Sell the Solstice. For a couple extra bucks, I'd get rid of that Fiero, too. I've heard so much bad about the Fiero.

 

Hey guys, I was going to post a new message, but I figured I would just continue in this thread. I've been scanning eBay and Craigslist for the past week or two now, and I'm kind of getting an idea of what I'm looking for. I may get something temporary so I can get out from under my Solstice, and then find a good low mileage car when it comes up. I'm looking for something under 100k miles, but I kind of wanted to get a little information on the two motors... the 2.5 and the 4.0 L6. There's a 2.5 in my area that's got 100k, and would be great just to beat around in until the right one comes up. It would give me something to drive around for the time being and get a feel for what the Jeep is all about. My grandfather had a late 80s one back in the day with the 4 liter, and it would break the tires loose if you nailed it... EVEN if you were already doing about 25 miles an hour...



Anyway, that brings me to my question. How durable are these motors? At least in terms of the engine / transmission. The 2.5 and the 4.0, and the automatic and the manual... other than wear stuff like coolant, waterpumps, alternators, etc... is there anything inherently bad about these cars? What is considered to be decent mileage for one of these? I see a lot of them with 100k miles on them. I know that for some engines, 100k is really nothing... like say... on a Volvo 240. I know that like, on an 80s small block chevy, 100k miles is pretty much all you're going to get before the rings start to really take some wear.

So, I guess what I'm asking is... if I get a 80-100k mile Jeep Cherokee with either a 2.5 or a 4.0, and an automatic or a manual, can I expect the engine and transmission to last at least a year? Assuming of course that the engine was regularly maintained?

Are there any inherent issues with either of these motors? I know in my 97 Grand Am which had the LD9 2.4 Twin Cam, the water pump was driven by the timing chain. They seemed to fail around 70k miles, and since it was front wheel drive, you literally had to remove the entire passenger side wheel / control arms, suspend the engine, remove one of the mounts, pull the timing cover and swap it out that way.

Is there anything like THAT on any of these cars that is a trouble area???



Thanks!!!


Nah, there's nothing really inherently wrong with my Fiero. It's just the first year that had the problems. It's not costing me anything, and it was my first car, so I'll never sell it. It's been with me for 14 years... and it's not going anywhere! Besides, I know the car like the back of my hand. I've rebuilt the engine twice, and have enough parts to build another one if I need to... hahah...

 

I do not know much about the 2.5, but the 4.0 is a great motor. Strong a heck and 100K is just broken in as long as you maintain it they can go for a couple hundred thousand miles. My XJ has over 200K, though the previous owner replaced the engine (dont know why, probably wasnt maintained correctly) at about 170K miles and stock manual is still chugging along. The 4.0s do have a few quirks. The exhaust manifolds crack but nothing a header won't fix.

Both the AW4 auto and AX15 manual are known to be darn good transmissions. They werent the only ones available though but are the most common. For rear axle if you plan on modifying it later on you might look for one with a Chrysler 8.25" rear end. It has a flat spot on the bottom of the differential. Search around, pictures have been posted numerous times. Also the later the XJ the better the axles will be with more splines and larger u-joints, however the 2000-2001s have a low pinion front end, but its not a deal breaker.
The 2000 (maybe 99)-2001 4.0s do have a problem with cracking the head... but as long as you dont overheat it you should be ok.
Also, dont be suprised when you drive one and the engine temp gauges goes almost to 210*... that normal.

 

Unless it is CHEAP and the engine is sound, I suggest not wasting your time with a 2.5L. You would probably want to swap in a 4.0L anyways. So jsut start with a 4.0 and go from there. As for correction 91-95 were 4.0L HO OBD I, and 96+ is OBD II, 2000-1 are COP vs having a distributor and also have LP30 as stated above..

 

Agreed, ditch the solstice and get the XJ. I got mine on EBAY back in December, 2001 with only 67,000 mi, I love it.

 

Save your money and buy a Trek. At least it wont leak everywhere. hehe. Good luck with your XJ search