I'm looking at a 96 jeep.. its got a 5.2l v8... the guy that has it evidently blew the engine that was in it... he got another engine out of a jeep that had a rollover... he said the engine ran good and heard it before he got it.. the guy payed some other guy to put the engine back in it.. i'm guessing he's not mechanically inclined at all... but he thinks it is out of time (plug wires not where they are supposed to be).. I went and looked at it yesterday and its not got the factory air intake bullcrap, its got the aftermarket cold air... did not have it on though.. he started it up and it idle'd pretty rough and sounded like there was vacuum leaks pretty bad... then he tried to give it gas and it died and he only tried once to start it back up and it didn't start..

do you know where on the engine there are vacuum hoses? and i looked up the firing order and i got 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2.. is that right.. and on the drivers side it goes 1-3-5-7 and pass. side is 2-4-6-8 right?

also do you know what else could be the problem that i could check without taking anything apart.. i thought about checking to see if you can hear the fuel pump kick on when you turn the key forward...

the jeep is pretty descent looking... its a light grey/silver color... has a 4 1/2 inch lift (shocks/springs etc. look pretty new)... its has 31x10.5 tires with about 50% tread left... the driver door drops when opened and don't shut very easy... how much would that cost to fix?

any info. would be greatly appreciated!!!!

thanks a lot!!!

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And Welcome to CF!
Dan

thanks a ton!

How much does he want for it?

he has 2 grand on it... but i'm thinking about tryin to talk him down..

That's a good price for a nice rust-free ZJ if it doesn't have any major issues. IMO
Can you post up any pics of it?
Dan

thats the only picture i have.. but it is rust free all the way around.. the guy that changed the engine pulled the headlights and grill out and broke some stuff though...

the guy that has it seems to be straight forward on it... i even asked him if i could go there sat. and try to time it right and he still trade and he said that was fine... so i'll give it a shot and see what happens..

That looks pretty good. I wouldn't fix the timing though, regardless of what he says, before I take possession. He's apt to hear it running smooth and back out or raise the price. JMO
Dan

idk.. we'll see when we get there i guess...

btw, do you have any pics of your omni's? I have an 89 lol!!

I'm in Mich. on an extended visit using my brothers lap-top and can't access my files from here. The GLHT's are in storage in Tenn.
Dan

Just a thought, is it showing the check engine light? If it is check what the codes are. Good looking ZJ! I wouldn't fix it in his possesion like stated earlier. If it gets fixed and runs he may want more money for it IMO.

I didn't even think to check and see if it was on or not.. god i'm so used to carbureted engines lol.. and if he decided he wanted more for it i could always just beat his a$$ lol...

well maybe you could help me with a problem on my omni.. i was driving it last year and the left front tire started popping when i would turn it.. then it just stopped going..if you put it in drive it sounded like it was in neutral.. i was told it was the cv joint?? could that be it?? you can push it in park too...

Sounds like you've got a broken CV joint on the axle shaft. Look under the front end and check. I'm sure you know the Omni axles go between the front wheels and the transmission. They run transversely, it's front drive only. If the CV is the problem, just buy the complete axle assy. from the auto parts store. They're cheap and a lot easier than replacing the CV's for a novice. Get you a FSM or a Haynes manual for the Omni as it'll have the needed repair and torque specs you're going to need.
Axles are less than $70.00, but a shop will charge you enough for you to buy a new set of tools. Probably around $250.00 last I heard.
Dan