91 xj 4.0ho automatic 4x4 237k miles
I bought an xj last week and on the test drive everything was good, I drove it about 30 minutes including a brief off road excursion to test 4x4. Within a couple days there was a clunk that sounded like it was coming from the rear
When backing up , it was worse if I backed up faster than idle. Today it started making a clunk , grind, rattle that sounds like it's coming from either the transmission or transfer case. While driving and it would stop if I put it in neutral, I had some elderly people with me and it was 95°+ today and I don't have air so I decided to try to limp it home and it started slipping to the point it wouldn't move so I stopped; after cooling off for about a half hour I started it back up and it was making the same noise but driving bit when I gave it a little more throttle it smoothed out and was quiet for a few miles with intermittent clunk,grind,rattle and it started slipping badly again so I stopped and cooled it off again but only got about half a mile before it was slipping too badly again and after another cool down period it took me maybe a quarter mile. I did try switching my transfer case to different positions and it seemed to be best in 4 low. The transmission fluid is full if not overfilled and it looks brand new.


I was told that torque converter bolts backing out is a common issue,does it sound like the culprit and if not what do you beleive it is?

Thank you for bearing with me and my poor grammar and sentence structuring and I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

 

Transfer case ? if you have the np231, it was not meant to be in 4wd on dry pavement.

Check the transfers case oil, its separate from tranny oil. Although it sounds like metal damage was done that won't help anyways. I would jack it up/block it and rotate rear wheels and see where the noise is exactly. If you've dropped a tranny before, replacement is not that difficult to put a used case back on. Plenty of old threads here for help on case replacement.

 

Im not sure which case I have but it has 2wd 4 part time 4 full-time neutral 4 low and it's just a lever they pulls back from 2wd to 4 full time then to the right and back for neutral and 4 low.

 

I also only drove in 4wd about half a mile and that was on the shoulder at about 10mph.

 

That isnt' the torque converter bolts, at least not causing slipping.
How hot is the trans getting? Do you have a pinched cooler line?

 

I have no way to know how hot its getting, I'll check for a pinched line. I tried it again last night around my yard and it was fine no noise no slipping so I think it's a heat related issue but I know very little about the operation of automatic transmissions so I really don't know if it's time for a new transmission or if there is a fix.

 

Since you got it. has you or anyone else checked all the lube levels and condition?
Greased u-joints?
Performed a visual inspection of motor mounts and trans mount?

Or, have you just driven it with reckless abandon hoping for the best?

 

Only lube level I checked was differentials and they were full, the oil was black so that's on my to do list but there was no metal in the oil on my finger. Haven't checked transfer case yet. Haven't greased u joints but I did check them for play. I haven't checked motor mounts because they seem good but I did check trans mount and it looks fine.

 

"Seems good" doesn't count.........

 

It doesn't act like any bad motor mount I've ever experienced.

 

Well then, don't look. Keep spending time typing on the forum. That will surely help........

The only way you're gonna find what you're looking for is to GO LOOK!

Around the Jeep that is. In these parts, we call it "noggin pokin".

That's where you use your God given senses to inspect YOUR Jeep for problems. We can only provide you with guidance as to where to poke your noggin.

There's no Silver Bullet cure you're gonna find from a keyboard, mouse and monitor.


Chipmaker says:

“Way more problems get solved by using your five senses under your hood rather than your ten fingers on a keyboard”

 

Cruiser, you have no idea how many people I know who just put gas in it and drive it, never even opening the hood! My WIFE was one of them! That's the reason the 249 got invented.

 

Are they all on CF???? Sheeeeeesh!!

At one point, I was gonna do a write-up for "new" XJ owners outlining things that need to be checked.

I was thinking of using our old Used Car Inspection from the dealership as a guide.

 

I checked my motor mounts and the passenger side has a small crack starting to develop but it's nothing urgent and rocking the motor side to as hard as I can didn't open it any. I was going to check the transfer case oil but I don't have a wrench big enough so that will have to wait til payday to buy a big enough wrench. While I was under it I noticed lots of fresh oil on the cross member so I assume that my problem is there. I also noticed that my trans mount is completely shot , the other day I only peeked at it and apparently what I looked at was a trapezoid shaped metal tab on the back of the mount but as I was feeling around above the cross member for the source I felt a soft set jello so now my mount is on my to do list as well .I'll probably go buy a tcase at the junkyar, what should I look for in a used one?

 

Fix the mount first!!!!