Cyriac

Hello,

My 93 xj suffered from DW and incidentally i think that the excessive DW and towing a trailer made my radiator fail... at the top most of the coolant steamed and poured out.

I didn't do anything about it immediately and the next day we left for the ocean (150mi) everything went perfectly despite the lack of coolant (air cooling sufficed?). The day after we went wheeling and it overheated. We weren't far from the camping but by the time we arrived the needle was way passed the gauge, the engine was clacking and everything was steaming. It stalled and pushed it to a parking space.

We let it cool down and after 2 hours i successfully started it. Then this morning i drove it to the beach but the temperature gauge just jumped up past 100 and i turned back to avoid hitting the red line.

I let it cool and now i started it to see if it overheated at idle and sure enough, it hit the red line in less than 5 minutes...

I need to drive back home tomorrow, what can i do?????

mylast96xj

have you refilled the radiator? I know that sounds like a stupid question but you don't mention doing so

****BigRedXJ****

what he said ^^^^ dont forget to check your oil also. if adding coolant dosent solve the problem, your thermostat probably failed. When you get home, practice poping your hood and do some basic maintaince so you can avoid seizing your engine.

Kalali

If the answer is no, I suggest someone take the key away from this operator....

mylast96xj

the key ..the blunts ..the bottle...the truck

ZINGGG

So it overheated... Then you drove it the next day without taking any action to fix the overheating. Then it overheated again. And once again, nothing to fix it. Then it overheated a 3rd time.....

Don't you think it's time to do some maintenance before you destroy your engine?

Since you aren't home, if you don't have the tools to do it yourself where you are right now, I'd suggest taking it to the nearest mechanic (and by taking it, i mean having it towed there because you really want to stop letting it overheat)

Bustedback

Jeeps are not self healing, YOU have to fix it when stuff breaks, it WON'T fix itself.

Cyriac

Thanks to you all for your quick responses! Indeed I'm just learning about mechanics and maintenance so I'm sorry about asking such trivial questions...

I was planning on refilling my radiator but i posted this thread before i did. After refilling with water everything is back to normal so I'm confident about driving back home tomorrow!!

Again, many thanks to all!

Willard

??????

mylast96xj

this is not real . I think OP is breaking our shoes

Cyriac

I'm sorry for being so illiterate mechanically. My problems are real, I posted this before refilling the radiator simply because I couldn't do it at the time, I knew I had to do it but I doubted it would sufficed to drive back home which is why I asked here in the meantime...

Anyway, on the way back I planned to stop by to see a ZJ which was for sale (which I'm looking into buying). I managed to drive there but it took several stops to refill the radiator, luckily I had an extra 5 litres of water with me at all times and I refilled the bottles each time (gas station toilets and random kind people who lent me their garden hoses). I finally got to the Grand Cherokee seller and he turned out to be a mechanic.

He turned out to be very nice and quick-fixed my radiator and also refilled it with racing spec coolant. He looked deeper into the engine and found out that the fan clutch needs a replacement (or fix) too. From the overheating he thinks the water pump and thermostat may have been damaged and finally he told me about the biggest issue: the head gasket....


You see I was planning on selling my XJ to buy his V8 ZJ... But now that my XJ maybe has a head gasket breach it will become worthless! However, he told me he was willing to trade vehicles (with me adding an extra bit) because he wants to work on my XJ to make it run reliably again... Could I be in luck?

Well, I'm home now. His fix allowed me to make it safely back. I can tell the clutch fan doesn't work as it should seeing as the temp rises when idling but when driving everything is back to normal for now and until I make my decision.

But I'm taking the subject off topic... Thanks for your input, again!

RenixHeep

sounds like he just wants to make money off you and dump an about to break down ZJ on you aswell, I don't trust "mechanics" who like to do trades.

Cyriac

Well, he did restore the ZJ from the ground up. He looks attached to his vehicle and seems to be a genuinely honest person. I went to his garage and both his ZJ and his Mercedes that he is selling looked in tip top shape. He told me he needs to sell one of the 2 to buy hardware supplies for his home...

He showed me a list of Mopar parts that he bought for the ZJ which total an incredible 4700€ (~$6000) (he printed it out for me). We went for a test drive and the GC drives smooth and fast... I just didn't see anything wrong with that ZJ!

And about my XJ, he said why not swap in another engine? Seeing as I am unsatisfied with it it seems like the perfect opportunity... But I don't have the time, tools or knowledge to do it myself! I also need to go on the hunt for a 4.0L XJ in decent shape too if I were to do the swap...


He proposed 3000€ + the XJ and I drive home with his ZJ but I find that offer unfair. Initially I asked 4000€ ($5000) for my XJ but with the damage I might take off 2000€ ($2500) just for repairs. He is selling his ZJ for 4500€ ($5600).
Doesn't 2000€ + the XJ sound fairer???

Here is the ZJ's ad: http://www.leboncoin.fr/voitures/292414813.htm?ca=13_s
and my XJ's: http://www.leboncoin.fr/voitures/337020948.htm?ca=16_s

88cherokeepyles

Get a second opinion from someone unrelated...

Someone that can see the two trucks in person.

Cyriac

Well, I have it! I went with his first offer in the end because their was another buyer and this was a unique opportunity to buy a ZJ in great condition.

I left Etna there (my black XJ). It turns out that he is going to swap in the 4.0L from a Wrangler and then he is going to restore it for his son...

How touching! :-)


This Grand Cherokee is a beast!!! :-P