Rottykorn

Hey all,

I just bought my first Jeep. This initially is a huge step over the 2006 RAV4 that the woman insisted we buy. So, with that said, onto my questions...

First off, I'm not 100% if my rig is the XJ or ZJ. I've tried depicting which version I have, but I'm not 100%.

1996 5.2 Fulltime AWD...

Problem : When first attempting to leave my driveway in the early AM for work, I reverse out just find but when putting it into gear, I'm finding daily that I'm getting more slippage. I believe I have a slight leak below, so I think that's part of the issue. However, once the rig is warmed up a few miles downt he road, the slipping ceases. It could be in any gear that the slipping initially takes place. Also, during hard turns, I'm getting a clunking. Initially I thought it was the front end but now am curious if it could be the VC I've read a little about?

Any help would be great. I go to the snow a lot for Boarding and love playing in the mud, so I like the AWD system and V8, but am fearing that I might have to ride my streetbike until I fix this transmission problem. Any ideas where to start and how to identify my Jeep Cherokee 100%? FYI The rig was rattle canned, so I have no emblems or anything to go off of.

Thanks a million for any help I get......

98_XJ Sport

You've got a ZJ. The XJ only came with a 2.5 I4, a 2.8 V6 and a 4.0 I6. Any V8 is a ZJ. That's about all I can be of help for, not very good with transmissions.

Rottykorn

No problem, it's a start. Thanks for that!

dave1123

I believe the XJ has rear leaf springs and the ZJ has coils.

I also believe you should rebuild the tranny now, before it totally s**** the bed. First gear slippage is not good.

ZJTAY

Grand Cherokees are referred to as ZJs and the boxy Cherokee is the XJ. I believe that clunking up front is pretty common on any Full time AWD vehicle when turning on dry pavement. BTW yours is a Grand Cherokee ZJ because the V8 is not offered in the XJ. As for the slipping, you may wanna take a look at your tranny fluid and see if it's got a burnt smell to it.

Rottykorn

Awesome, Thanks ZJ. If the fluid is burnt like you mentioned, should I just flush it and go from there? I believe I have a small leak as well, so I need to check the fluid level (however that's done) and top off as needed. I picked up some Lucas ATF last night, hopefully that'll help the issue.

Bustedback

You sure it's the transmission slipping and not just the cooling fan moving a lot of air? There was a TSB out for that.

XJriot

I wouldn't flush. I'd do multiple drains/refills. Drain and fill, drive for like 2-3 weeks, drain and refill, drive again then drain, refill and do the trans pan filter. If you have a leak then you could make it a lot worse by doing a flush. Trans flushes put a lot of strain on the system

Rottykorn

Well, I'm definitely no pro but I have a good head mechanically and get the gist of things. If I'm in drive, the motor rev's up but goes no place. Like this morning on my way to work, if I put it into 1st manually, it will drop into gear and then I'm ok to go. Once I go into 2nd, it will slip again. I have to baby the throttle so it doesn't slip out of control, to where I'm not moving. Once I've gone a few miles and the truck warms up, it seems to run just fine, full throttle or otherwise.

Bustedback

Ok, you're transmission has morning sickness. The seals are hard and not sealing when they're cold, but once they warm up and get more pliable they work fine.

Rottykorn

I'd have to be honest and say that makes sense. Think adding Lucas will help soften the seals a bit and maybe buy me some time? I just bought this thing 2 weeks ago, don't want to deal with Tranny problems just yet if I don't have to. I have lots of other things that need attending to on this rig before going that route.

Bustedback

Give it a try, you have nothing to lose at this point.

ZJTAY

Ughh, I feel your pain. I bought a 98 zj about a year ago and the thing worked fine at the dealer lot. Started noticing delayed shifts from 1st to 2nd about 2 weeks later. Checked the fluid it was pretty fried, drove her very carefully for the next month and started getting real bad so I had to pull the tranny. I had a shop do a complete rebuild on it and put a new torque converter in it and a shift kit. They said the culprit for the delayed shifts was a worn out band and mutilated clutch housing. Gotta love buying high mileage used vehicles However yours might not have near as bad of a problem as mine did.

Rottykorn

Ahhh, damn. That's rough. If you don't mind my asking, what did the complete rebuild run you, including shift kit and all? I'd like to do it right, get it taken care of and not have to worry about it. I just need a couple months to save up for it.

Do you like the feel of the shift kit after the rebuild? I imagine it would feel a ton stouter.

ZJTAY

[QUOTE=Rottykorn;2428308]Ahhh, damn. That's rough. If you don't mind my asking, what did the complete rebuild run you, including shift kit and all? I'd like to do it right, get it taken care of and not have to worry about it. I just need a couple months to save up for it.

Do you like the feel of the shift kit after the rebuild? I imagine it would feel a ton stouter.[/QUOTE The rebuild with torque converter, shift kit and the complete job was 1100 bucks. I also bought a harbor freight tranny jack for 150. If you pull the tranny yourself and deliver it to the shop I think it cuts down on the cost quite a bit. They had to replace that messed up direct clutch housing so I found a perfect used one for 80 dollars on ebay. Kinda beats paying 3 something for a new one. That 80 was included into the 1100. I felt a pretty noticeable difference with the shift kit. Should make the clutches last longer because they don't slip near as much with a good firm shift. I also deleted the check valve in the cooler line. I guess it's pretty common for them to get clogged with clutch material so I blew the lines out very good and deleted that valve ( theres a good step by step on dodge forum.com) BTW pulling the trans and reinstalling it is very simple if you take pics before and take your time.