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Stock XJ Cherokee Tech. All XJ Non-modified/stock questions go hereXJ (84-01)
All OEM related XJ specific tech. Examples, no start, general maintenance or anything that's stock.
New owner of a 1998 Cherokee Sport by way of letting go a Wrangler Sport. I suppose I was looking for a winter project while the motorcycle was stowed away. It has been fun moving around snow in 4X4 over the past two weekends, but I digress. Mine is a lifelong NY vehicle and thus came with a case of rust. Been working with a wire wheel and considering various undercoating options and I hope to find feedback from related threads later. All of the vital bits are sound and especially so after a new rear main seal, pinion seals, shocks, sway bar, ball joints, brakes and hoses, and fresh fluids. I did not and could not do all of the above. I will attempt to learn about tuning and maintaining what is looking to be a fantastic engine, it and the most of the rest of the Jeep very close celebrating the 100,000 mile mark. Look forward to sharing about the interior carpet and upholstery cleaning project that I endeavored this weekend thanks to inspiration from the forum. Guidance will be needed for future projects including but of course not limited to: minor body and paint work, pin stripe and trim restoration, tint removal, stereo change, and steering wheel refurbishment. Until then. <br /><br /> <img src="http://i66.tinypic.com/27y1g85.jpg"/><br />
Wow! That looks spotless! Every jeep i see basically has no paint or dented to all hell. Its glad to see this one is in good shape still lol. Also cool a tesla charger never seen one yet in person before, But back to the jeep i look forward to your posts lol. Any future plans for it?
Planning to stick to stock and do a few of the things mentioned above as time and budget allows. Speaking of, does anyone know anything about the wheels on this year and model? What was standard? Thanks, I really like the wheels too. And while I'm thinking of it -- I noticed this weekend that the front orange lamp cover is broken. I had assumed it was missed when I bought it but the pic shows it intact. Know where I can find one of those?
You'll be interested to see some of the underside pics that a nice body otherwise hides. Still a ways to go down there. Now that I have it back from the shop I am in the long, tedious cleaning phase. Will be following up soon with a recap of a carpet upholstery wash that turned out nicely.
97+ xj wheels are for this year and sadly the wheel encyclopedia is basically gone since this photobucket issue but let me see if i can scrounge pics real quick, At the moment i have jeep grand cherokee canyon rims on mine and they look great lol
It's my twin! I have a '99 in the SAME color. Mine has the plastic rear body cladding and the large black door bumpers tho.
If you want to STOP the rust and make it NEVER rust again? FluidFilm the underside, inside the rockers, doors, frame and all over underneath.
I am a solid firm believer in this stuff now. In my 50+ years, I have tried wire-wheel, spraypaint, RustOleum brushed on, rubberized undercoating, expensive spray paint and even Naval Jelly and that Rust-Stop spray. Nothing seemed to work and the undercoating just made matters worse.
I looked into oiling the underside and I did that on my 1992 XJ and my Honda Civic. I read up on Fluid Film and it's the stuff that the military uses to protect their vehicles too.
Runs about 10 bux a can at Lowes. You will need the 20 inch wand attachment available on Amazon or eBay to spray in the frame and rocker panels.
8 cans will do an XJ nicely. Inside the doors and rear body panels too.
It will NEVER rust again. Any future painting will be a chore tho. FF penetrates the metal and can be a BEAR to remove for painting. lol.
FluidFilm option looks like a good one. Will be back under there for prep when it the Artic blast passes over. More on the overall underside to come.
Let me recap the bulk of a weekend spent on a wash and cleaning of the carpet and upholstery, along with a few other odds and ends:
I strip out the seats. Snap a rusted bolt from the frame, one of four holding each front chair. Back seat removal is straightforward. Separating the upholstery fabric from the seat frame, I find plastic clips and from the seat cushion wire rods and and metal ties. My mistake is that I pry several of the round metal clips apart before I decide rightly to shear them off with clippers and replace with small zip ties upon reassembly.
I take a minute to admire all that comes with 20 years of seat life. Off to the laundromat, for a Spray and Wash soak and two go arounds on extra hot in the commercial washers. They are taken home and I hang them for drying.
Drying time is going to be sluggish in these weather and working conditions, so I rush to prepare and paint the lower brackets on the seat frame. I regret that I didn't have enough time worked out for that particular job.
I start on the next thing that is going to need drying time and begin a vacuum and carpet clean job. A+ so far on the Weathertech liners that hide all the stained carpet bits.
I clean (and drink beer) into the early morning hours. The upholstery fabric dries overnight and my nerves are calmed upon finding that the seat covers are re-fitted without too much trouble at all.
I am 100% happy that I washed my XJ seats. You should do it too.
Thanks to inspiration and guidance from this classic:
I wonder if your rims are from a Ford Ranger? I used to have a 90 Ranger, and the wheels on that looked identical to what you have. There was not a Ford emblem on them either, so I could easily see someone putting them on something else.
I personally wanna replace my canyons with ecco rims again like factory or the 16 inch wheels they look better imo. That and maybe because i have frickin 9 other canyon rims sitting in the corner collecting dust lol. also i wanted to do that with my seats but before i do i need a new power seat rail but cleaning them when i get a chance is on my bucket list when installing heated seat pads as well. Also i dont know how much you wanna invest in your jeep but led conversions is another option id suggest too lol.
yup led headlights are WAY better than stock.... Im not sure if you need to upgrade the harness or what for those. Less power and longer lasting alternator and lights lol.
yup led headlights are WAY better than stock.... Im not sure if you need to upgrade the harness or what for those. Less power and longer lasting alternator and lights lol.
as long as you get quality led headlights. Those eBay and Amazon cheapies don't cut it.
01-01-2018, 05:06 PM
New XJ Owner
