Thanks for the help on the clock spring number. Now I can put together a cross reference list to take to my local yard.


Eric

 

Common? Not at all.

At this point, Cherokees fall almost entirely into two categories: Lifted or ignored

 

There is a third category: "Sold for scrap because of some dumb mechanical problem". I saw a teal-green (one of my favorite colors on an XJ) '96 with an absolutely perfect body in the JY the other day. Complete from front to back, no rust and evidence to suggest it ran recently. Just wanna slap people sometimes.

 

Thanks for the input. I tried putting the car in neutral to start it and there was no change. Also, the reverse lights do come on when the Jeep is put into reverse and I can hear a click when the key is turned to Start... then everything goes dead. I'm thinking that means that the dirty culprit is not the Neutral Safety Switch, but if you (or anyone else) feels differently please let me know. Also, I swapped the relay out for one that I know works and nothing changed. And would a bad relay kill electricity to the entire vehicle (door locks, dome lights, gauges, absolutely everything) with an attempt to start, or would the car simply not start?

 

Have you tried to start it by jumping the solenoid? Could be a bad ignition switch maybe? My 88 that is basically a parts jeep now since its been rolled has this same problem. I have never cared to fix it since I only start it to move it maybe 2 times per year but every time I do start it I just turn the key to the on position and jump the solenoid.

 

If I jump the starter and the Jeep starts, is the problem for sure the ignition switch, or could it still be something else further down the line? Does your 88 go completely dead after a normal start attempt? That's the part that's been stumping me- the Jeep goes completely dead, as if the battery (which is brand new) isn't even in the truck.

 

So on mine if i turn the key like I'm trying to start it all the lights go out and it wont start but after that, if I click the key back one then the lights come back on. If that's what you mean by dead then yes it goes dead. I think it is just something that is worn out in the start position on my ignition, maybe its not making a connection I don't know. As far as jumping the solenoid is concerned, I would think if it starts that way then you've at least narrowed the problem down to in between the the solenoid and the ignition but I'm not 100% sure on that. Maybe someone else can tell us for sure if that's true.

 

I wish it were the case as you describe, but when I try to start it (turn the key to "start") the car goes completely dead as if the battery isn't even there. It doesn't matter what position I restore the key to. The only thing that brings all of the electrical things back to life is waiting several minutes, or removing a battery terminal and reinstalling it. Then everything works again (gauges, lights, etc...) until I turn the key again to "start."

 

So what happens if you turn the key directly to start. Does everything stay dead. Does it click etc

 

As if I were just starting the car? Like a normal day? It dies as described before. I do hear a click every time it does it, but I haven't the foggiest idea whats causing it to die so suddenly and so completely.

 

If you have a multimeter, try starting the jeep and see what the battery reads, should be 12 plus volts. I know you said it is new but it sounds like it is the culprit to me.

 

I just had my wife try to tart the jeep while I watched a multimeter on the battery. It went from a healthy 12.9 volts down to 3 when she turned the key to START, then back to 12.8 when she released the key. But the gauges and lights all went dead after the start attempt and stay dead for several minutes despite what position the key is in. Thoughts?

 

Is that a symptom of a bad battery cell? I'm not sure, but it's worth looking into

 

Welp, I feel stupid. I thought I had checked and double checked every connection under the hood, but after trying to jump the starter with no success, I decided to try another round of cleaning and tightening connections. After cleaning each connection I would try starting the engine to see if by some chance I had found the culprit. It was the positive battery terminal. I took it completely apart and hit the wire crimping end with some sand paper. There was a little bit on corrosion left that I didn't get the first time I did this but not enough that I would think could cause such an issue. The copper to the battery cables were still shiny. I really didn't think this could have been the problem. Not only was there barely any sign of exposure on the terminals (I've run my jeep with much worse battery corrosion in the past and been fine) but there was also no voltage drop when I compared the readings before and after the battery terminal (my wife's ZJ had a corroded terminal that yielded a drop of 5 volts a couple months ago). Hopefully this was it. Thank you all for your help. I'll let you know if anything changes in the days to come.

 

I have a 2000 4.0 L XJ with auto transmission. A few years ago I had the air conditioning condenser behind the dash and the compressor replaced and the system recharged. It ran cold air like a champ. This summer it is not as cool and I can hear a gurgling sound when I turn it on. Sometimes it is colder than others but it never blows hot air.

Do I need just a recharge or does this indicate something else?