Griff94

The first issue I have is that whenever I put my wipers on while my radio is on (it obviously is always on) the radio sometimes cuts out each time my wipers go up. I'm thinking this is because my alternator is weak and has problems charging my battery. The second issue I have is whenever I go through the car wash or really heavy rain my batt. gauge drops and my engine loses power and sounds like it is going to stall, then when I gently press the accelerator while the gauge is down down about 3 seconds after I started pressing my gas the engine makes a squeaking noise (sounds like belts slipping) and then power is restored, after I pull out of the car wash my power steering is usually either weak or completely dead until I start driving a couple yards. And finally I have some minor issues that aren't that big of a deal but still bother me, the fist one is that my power window lock is either short circuited or blown out, so I can put the windows up or down but nobody else can. And the other small issue that is a huge pain is whenever I have my wipers on, each time they activate and start going up and again when they go down, I can hear a faint clicking noise in my steering column, I don't know if this would have anything to do with the radio but it's annoying

lateralustool89

Well for your window problem. Have u tried using the main switch and the local switches on the other windows at the same time? I occasionally have to do this to get them going.

VTJeep

the windows: master window switch. i recomend the JY cause new they are up to $140... i have this same prob. but am far to lazy to fix it... you know...

the main issue: maybe bad bearings in a pulley causing extra drag. maybe a loose belt that is slipping. maybe a vacuum issue. jeeps are notorious for wiring issues. so maybe there is a loose or faulty wire/wires in there that is shorting out. the battey issue could be a potetial. your local hardware/auto shop should be able to put it on a meter to test it. also hook up a code reader. sometimes there are codes that will store, but not trip the CEL... oh yea, for the sake of it, give the fuses a once over... never hurts being methodical!

Griff94

Just want to add that I know what's wrong with the windows now, It's the child safety lock. It's either shorted out or broken and it's technically stuck on lock. I know a guy that sells XJ's for a living, he could probably get me the part for a cheap price.

Northwoods Snowman

You can fix the window lock switch. I wrote up a technical how-to last night. Right now it's in the submission area, until it gets moved to it's final home.

Griff94

Thanks for all of the helps guys but I just found out today what was wrong. I took my XJ to my uncles to have a once over before inspection and he took a look at my serpentine belt, it had a crap load of cracks on the inner and outer side, so that was replaced and now my belt doesn't slip any more, so now my engine won't lose power (like it did when it gets wet in the car wash) and now my alternator will keep the battery charged. He also looked at my radiator to check the fluids, everything was mud brown, after emptying it out we found the whole inside of the radiator was coated in muddy sh**. Flushed all of the crap out and replaced the coolant and water (this pisses me off because the guy who we bought the jeep off of said the radiator was brand new and that he just replaced it before he sold it). Now my XJ has had an insane increase in torque and HP because of the new belt. It's funny how something as little as a drive belt problem can lead to so many other issues.

Griff94

Thanks, I'll check that out ASAP. If buying a new control panel doesn't work we are just going to bypass the lock

Northwoods Snowman

Is the crap oily? How was the level in the overflow tank? If it was that muddy, you may have oil in it, AKA possibly a cracked head. If you're getting oil in the coolant you will also usually have a slow mysterious disappearance of coolant from the bottle. Have you changed the oil latey? Any water in there? I don't want to scare you, but if the radiator is actually fairly new, you could have other big problems that you don't want to ignore.

Northwoods Snowman

Here's my writeup. Clicky

bmp120

Glad to hear you have some of your problems corrected with the rad and the belt.

For what it is worth.
One solution I have found with "weird" electrical issues is to replace the battery ... even if tested good. Why? The ground seems to come disconnected on the inside of the battery (guessing) and one gets intermittent ground/no ground.

It has happened to me a couple of times now and with two other people I have helped with their Jeeps. It does not seem to matter what type battery it is - Interstate, Costco, Walmart, AZ, ...

This is especially true if your battery is near the end of its life.

Griff94

Battery is like brand new, it was shipped to the store in '09, guessing it was sold the same year it's only 2 years old.

Griff94

don't know if it was oily but it was in my overflow too, as of today I checked my radiator and the liquid was perfectly green (2 year coolant) with a very tiny amount of that brown crap, you can never get it all out. would the radiator be considered part of the drivetrain? I'm kinda hoping that the head is cracked because I have a 6 month powertrain warranty on the Jeep. I'll get it replaced for free.

Edit: I don't know exactly how new the radiator is. The guy who sold it said it practically blew up, there is evidence on the inside of the hood and below the battery mount. It also supposedly has a brand new water pump, my shroud for my fan is missing so that is kind of evidence that something was done there.

Northwoods Snowman

Well, the way to check is to mark the coolant bottle with a sharpie or something and then drive it for a while and see if the level drops. Mark it and check in the morning when it's completely cold. If it starts dropping and you can't find any leaks, that's the tell tale sign the head and/or gasket is gone. Also, check compression and put a mechanical oil pressure tester on the engine to check those. What will typically happen is water will get in the main and rod bearings and will wipe them out because they aren't getting enough lubrication. If you've got good compression in the cylinders, good oil pressure, and a stable coolant level, the engine should be fine. You can usually get the tools you need at Autozone or something for free with their loaner program.

It may just be that they didn't change the coolant for ever. If the head was cracked or the gasket blown long enough to build up that much crap and blow up a radiator, I would expect the oil pressure would be non existant by now, but if there is a problem, it's definately cheaper to fix it earlier rather than later when you have to rebuild the whole engine.

Griff94

No leaks, my coolant level is low because when we flushed it out we didn't completely fill it (air bubbles in the system worked into the overflow tank and sucked in more coolant) and it has been more than a week since we flushed it and the coolant has been at the same exact level (right at the little creased part where it says "Add" we need more coolant so i need to go buy some, I'll probably do that tomorrow after school)

Edit: the oil pressure is at the normal level btw, right around 40is (can't remember the markings but I know it's just barely below the middle) and for the coolant not being changed i wouldn't be surprised, the last person who owned it was a ditsy bubbly girl that went to LCCC (a college in my state) she never took care of the vehicle, you should have seen the inside when we bought it.

Northwoods Snowman

I would still pop a mechanical oil pressure gauge on it, just so you know where it is at if nothing else, don't trust the dash gauge. Mine said just above 40 psi at idle when the engine is hot and I know from my mechanical gauge test that it's actually running about 17 psi. It's supposed to have above 13 psi at idle so I'm good, but I know the dash gauge is WAY off.

Keep an eye on the coolant over the next month or two. Mine was so slow it took about 900-1000 miles to drop from full to add when my gasket was blown.