97grand4.0

Decoded the VIN, there is are digits that denote what year, plant built, engine, etc. Seems the ZJ was continued into 1998 about half the year then the WJ was introduced.
All these years I just went by the title and registration which say 97. Discovered it when ordering lifters.

dave1123

There should be a tag on the driver's door jamb near the latch that has the build date on it. My 2000 WJ has a July 99 build date.

97grand4.0

Shouldn't that be the same date as the one the vin says?

dave1123

The VIN is a national database number to show make, model, and date of manufacture plus individual characteristics like engine size. It has been industry standard to begin building the next year's model in June for delivery in September. If you wanted to special order a car, it had to be ordered before April of that year.

The legal title is what you go by for vehicle year. My 67 Camaro's legal title said convertible even though it was a hardtop with a black vinyl roof and the VIN said so. I looked into changing the title and it would have been a hassle to do it, so I left it as it was. That car was a special order and was built in August of 66.