ivantheigor

How much is a good price for an 00 xj witha blown gasket?
Guy wasnt an idiot, he caught it early, seems like no oil in the coolant and vice versa. ... Im planning on fixing it with my dad, but if it ends up we fail, ill probably just part it out and try and break even... So price estimate so I dont get stiffed?

KennyG

Really hard to say, I bought mine (2000 Cherokee Sport 4.0 auto, 2wd) with a blown head gasket for $500. But it also was due for tires, and the a/c compressor was bad and the owner didn't want to spend the money for the head gasket repair knowing that it still needed alot of other work. I considered it a pretty good deal, since I've been driving it now for three years and almost 50k miles.

SlackJaw

what's the mileage, condition, options, etc... on the jeep?

evilxj85

might be more then just a gasket

Dakota5605

Might be more than a gasket, the 00 XJ had the 0331 head that tends to crack? I wouldn't go over $700 for it

tjwalker

This guy has it right.

The 00-01 has the "infamous" 0331 head, which has a known casting defect between cylinders 3-4, which make it prone to cracking. And when they crack, that mixes coolant with oil, which starts to toast engine bearings FAST. And many times, you can't see evidence of coolant in the oil unless you perform an oil analysis or if you perform a block test (sniff the coolant for the presence of hydrocarbons).

How did they CONFIRM that this is JUST the head gasket? The only way that you could do this is to perform a compression test. Low readings on two adjacent cylinders and you may have a blown head gasket.

But cracked heads are far, far more common on the 00-01 than a blown gasket.

When you bid on this vehicle, assume the worst. And that means a NEW engine.

Failing to do this may result in you wishing you had passed on this one...............

Use the "0331 defense" for your low bid!

BEATNGU

Just for reference i just bought a 99 xj for $300.00 with blown head gasket and leaky valve cover , busted side window , broken rear door handle , stuck rear hatch , broken passenger side window switches , stuck on defrost , broken console latch , cut wires under dash , needs tires , needs brakes and besides the previously stated problems a major tune-up !!!
But man this thing is super clean !!! Everything is fixed except for tires brakes window switches and motor gaskets and tune-up.....!!!

ivantheigor

So I called the guy, and it turns out, his listing is wrong. Its a 99 sport 2door, 213k on motor, with only a broken hatch (and the gasket) and hes only asking $650 (firm). So ultimately I think im going to buy it.

As I said before, worst case, I cant fix it and end up parting it out, keeping what I want, and try and break even.

jeff2285

there is no bad head its just a myth........ i asked about 4 different long time chrysler techs(one has been for 20 years) who could name every cherokee TSB and recall from memory and they said there is no such problem and havent run across a single one with a cracked head. maybe its a problem in the states somewhere....not here

00Pajeepcherokee

WRONG.

I have a 2000 an my head cracked. It is no myth. There is a reason why jy's can't keep 00-01 motors and its cuz the heads crack.
Do some real research on this subject before saying something for the truth. I know because I've experienced it.

ivantheigor

I currently own a '00 xj as my daily driver... really hope my head doesnt crack.
Another reason to buy the 99 i guess.

whatisfreedumb

i just replaced a 0331 on my 00 xj and take a gander where it was cracked...
thats no myth theres write ups all over the internet. its common after 60,000 jeep had a 50000 5 year warranty any surely the only people taking it to the dealer to get it replaced were people with 1500 dollars or more. most owners prolly dont have that money laying around. therefore they did it their self for 700 dollars or less.

tjwalker

0331 head problem a myth? HARDLY.

The technicians you talked to must have amnesia or haven't worked on any 00-01 4.0 engines.

The only reason there is not a TSB is because Chrysler/Jeep (sadly) made a calculated decision not to address it or take ownership of it!

It is a very common problem on the 00-01. Will all of these heads crack? Absolutely not. But this forum and any other XJ forum is littered with threads of people who have had their 0331 crack.

An "overheat" of the engine is a surefire recipe for a cracked 0331, so ensuring that all cooling system components are up to snuff is critical here...

As well as watching the coolant reservoir bottle, as unexplained coolant loss is the #1 symptom of a cracked 0331 head.

Search around. Read the below thread if you want more proof.

http://www.jeepsunlimited.com/forums...d.php?t=391831

The 0331 has a confirmed casting defect between cylinders 3-4.

Jeep finally got around to fixing this with a beefier head built by a Brazilian foundry (TUPY) for 03 and newer 0331 heads for the Grand/Wrangler.

98 JeepJeep

If you Fix it you may want to consider a Re-manufactured head...Or at the VERY LEAST have the 0331 Magnafluxed.

I did a HG on my 98 (0680) because it was leaking oil out on the side of the block. I dropped my head off at the machine shop for a rebuild. Had them Mag it first and yup.....Cracked in 2 Cylinders on the Exhaust side...(Always had a miss i couldn't get rid of) No fluid mix.

I went to the JY and nabbed a (7120) And had it Rebuild.

For 600 i would take the jeep in a heart beat.

nvcasper

Looking at a 99 jeep grand cherakee limited 4x4 200k miles with blown head gasket.....do u think it's worth 1200