I just bought my first xj! It was super cheep, I got it for 1300$ But it is really rough the body has some damage to it. The good new's is that it's my work project so all that is fine. It is a 99 has about 260,000 miles on the chassis and the guy "said" that they replaced the motor and that it has about 130,000 miles on it. But who know's he had no paper work to prove anything. Today the serpentine belt broke so I had to replace that. Also when I reach about 55 or 60 mile's an hour the Jeep starts to shake like crazy! Until it slows down to about 30 miles an hour. Any idea what that could be from?

 

It sounds like you have death wobble. I would start by looking at the tie rod ends, ball joints and hub assemblies. You should also check the track bar too. With those kinds of miles there is bound to be something loose up front. Where is the body damage? Is it just cosmetic sheet metal or could the frame be bent? Another good spot to check would be the steering box if it is loose it could give a good shake. Hope this helps.

 

I would return it to seller if it's that rough. If you were experienced with Jeeps than maybe, but I believe you will be chasing issues and investing good money, time and headaches.

 

I have to agree! You didn't get as good of a deal that you think you did. Actually you over paid for it if it's in that bad of condition that you say it is. If you were smart you would have walked away really fast once you noticed all of the problems. Since you are pretty much stuck with it now. Do a search on here for Death Wobble and you should come up with a few good write ups on what can cause and what to replace. Good Luck!!!

 

Best way would be to support it on jack stands with wheels off ground and check everything.

 

A shake like you describe can be caused by worn suspension and steering components. You need to inspect the front end. Steering linkage, trac bar, ball joints. Make sure nothing is loose or worn.

 

I agree you might have over paid a little for it, but if you're happy with your purchase, then don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Just be prepared to sink a lot of time and $$$ in to it. If, like me, you enjoy working on project vehicles, then this might be perfect for you.

I would just hope you know this is probably going to be an expensive hobby, might cause lots of frustration, and is not a wise investment. If you're good with all that, then welcome to joys of jeep ownership!

Oh, and like everyone else has said, check all the front end stuff. Even if you weren't getting the shakes, since its new to you, I would verify that everything under there is in good working order. You don't want to lose a tr end going down the highway, especially when they're one of the easier and cheaper parts to fix.

 

^^ Well said. Thank You for posting..

 

Thanks for your help I will defiantly look into all of that. The reason that I bought the Jeep as is was because I brought a mechanic along and he saw the back axle, a Dana 44. Which he says is worth more than the jeep it's self. IDK but I trusted the guy. Also he said that the shaking might be caused because I need a new adjustable track bar. Then another problem I just ran into is that the driver side window wont roll up..But the good news is that today I spent like 2 hours cleaning the inside using armor all wipes and it cleaned up really nice.

 

I might look for a new mechanic. I paid $150 for the dana 44 rear end I got to swap into my 96. But let us know what you find in the front end. A worn trac bar can cause the symptoms you are describing.

 

That isn't uncommon when they get a bit of wear on them. You are in CO, where they have actual 'winter'...did you give the underside a good inspection for rust? Floorpans? Rockers? Rails? That's where the real problems come in. Everything else is a bolt-on fix. I'd condition further expenditure on what you find underneath.

As mentioned, get the front tires off the ground and give the front suspension a good inspection, not just looking but prying and shaking. Check the tie rod ends, bushings, put a prybar at each end of the tracbar and see if you can move it. Also check the tires and tire balance.

'99 is a good year. Problem is even the newest XJ's are getting old and I'm sure you'll find your 'to do' list has more entries on it as time goes on, lol. That's part of the fun of ownership, fixing what's wrong and making it yours.

 

So true!
What ever you do. Don't let the mechanic that checked it out for you do any work on you Jeep since he doesn't know what he's talking about. Like foreveryoung001 said "if you're happy with your purchase, then don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Just be prepared to sink a lot of time and $$$ in to it."