overheating while on trails
 

I've got a 92 Cherokee Laredo with 200,000 miles on it. when i take it out on the trails it starts to get hot bad has never smoked or never fully overheated. It doesn't overheat when i'm on the highway or even when i'm sitting at a stoplight or its just parked running in my driveway. could it be a sensor problem?


thanks,
devdog

is the mechanical fan working normal and the electric fan. when was the last time you had youre cooling system worked on.

How is your coolant and have you pressure tested the system and the cap ?

coolant looks good and the right color. Have not pressure tested the system and the cap yet

mechanical fan works fine, Haven't looked to see if the electrical fan is working but i think it is. it just confuses me cause i can be sitting at a stoplight all day and it wont start to overheat but when i'm on the trails the temp will go up.

Nobody sits at a stoplight all day but riding trails can easily be done for hours at very slow speeds. How do u know your mechanical fan "works fine"?......is the fan clutch new? How long have u owned it?......I'm guessing not long since u r a newbie. Do know what cooling system maintenance has been done?

i guess i don't know if my mechanical fan works fine. i know it works but how well? i don't know. fan clutch isn't new. i bought it in June and have been daily driving it. i haven't done anything to the cooling system since i've bought it.

Use the "search" function......u'll quickly find that the XJ cooling system is not an area to take lightly. The radiator is really small for the engine displacement it has to cool so ALL cooling system components must be at 100% efficiency. <$250 in parts replaces the entire cooling system including the radiator. A fan clutch's performance slowly degrades with time/miles as most of the other components do as well.

These help a bit.....

Attachment 319000

But the system as a whole need to be kept in tip top shape.

And what components of the cooling system would that be?

Radiator & cap, water pump, t-stat, fan clutch, hoses, fresh 50/50 mix water/coolant. Those will get u started. If u do it all at once, u only have to drain/refill the cooling system once. If u do it all at once, remove the old rad 1st and install the new rad last. Lots of extra room to work when the rad is out of the way.