My 1997 Cherokee with the straight 6 4.0 litre engine needs it's starter replaced. I have a starter off my old 98 Cherokee with the same engine, as I had stripped it for parts when needed. My 98 was an automatic and my 97 is a standard. Are these starters compatible or will i have to purchase a new one. Any information would be great thank you.

 

They should be the same. You can visually verify them. Try going to O'Reilly's web-site and searching for a starter on both vehicles. Is it the same part number?

 

^^^ agree. When in doubt I jump on Autozone and compare part numbers (whichever retailer's site you prefer basically). If the part numbers match you know you're good to go - if not, I'd strongly consider NOT using it even if it appears to be visually identical and will bolt up unless/until I knew exactly what the difference was.

 

For the record - Autozone lists the 98 and 97 starter as the same part number with no distinction between manual and auto - so it looks like you're good to go.

 

Let us know whether this helped you or not.