hopefully this is the right place...

Im new to buying/building jeeps but, i found a 2000 cherokee im really liking & just wanted to see what some seasoned jeepers thought about it before i bought a P.O.S.!! just wondering how much yall think its worth, what youd pay for it and if its a good start.. this is all i know right now im going saturday to test drive


4 inch RC lift,, 35/12.50 BFG mud terrain tires an black crager wheels. Has a 4.0 automatic an has 112,000 miles on it, was recently rhino lined an painted inside an out. has new wheel bearing, U joints, front an rear pinion seals, new BDS shocks all around.,rustys adjustable trackbar ,cold air intake

 

just giving you a bump here. and my .02
if you know nothing about jeeps and want to learn/build. a good place to start is stock
if you know a little about cars and suspension and DONT want to learn/ build (just looking for a fun toy)
then that jeep is perfect for you.

personally, I like it a lot. its a really good start and you can get many more add-ons to increase capability
you'll have plenty of fun in that one

but I wouldnt pay too much higher than $4000 for that (in my area)
because upgrades lose ALL value.
what is he asking for it?

 

other than that, its hard to tell if it was built by an idiot or not just by little pics
the 4.0 is a great engine. I've heard that the 2000 and 2001 have bad heads (they crack)
also, does he have upgaded ring and pinion to turn those big tires?
AND. be careful about the test drive!
if this is your first lifted xj test drive, it's gonna be hard to not buy it after you see how much fun it is

welcome to the forum

 

I 100% agree here. When I was new to the XJ thing I was looking at "built" jeeps too.....most of them you will find that the PO wheeled it hard, beat it up, etc. Its best to look for a low mileage, well kept, STOCK jeep and build from there. You just have no idea if the person did the upgrades themselves....and how quality their work is, what they used it for, and so on. Good luck but most guys will tell ya to buy a stock and build from there....not to mention you will find a lot of satisfaction in seing YOUR jeep build up.

 

yeah. I mean who would sell their well cared for well built rig?
make sure to ask why he's selling it
the only reason I would sell a complete rig is because I broke it.. even then I'd part it out

 

Thanks guys for the advice! I'm looking forward to getting an xj, I've been offroading my whole life just never in a jeep lol it's priced at 5000 and needs brakes and aligned so I've been looking for a more stock jeep to work on.. Any suggestions onwhat kind of lift and where to get it? 4.5" - 6" should do it

 

your whole life? what other vehicles have you taken off road/built?

depends on what you want to drive over and what tires you want
I vote keep it low at 4.5-5.5
tires 33'-35'
what kind? haha how deep are your pockets?

 

I would vote to buy a stock cherokee it may take a bit to find the right one. Took me 4 months to find mine and i actually just bought mine yesterday a 99 stock rust free great condition for 4500 with 57k miles. And in my experience in 2/2 of my experience in buying a vehicle already lifted with aftermarket parts is bad. First one was my second vehicle, dodge ram (i didnt know better and was new to buying vehicles) it was beat to **** 4wd didnt work it was a money pit and had to put 3000 into it to get it running right. Second was a wrangler and had unknown milage tierod was bent so that was a hint it was probably beat but that one overall wasnt too bad. Plus its always good to build it up from stock yourself, you take more pride in it

 

VW railbuggies are big where I'm from. We hillclimb

 

@Erkmed XJ x2 it took my 6 months on CL to find my latest xj. lots of research and patience

@Outcast Jeeper did you ever build one of those? its nice to know experience/background before we go and give you a ton of advice
just buy an xj and get back to us with questions later. do some research
I HIGHLY recommend you buy a year model 1991-1999 inline 6 xj. best years IMHO

 

When I was new into jeeps bought a stock for my first one a built it up. That way I knew what was going into it. One prob with used lifted is don't know how it was taken care of before you especially if your first jeep you can miss a lot of things

 

if you read this before the test drive take lots of pics, you will get much more input from the forum if you do. make sure you get good pics from under the jeep... good luck and have fun on the test drive, listen very carefully, no radio while driving, parking lot tight circles/ figure 8s.

 

I recomend the Stock road also, you'll know what to fix when it breaks, only downfall is it'll cost you a lot more to build it yourself. I was going to buy a built XJ off of baymotors, some really nice rigs on there..... I just wansn't ready to caugh up as much as $10,000 for a possible POS (if they are askin $5,000 for it, it's probably not worth that much). I spent that much on mine (stock) & within the last year another 6k for parts, but I know what I am working with / driving. I also know the parts were installed properly. With that much lift, I gotta believe a SYE or H-N-T is really req'd.... Good luck either way, look in the For Sale section and ask around. Most guys here seem to really build the XJ's with love. Sometimes we sell our rigs, and if the buyer is another XJ lover, the price may be more negotiable.....

Good luck!

 

well test drive today went good, overall it was a decent rig. few things i would have done different ( paint, 33's instead of 35's) if he comes down on the price i might go with it and worry about a full build nex... you know, after i have the jeep fever real bad! but thanks again fellas for the advice and keep up the great forum!!!

 

Probably The only reason this guy is telling you the Jeep needs aligment is because he does not have it set up properly and it wanders, shakes or wobbles. If all it was was aligment he would just get it done before he listed it. It will cost you hundreds to fix otherwise this guy would fix it so it would be easier to sell. My .02