ammonllewis1

Ok guys, so I know I can't be the only person with this problem. My motor mounts are shot, because of this can it make the oil filter adapter go bad and the rear main seal, as well as crack the exhaust manifold. Right now I have these problems with my 99 jeep xj, not very surprising though since there common problems and my jeep has 267,000 miles on it. My question is what should I do first? What makes sense to me is to get help with the starter, which also is going bad because of oil leaking into it from the oil filter adapter. My jeep still runs but before it won't start I could really use some guidance here. I've done some work on it already like replacing the valve cover gasket, my sunroof, all the windows( that was tons of fun:/)and an alternator bracket. So I can figure most things out with directions. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

EZEARL

Shot motor mounts (probably need to replace your transmission mount also) won't cause the oil leaks but can cause exhaust problems. By the way your adapter leak is one of the main reasons for misdiagnosing a RMS leak.

In a way your lucky in that you can do all the repairs at the same time. If you need to replace mounts (engine and trans) it will give you more room when you raise the engine to remove the oil filter adapter which doesn't go bad but the 3 o-rings in it do. I'm not sure if removing the starter is easier with engine on the mounts or raised but again since your replacing mounts you'll have the option to choose when.

ammonllewis1

Ok, makes sense to me, I've been reading a lot about the RMS leak and so to see what was going on I started up the jeep crawled under her and saw oil dripping right where the transmission meets up with the motor. I hope that I'm wrong. Before I replace it I'll replace the O rings on the oil filter adaptor. Bit for today can you help me with the starter? It's sounding terrible, it looks like it's still new. Is there anyway I can take it apart and clean it?

4OHI6

Start at the top and make sure no leaks from valve cover before oil filter adapter and RMS. Best to degrease and clean it all up and see where it gets wet or to make sure stays dry after replace these.

It is possible to get all the leaks on an XJ resolved.

EZEARL

The thing about your starter is that it could have as many as 267K miles on it even though it looks new and,although the oil isn't helping things,it could be worn out. I read your other thread where you said it was making a noise which could mean the starter gear isn't fully engaging the flywheel. Starter components get weak. You could spend the time cleaning it up but there's the chance it won't solve the problem. Tell you what you could do is pull the starter and take it to your local parts store who should test it for free.

ammonllewis1

Alright so just an update, I just spent the last few hours at napa auto parts. I showed them what was happening. One thing I missed was that there was a bolt missing connecting the bell housing to the motor right where the starter is. So after a while of finding the right bolt and using a jack so that the bell housing and the motor would align I got the skrew in place. After that the problem seemed to go away. Then I took it to the car wash and got the starter and the surrounding area all cleaned up. It still looks as though the O rings are still leaking as well as the RMS. Now another issue that I found is that once I start her up and she's idling there is a noise coming from the bell housing. But once I put it into gear it stops. It's a really loud racket when it's in neutral. This is probably a stupid question but is there any easy way to look inside the bell housing to see if there is a loose skrew in side? Thanks again for all of your help!

tracyk

You can pull off the inspection plate. I was confused thinking it went behind the starter because I had so much blow back, but the plate actually runs right up to it (my 99 has a maddening noise there too so I pulled off the inspection plate last weekend to check for loose crap and check the flex plate). Anyway, there were two 13mm and two 18mm bolts to get out. One of the bolts won't come all the way out b/c of the exhaust pipe in the way, but the plate is aluminum and you can bend up the corner in order to wiggle the plate out. For whatever reason, my bolts were horrible to get out - box end ratchets ended up working. Anyway, cleaned inspection plate off, checked everything out best I could, but still have rattling Damn. Good luck

94JeepCherokeeMan

The first thing I would do is pull the starter apart, clean it up, and re-grease it. They're easy to do. If there's a broken component, go nab a starter from the junkyard in decent shape and decide which is going to be better. Put all the freshest parts in one starter.

The very NEXT thing I'd do, maybe even before pulling the starter, is get the motor mounts replaced. Bad motor mounts can cause nasty destruction of parts when the whole engine shifts toward the front of the engine bay. Get that sucker tied to the frame. You need a solid foundation for your engine.

While I had the motor mounts out, I'd get that oil filter adapter housing off and replace the o-rings. They're really cheap at Autozone. You can find the pack of o-rings under the "hard-to-find" section of assorted parts. I paid about $5 for a pack of o-rings and gaskets.

If you can't afford new motor mounts or you don't want to shell out the money for poly mounts, let me know. I'll be pulling my old ones out here real soon on my '97 because I've got some polys waiting at the house. I might even do them today. If they're in good shape, I'll send them to you. All you'd have to do is cover the cost of shipping.

EDIT: I'll even have a transmission mount if you need that, too.

ammonllewis1

So I took off the plate that covers the bell housing I couldn't find anything. The next thing that I found is that the transmission oil might be low so I'm going to check that as well. The ticking or noise might be coming from the oil pump. I'll let you know what I find. Now it looks like I really messed things up, it won't go into gear, I have to wait a few seconds and
I rev the engine. But what's worse is that I stop at a stoplight or anywhere and it comes out of gear again. So now I feel kinda hosed :/


Thanks 94 jeep cherokee man, for the info about what to do and for the offer of the motor and transmission mounts. I should probably figure this transmission issue out first. But if all goes wells I would defiantly be interested in getting those mounts from you! You guys are awesome thanks again for all your help!

SteveMongr

Having to rev the engine to get tranny to move jeep, sounds like low fluid.
Disengaging from drive gear is a different issue, I may have misunderstood what you are describing.

Motor mounts are $15.88 each with free shipping at 4wd.com or 4wheelparts.com.

Have you checked the exhaust where it passes over crossmember and transmission mount?
Rattle while driving or while parked?

ammonllewis1

Ok so getting more info about transmissions, I checked my fluids and found them dry as a bone:/ ( kinda tricky since if you check it cold it tells you that it's full, but then run it for a few and wala it's dry)I connected two and two together and the RMS leak I told you about. Well now I'm pretty sure it's transmission oil not engine oil. Now the thing is leaking like crazy. So first thing Im going to do is get some trans oil and see if that helps with the transmission shifting. Any suggestions on what's going on here?

SteveMongr

Wick some fluid onto a paper towel. The fluid will shows its true color. Red/brown = tranny fluid.
If you are still not sure, then sniff it and compare to fresh fluid. Tranny fluid is distinct (and harmful to humans).
Could be leaking from a cooler line, this is common.

SteveMongr

Dexron Mercon III only! For the AW4 automatic.

ammonllewis1

Thanks SteveMongr, for your advice I will defiantly do that. As far as the noise is considered. It now happens whenever it is in neutral or sometimes when I take off the gas it makes the rattle.

EZEARL

That would be a good time for the exhaust system to rattle.