candymancan

For my first car my mom is going to help me buy one. Im basicly working on minimum wage atm making around 900-1200 a month. I cant save a single penny because I have to pay for grocery's and other things. I really like her 98 Grand cherokee i like the way it drives its really easy to drive the car, i love how it handels in the winter. This last winter we had 3 feet of snow twice and the car drove in it like a champ. I've been doing alot of work on the Jeep learning the engine, and other parts. Changed the sparkplugs, distributor cap and rotar, the oil, the transmission output sensor (which she neglected to fix for 10 years), the air filter stuff like that.

I actually enjoy working on the car, now I plan to get a used 97-98 preferably dont really want a 93-95, I wish i could find a Jeep that has the same 2WD-4WD options as hers, but all im seeing on craigslist seem to be locked in 4WD.

I want to get the V8 because it sounds better, and If i ever get into modifications or something i thinka V8 would be better. I saw alot of youtubes video's of the 5.9 and 5.2 actually drag racing and they kicked the crap out of all the other cars. The V8 with a modified exhast sounds like a beast too. However i also like the inline 6 because of it longevity and reliability that i am reading from online. Gas mileage also plays another parts as im not rich i cant afford alot of Gas.

Whats the gas mileage diff between the 5.2 V8 and the 4.0 Inline 6 ? According to the electronic thing in the Jeep she gets 17MPG, altho from the math on the fuel gauge when it gets low i concluded its actually around 13Mpg with the a/c being used on and off. My mom said the V8 gets terrible gas mileage and her friend sold his along time ago because of that. So eh i dunno.

What should I get ? Also when im looking at a Jeep what should i look for to see if it has mechanical problems like with the transmission and engine so i dont waste my money. How many miles is too many ? How much money is too much ? I noticed most Jeeps for sale in my area are 96's with like 200k+ miles and seem to go for around $2500 which seems too much to me.

ol"blue

My '97 w/the 5.2L V8 gets about 13-14 MPG in the city, 17-19 MPG on a trip.
Watch for electrical issues, transfer case issues (noticed by the front wheels chirping/hopping when cornering at low speeds), rust of course, and the V8's with the D44a rear axle sometimes have rear axle rearing problems (noticed by a howling noise).
Mine has 187,000+ miles on it and I love it.

Quazzimoto

I'd go with the I6, simply because more power usually = more issues i.e tranny and the rest of the driveline. just my .02

Bustedback

Go for the I6, easier to work on and not as thirsty. The 5.2 is a great engine, but I like the 4.0 better.

trucker

I like my 6. It have 225,000 on it and still have a "punch". Looking at some other jeeps with v8 does look like the 6 have more torque power at low rpm.
I pull F250 from road to driveway. It was a uphill and did not even touch the gas pedal. It pulled in idle speed. It is easy to work on(if needed).

BigRed93xj

Yea I've had both. Right now I have a Grand with the 5.2 and Im still re-learning everything. I had a xj before with the 4.0L and I knew every square inch of that engine. 4.0L are easy to work on and there is TONS of aftermarket support for them. For example headers, for my 4.0 headers werent too expensive around $200-$300. On my 5.2 only one company makes a set of headers and there $600..... I cant say enough good things about the 4.0L. However I do admit that a v8 sounds a little beefier, just my 2 cents.

Gizmo

Purely from a financial perspective, considering your limited means at this time, I would go for the IL6. Fuel mileage will be better as will maintenance costs.

candymancan

I guess I will get the Inline 6, how much is too much for a 96-98 ? I dont really want a 95 and under because the inside of the Jeep looks way to "outdated" 96 and up have the newer dashboard stearing wheel look to them. Preferably a 98 IMO

On craigslist they have all kinds of prices ranging from fixer upper $900 most with problems i dont want to mess with like bad axels and transmissions. The only ones that seem good well at least from what they say are around $2-3k, most of them i noticed in Virginia, Maryland, D.C are all Limited or V8's... I like leather but if i use this as a work truck.. leather will scratch

country_boy454

As an owner of both a 4.0 ZJ and a 5.2 ZJ I would never go back to buying a 4.0 ZJ again. You have a lot more power to weight with the 5.2. Honestly, there isn't much difference in mileage either. With 210k on the 4.0 she averages 18-22 mpg. My 5.2 averages 19-23. Not much city driving here. Closest and biggest city is only ~9k ppl.

Maintenance costs, somethings are more spendy cause it is the I6 were as some are more cause its the V8. As for headers for the V8, there are a few companies, not just one. Aftermarket items like lifts and such cost the same.

I may be the only person on here to tell you to get the V8 over the I6 but so be it. Which ever you do get you will love it! Its a ZJ!

snowboard3r411

screw the 4.0 and 5.2 go for the 5.9 i freaking love mine it has some ***** and has every option you can get its just a bad *** jeep

bluedragon436

Well if nothing else as far as the V8 or I6... If you want the V8 get a V8 you can get a 5.2 and upgrade to a larger 5.9 down the road from just about any JY... seeing as how that engine was in all kinds of dif. vehicles... I have actually been looking for a V8 ZJ myself with the Select Trac so that I am not always in 4WD.... but the more I drive my XJ and the more I collect towards a complete 4.5" lift kit for it, the less I want to let it go.... I am def. not happy with the gas mileage I get from my I6, and that is after a full tune up, compression check, full flush of everything and cleaning of injectors and other parts... and I figure if I am going to be dumping money into filling the tank, might as well get the extra power from it with the V8... but hey... that is just my thinking..

BigRed93xj

the 5.9 is way to big, as in powerful, for our jeeps. I was just in the local mechanic/ Jeep builder place and he was currently in the process of working on a zj with the 5.9. He said there is cracks and broken brackets everywhere on the frame. The 5.9 has too much torque that the frame cant handle. I guess If you drive it carefully it will be fine, but if plan on wheeling it hard be carefull. That 5.9 is going to do some damage to your frame....

bluedragon436

I would still have fun until it cracked... then again with it being a Unibody... I would want to add some plating here and there to the frame anyways if I am going to wheel it too hard... that is one of the plans I currently have for my XJ if I keep it!!

country_boy454

The 5.9 has 20hp more and 45ft/lbs more torque than a 5.2. The owner of this 5.9 had to beat this thing. I know people running supercharged 360 and 408s in the ZJs and no cracks or broken brackets. As of right now my 5.2 is putting out the same power numbers as the 5.9 maybe even more.

donnie

I have had 2 of the 4.0 cherokee and this time I got the Grand with the 5.2. They get the same mileage. I enjoy my 5.2. I have gotten 18mpg city out of mine by being very careful with it. Now working on the engine is a pain unlike the 4.0 which is really easy to work on and they last a long time. I just had to try something different.