John LaBombard

My son and I just picked up our first Jeep a Black 2001 XJ, 107k Stock with one quarter size rust spot on roof. I think I got a great deal $2500 and mechanic gave it a glowing report (only had to replace front bearing).
I told him I would buy the car and he has to pay for everything else. It is his first car so I wanted to start him out with something solid that he can build on. He has had it two weeks and we have ordered :
Ironman All Country A/T
Tire Size: 31X10.50R15
Approved Rim Width:7-9
Pro Comp Series 97 Rock Crawler, Flat Black
SIZE:15"X 8"
BOLT PATTERN:5"X 4.5"
OFFSET:-19mm
BACK SPACING:3.75"
Zone 3" Suspension System w/Rear Leaf Springs
(4) Nitro Shocks
Sway Bar Disconnects
Single Steering Stabilizer
I went with Zone and Ironman because I got some very helpful advice from 00t444e, Martlor13, and Outlaw Star (Thanks Guys) here is the thread (SORRY FOR HIJACKING IT) https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f59/lo...ft-kit-241172/ I did a lot of digging on this site and others and could not find any bad reviews on Zone (although there are not many jeep reviews period) I found good reviews for their higher lifts on other trucks and am trusting that they put the same engineering into the XJ fitted ones. The Ironman tires I went with because of the price and the recommendation, I again did not see a lot of reviews but for a newer tire the average was closer to 5 stars than 1 so I decided to give them a try, especially since it will be mainly a DD and he is so busy with School and Hockey/Lacrosse it may see 20-30 miles a day.
UPS says the parts should be in tomorrow so as soon as the weather gets well above 0' we will start spraying PB Blaster and start a build Thread.

If your still with me I have a serious question about a 96 Cherokee that I want to by for Myself (I have bitten by the Jeep bug, maybe more like a swarm of killer bees) My wife is definitely not happy that I spend all my time now looking at forum posts or watching YouTube videos about Cherokees.
any way onto my question...
I found a 96 Cherokee SE 2dr
Here is the description from the add:
"Nice jeep 4x4 65000 miles yes thats correct 5 speed trans it has 0 to no rust its a pa truck does have small dent in passagner fender light bars and new tires shocks brakes INSPECTED 4WD s work but needs u joints in front axles whitch comes with truck just havent had time to installand a daily i would trade for a truck 2wd or 4wd not to worried or a 4x4 quad maybe just send pics ans info"
There were 2 pics of it far away but I really liked it and started texting him. He wants 3000 for it and sent me some more pictures, the small dent in the front in passenger fender is about a Basketball size dent right on the front top corner (it does not look like it affected the front clip). The rest of the Jeep looks very clean I cant see rust anywhere in the new pictures on the body or rockers. I texted some more and he sent me more picks and there is about a golf ball size hole in the rocker that is hidden when the passenger side door is open. I asked about the hole and he said there was a tiny bit of rust behind the rear wheel on one side and the floor pans had been replaced by PO. He also said the PO replaced the tires,brakes and shocks all the way around. He said it handles like a dream but he is tired of driving stick. I am going to try and post the pictures he sent for you to see but any advice you can give me on the way the hole looks (could it be an old patch is reappearing and the the whole thing is rotted) advice is much appreciated.
BTW while we were texting he said if I get it this weekend it will be $2000








See The Hole?

Turbo X_J

Hit something(s) hard enough to pop the P door, D side rear has issues, major rust bucket, pass...

firebane

Looks like a 16 year old has driven it.. If you bought be warned its probably been beaten on.

jordan96xj

I'm usually the one here that says good XJs are worth more than people think. This is -not- one of those XJs. That is not a $3000 XJ. 2k maybe, but doubtful. Obvious rust, bad paint, not taken care of, and obvious major damage to fender and hood. That thing looks flogged. You'll end up doubling whatever you spend on the vehicle getting it back into shape. Given the wear and tear on the vehicle, I also find the mileage claim a little strange. Mine had 49k, and the black paint was pristine as was the interior. I just don't see how the exterior/interior got so thoroughly trashed in that amount of miles.

If you are hungry for a fixer-upper project. I suppose $1500-1800. For for 1k more, I think you could do better with less work involved. I also think they will take 1800, because they know its beat up.

5-Speed

I passed on a 2 door that was newer then that, about the same front end damage, and zero rust for $250. If it would have been 4wd, I would have paid $500 tops and used it for parts only. The amount of rust that thing probably has is just scary.

Keep on searching.

TrailerTrash

I would pass. that is really rough for the price

it may not even be 4x4 seeing how he avoided the transfer case shifter in the pics

John LaBombard

I really appreciate the advice and I am going to pass. I seem to be like a junkie, I am glad I posted here first before I got myself into trouble. I will update on the XJ hunt.

Thanks again

TrailerTrash

no problem dude.

I'd rock those white wagon wheels though

RocketMouse

Sounds like the OP here came to a wise decision on this one.

John LaBombard

I did like the Wheels also...keeping up the hunt.

CoffeeCommando

Pass. Not worth $500. If it look like that there's no telling what else is wrong that you can't see. If that's their definition of a "small" dent and they didn't mention that giant rust hole I'm sure there's a lot more.

Those aren't the right wheels for that XJ model year so it's even more suspect. Whenever I see stickers all over a vehicle that's usually also a bad sign.

Also just noticed the driver's side tail light and bumper are crushed.

Martlor13

I swap wheels on my basically stock xj all the time. What am I hiding?

extrashaky

With XJs, it's okay to curb your enthusiasm. There were 2.8 million of these things made. There aren't really that many that are rare in any reasonable sense of the word, so there's not that much risk of missing the deal of the century. If the deal in front of you isn't right, let it go, because another one will be along behind it if you're patient.

Congrats! Sounds like you're off to a good start.

You and your son would be wise to search and read everything you can now about the 0331 head crack issue. The 2000 and 2001 XJs came from the factory with a head that had a casting flaw that would sometimes cause it to crack between the #3 and #4 cylinders. Not all of them crack, but enough do to make it a known issue that any '00-'01 owner should be aware of before it happens so that you know how to identify it and what to do if it does happen to yours.

Discovered early, it means a $250 to $600 head swap on a Saturday afternoon, then you drive the thing another 200K miles or more. Misdiagnosed or allowed to let go, it wipes the bearings and turns into an engine swap. Some people just go ahead and swap the head preemptively on their own timetable so that they aren't put in a position later to deal with it when they don't have the time or money.

If you haven't already, download or buy a 2001 factory service manual. There were some pretty significant changes in the XJ in 2000, so some of the advice people post on this board and the FB groups will be slightly different or outright wrong for your year. The FSM will help clear a lot of that up. (If you have a Haynes or Chilton manual, toss it.)

You can buy a PDF of the manual from Pacific Coast Manuals for $15. You can download a similar PDF for free from the "Files"
section of the Jeep Cherokee XJ Support Group. Below is a direct link to that FSM, but I think you have to be a member of the group to access it.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/4601...0049988205283/

These are both PDFs, but the Pacific Coast version is easier to use because it's all one huge searchable file, whereas the free one is broken up into separate PDFs by chapter.

Welcome to the addiction.

CoffeeCommando

I don't know, but I don't want to find out (writing down Maltor13 in journal entry of sellers to avoid)

Martlor13