Stabsthedrama

Well, maybe the oil light flickering at idle every once in awhile was a sign after all.

My wife was on the way to work today, was about 10 minutes from work when the oil light came on and stayed on, and she could hear a loud ticking noise (sounded like a "bicycle wheel with a baseball card in it") and lost mostly all acceleration. I know there was oil in it, checked yesterday.

Recently had the pan gasket and RMS done, and maybe I should have had the oil pump done at the same time.

Oil was very recently changed (twice in a row) and a Wix filter is all I've ever used.

What now? Is the engine shot? Should I just get a shop to throw an oil pump on it and see?


Ugh......I was really, really hoping this wasn't going to happen. It only has like 150k on the engine.

Stabsthedrama

Update - checked oil -oil is fine. Rules out a RMS sprouting a leak, etc.

Same noise upon starting it back up an hour later. Oil light stays on as well. Shut it back down.

I'm having it towed to the shop, they'll drop the pan and check out the bearings and all that, and swap the pump if necessary.

At 150k I really hope it's not time for a new engine, but if it is I guess its going into storage until I can rebuild or swap it.

6Cylinder

It really depends on quite a few factors. Such as being in the 'problematic 0331' head range, overheating, routine maintenance, previous symptoms, and all the events leading to this.

It's a shame you're having problems at 150k, but if it makes you feel any better I'm in he middle of a complete overhaul @ 130k since the previous owner didn't tell me about the loss of oil pressure. (Which I didn't see since it had oil pressure on a cold start)

If you're not well versed in assessing bearings and doing a rebuild yourself then a shop will give you the best info you're going to get. Just make sure you start shopping around for engines yourself and getting a feel for a new engine costs. You do not have to buy or go with what that shop tells you what's wrong and you're entitled to a second opinion. 150k is a lot of miles but it would be a bigger shame to spend a lot of money on something that doesn't need to be done then having to get a new engine anyway.

Hope for the best, plan for the worst!

Firestorm500

Loss of oil pressure with a loss of power usually indicates an engine was about ready to lock up due to excessive friction.

Maybe a "band-aid" approach might fix it, but I think you're looking at an engine replacement if you want to keep it reliable where she can drive it with confidence. Or anyone else for that matter.

Stabsthedrama

Ya it's looking like it's going to have to go into storage until I have a house/garage in a year or so. Frikkin sucks.

The body/parts I have replaced on it keeps it very worth saving, as an engine swap would be easy enough for me once I have a garage.

Getting a new car wouldn't be a terrible idea anyway since I'd rather she be driving something newer/more reliable anyway, but I thought I'd be able to get by a little longer with her driving it. It was going to become my toy if it lasted her until we got a new car anyway, but I didn't expect to have to swap engines.

Guess I'm going car shopping this weekend.

I might be done with 4.0's. If a 140k mint condition 89 renix for $2k winds up not panning out, I'm not sure I'd be willing to gamble on anything else. It is a Jeep guy's wet dream, and yet now it's going to need a new engine at just 150k. Pretty ridiculous if you ask me.

I'll be doing the swap and keeping it later on as my toy, but I'm very disappointed in it. This is after swapping every single thing on the truck and still having wobble on top of the engine issues (it's probably tires but it doesn't make me any less annoyed with chasing down a problem that is inherent in every single 4x4 cherokee)

6Cylinder

Don't get me wrong, it's a damn shame you're at a loss since you have problems. Yet I wouldn't give up so immediately. I also wouldn't start saying 4.0s are the worst on a Cherokee forum either. ANY engine will fail if you don't properly maintain it. Even new cars are problematic straight from he factory. Hence the creation of TSB's. Nothing is perfect and nothing is forever. You must realize this about cars. Anyone who says 'oh I've got 300k on my engine and it's still strong!' Is either lying or meticulously maintaining their car. Sheet metal WILL oxidize, cast iron WILL succumb metal fatigue, and parts DO fail randomly no matter how much money you throw at it. It's life!

To be completely honest, I am in a much worse situation Jeep wise than you and I'm still pressing forward with my rebuild. There is still a lot that can go wrong with my build as well. Much like any repair. No white flag here!!!

Edit- also I have zero wobble on my 4x4

Stabsthedrama

Not saying they're the worst but believe me, I've maintained it. That's not to say the PO did, but if you look at my Sig, I maintained this thing more than 99% of 4.0 owners would maintain theirs which is why this is pissing me off even more. I've had 2 other 4.0s in the past that got to 300k+ all original engines and heads.

We'll see what the shop says. I don't have a garage so its gonna be a pita figuring out a storage situation until I do.

Moncheche

My engine is currently in the machine shop. I bought the car with 90,000 on it and the PO didn't maintain it so well. I threw in some bearings and that bought me some time and mileage, 80,000 to be exact.
It had the 0331 head when I bought it, and it had been repaired once. I put on a clearwater head.
So the other day when it was 14 below, it bought the farm. Bangs and clunks, it got me home, (10 plus miles). I would have stopped, but A. it was 14 below. B. I live in God's Country and would have died from exposure before a tow could have found me, and C. It was 4:30 in the morning.
When I tore it down I found 2 spun bearings, 3 cracked pistons (skirt cracks migrating past the wrist pins), a crank in need of turning, and a cam with progressive damage front to rear. #'s 1-3 had wear, 4-6 had damaged lobes. Explains the banging.
The motor will run forever once rebuilt. They are worth the investment. I'll spend under well under $1,000 and be on the road with what will be essentially 300,000 ready power plant. The cylinders were in remarkable shape all things considered. The shop was surprised when I told them what the block had been through.

I feel your pain.

Firestorm500

Long-term mini-storage.

You sound pretty down on your Jeep right now. I'm sorry you're having this problem. It is major, I know. Give it a month or so. If you still feel this way, bail out of it and sell it. $1,000 or so.

Keeping it around would not be worth the bitterness and frustration, no matter what you've already done to it.

Who knows what it went through in its previous life?

6Cylinder

You are my inspiration man!!!!!!!

Firestorm500

Moncheche: It got you home.

That's all you can ask.

Stabsthedrama

I can't agree with selling it for 1000. I'm in 5000 for it, and with a new engine I'll have a new toy that I can lift and all that. If its my headache and not my wife's that's a different story.

I'll just have to figure out a storage place.

extrashaky

Are you talking about paying for storage? You might want to run the numbers before you do that.

Many mini storage locations are not set up for vehicle storage. Even the ones that have units large enough to store a vehicle may not allow vehicle storage or may not be set up so that you can actually get the vehicle into the unit. If you're in an area where vehicle storage is scarce, you might end up paying more than you expect.

So suppose it ends up costing you $100 per month. After a year, that's $1200 that you could have paid to a small local garage to do an engine swap now instead. Putting it into storage may not save you any money over just having someone do it for you. Suppose it takes you longer to find a suitable house, maybe two years. Now you've sunk $2400 into storage. Plus, as the Jeep sits, other things will go wrong, and it will cost that much more to get it back on the road a couple of years from now.

Obviously the calculation changes if you can store it for less. That's why I say to run the numbers. You might just discover that you're better off paying someone else to do it and getting your wife back on the road in a couple of weeks rather than a couple of years. Happier wife, happier wallet. Win.

HEAP of JEEP

Ah yes.... the Jeep Cherokee... a car flipper's dream

I had a whole reply typed out... 26 year old vehicle... don't throw the whole 4.0 power train under the bus because of one 26 year old engine... etc....

But, my computer locked up, and I lost everything I had typed, so instead.... I'll just wish you the best of luck in finding a vehicle that will make you happy and less frustrated.

Stabsthedrama

From what I saw recently (for my truck since I just got a work truck and I've been keeping 3 vehicles at my apt when I'm actually only allowed 2) I found at least 1 local place with vehicle storage for 30/month. Not too terrible.