are starting to swell, and put in a new thermostat just to be safe...they are like 5 bucks. Get the good dark grey felpro gasket, and spray both sides with Permatex Spray Gasket sealer. Hook everything back up, Fill up the radiator with a gallon and a half of straight coolant, and fill the rest of your cooling system up with water. Drive it around for a couple days, and check your overflow level often. Make sure and use your heater while you are purging air from the system. After a week or so, remove the radiator cap and check your mix with a Hygrometer. If it is cold outside, make sure your overflow is a 50/50 mix too, otherwise it can freeze. Just my $.02

joshhill

thanks for the help. Did you notice a difference in running temp? right now I am at about 195 driving and almost 210 in traffic. Central Florida May have something to do with that.

ClutchKimball

Jeeps like to run right around 210*F