hi all,
In need of some advice/opinions, so I bought a cherokee from my parents that my step mom has had for 20 years kt started smoking on the highway about two years ago and then they didn't have the funds to register it so it say for almost 2 years. I bought it and it drove decent for a bit but the front end is a bit sketchy but one night it started reving in idle and smokin like a bastard got a ride home from work next night drove it home and it kept feeling like the throttle was stuck open and overheated u stopped waited 3 hours to start it got closer to home and overheated again but this time had no heat and it turned off itself. replaced thermostat and water pump. water pump didn't look terrible no wear on the fins thermostatl looked bad. next it started steaming a ton cause radiator was leaking so replaced that. and got all the air out the cooling system. Now coolant is bubbling it I saw a tiny bit of white streaking in the oil but not everytime I'd but the dipstick in wipe it take it back out it's always had a decent amount of exhaust but now there is some drips coming out. I'm thinking blown head gasket any other thoughts? also need some recomadations on brands for the gasket set
thanks guys!

 

What year is your XJ? Important to include that in your posts.

Blown head gasket is a possibility. I'd start your diagnosis with a simple compression test on each cylinder. The compression spec for the 4.0 engine is 120-150 psi with no more than a 30 psi variation between cylinders. If you don't have a compression tester, they can often be rented very inexpensively at many parts stores, call around for availability.

 

it's a 2000 thank you very much for the info. I will be calling parts stores right now

 

The 2000 is known for weak heads that are prone to cracking. If it wasn't cracked before, I would suspect it is after badly overheating several times. Google on 0331 cracked heads. What's the oil look like if you look down the fill hole? Often you can see the crack or coolant weeping between #3 and #4 through the filler cap.
https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/00-...erview-118922/