4BangerDanger

Okay, so I am new to Jeeps. I purchased my very first Jeep, a stock '93 XJ 2.5L 5-speed with 182k this past September. First, let me say that I absolutely love driving it (I actually learned to drive a manual tranny just for this Jeep).

However, I have had numerous problems with it in the ~7 months that I've owned it. It started in November, when it died on me while driving down a steep hill towards a busy intersection (THAT was fun, let me tell you). After a couple weeks of scratching my head trying to diagnose the issue, it turned out to be broken valve springs, of all things.

About two weeks after I fixed that, the alternator bracket broke in half, throwing a belt. I have no welding experience, so I had to take it to a machining shop to get it welded back together.

A few months later, it dies on me again while I'm out and about with the wife. I wrote about that issue here: https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/no-...e-help-224397/ It ended up being that the starter went out.

I got the new starter properly installed this past Monday and got it running again. And then today, while out doing some rather easy "wheeling" on minimal maintenance dirt roads, it dies on me again. I suspect it is a grounding issue, as the battery is good but there is no power to anything in the Jeep. No dome light, no dash lights, nothing. It does not turnover, crank, or click. It does nothing.

It didn't even make it a week this time! Barely five days!

I realize that in owning a high mileage vehicle that is 20+ years old, things are going to break. I fully expected that, but this seems ridiculous.

I am seriously considering selling this Jeep to be rid of the headaches. I love driving it (when it runs) but I am not sure it is worth the stress.

What do y'all think? Am I overreacting?

Martlor13

Sell it and get a 4.0

extrashaky

It's not all that ridiculous. As you say, it's a 20+ year old vehicle. Things are going to break. The majority of vehicles built that year have long since gone to the crusher. It's doing better than those.

There's no shame in deciding the enjoyment of the vehicle is overshadowed by the work involved. If it's causing you to not enjoy it, sell it to someone else who is more of a tinkerer and get yourself something newer that you'll be able to enjoy more.

I bought my XJ brand new in 2000. As it has gotten older, it's had some issues. When it was my only transportation, I hated working on it and would get really stressed when something went wrong. Finally I bought another car to be my daily driver, and now, since there's no pressure, I find I like working on the Jeep after all. In fact, I liked it so much, I bought a '71 Gladiator to take up even more of the spare time I don't have. But even when I don't have time for the Jeeps, they don't stress me, because I'm not relying on either of them to get me to work.

But for years I was in the situation where I could only have one vehicle, and rest assured the focus was then on reliability rather than whether it was cool or fun to drive.

4BangerDanger

As tempting as that is, I'm afraid I would not be improving my situation much. The 4.0's are old too so my fear is that I'd be starting over in all of the maintenance. I'm one of those guys that drive the 4 banger just to be different, and although it won't win any drag races it has enough torque for my needs.

I enjoy tinkering to an extent. It feels that this is beyond casual tinkering. My XJ is not always my DD, my wife's '97 Camry is basically bulletproof and my Dodge Ram has been reliable. The XJ is my DD in the winter as my truck is 2WD. Plus I've found the XJ is better suited for hunting/camping than my truck and since owning it I've discovered this forum and the XJ culture, which I enjoy. I've discovered that I like offroading and I've even begun making plans for mods I want to do.

Reliability is an issue for me as because of where I live. In this part of the country, to do anything fun in the Jeep you have to drive at least an hour, usually (maybe WyoCherokee and CherokeeHoonigan will jump in and attest to this - or call me nuts lol). I'm concerned that I will be out 2 to 4 hours from home and the Jeep will die on me.

Martlor13

I would say the 4.0 is more reliable. And if your thinking of modding, it is a better platform as well

CR-Snow

You're probably right as far as the grounding issue. Take a look at a member called Cruiser54. He has a big check list for the older Jeeps like yours. I say if you like it, stick with it. I initially spent most of the time/money in my jeep on maintenance too. It runs well now and I can focus more on fun stuff. Good luck

4BangerDanger

Thanks for the advice. I followed Cruiser's tips on refreshing the grounds, but unfortunately it made no difference.

Yeah, you're probably right. I had an idea of trying to stroke it like Outlaw Star did to his MJ. We'll see...

EDIT: I got my XJ running again. It was a multitude of things... There was a grounding issue. I did not do a good enough job refreshing the grounds the first time. Also, I discovered that the throttle body gasket had disintegrated and was causing a rough idle issue. While I was replacing the gasket I went ahead and checked the idle control valve and that was filthy, so I cleaned that up too. The little 2.5l is purring again!