What is up with the cost?!?!
 

So I am new here, planning on buying and building a XJ. I have been shopping around all over Texas. I have always been a Toyota guy so I am use to 1999 Toyota 4Runners costing a fortune, and even Tacoma's holding their value almost to a ridiculous level... I have built up a 2003 Tacoma 4x4, a 1999 4Runner 4x4 with factory E-locker, 2006 Tundra 4.7L V8 4x4, and a 2015 Tundra 5.7L 4x4. I am really looking forward to owning my first Jeep. One thing I have always been jealous of in the past is watching fellow offroaders buy XJ's and build them up for significantly less than Toyota's. This future XJ build will be my first true dedicated offroader. The toyotas I had were very modified, but also still driven on the road fairly often. I intend to hardly ever drive the XJ on the road. I will only be a back up secondary vehicle for if one of our primary vehicles needs to go in the shop for a day or two. Other than that, it will be strictly for offroad adventures.

All that said, I started searching around in Houston and Dallas and found some stock 1998 and 1999 XJ's with 135k and 110k miles and one guy wants $12,000 and the other guy wants $9,000!!!! I called the guy who wanted $9,000 and he told me he had a clean stock 2001 Cherokee 4x4 with 89k on it, and had the first person who came to look at it buy it for $14,500!!!! Guys.... I understand these are great vehicles... but these prices are even superseding Toyota's ridiculous prices. What is up with these prices?! I have read MANY articles from various offroad magazines in the last year talking about how the XJ is one of the best CHEAP 4x4's to build. From the prices I am seeing here in Texas, that is definitely not looking to be the case. I am just curious if this is something that is just hyper-inflated here in Texas due to the offroad scene or is this normal everywhere?

Stop looking at stock ones. They're starting to appreciate around the nation.

Modded and wheeled ones are always going to be cheaper.

Those are the ads you don’t respond to . No XJ is worth that kind of money . You can’t limit yourself to one area either . I bought my XJ for 1800 then sank a couple thousand into it. Don’t be scared of mileage either . People look into Texas because they assume they’re rust free .

This has been happening for a few years, but I've noticed an uptick recently. Get use to it.

Its crazy, i have been looking for another cherokee but the prices are ridiculous... i bought mine for less, but now everyone wants a jeep. So inflation is happening for these cherokees. The older ones you might have better luck!

https://pbase.com/timothylauro/image...2/original.jpgI wish you luck on your search but it's threads like this and the sales at Bring a Trailer that make me SO VERY GLAD I stumbled upon the 2001, 85k mile LimitedI did for sale for a sweat-heart deal from it's original old-lady owner. The bonus was she was a snow bird and this one saw snow for the first time with me.

Don't get me wrong, I don't expect to get one for $2,000 or anything... I would be happy to pay $5,500 for a clean stock one with between 100k to 150k miles. I guess depending on which area you are from, I can see some of you not worried about a used one that is wheeled. The problem I see here in Texas is a LOT of people play in the mud... sandy mud at that. Most people who wheel like that around here, they end up sucking sandy river water into the engine driving through river/creek crossings, then they run some diesel in the crankcase for about 30 seconds to mix everything up, drain it, and repeat about 3 times, then slap new oil in the engine with a new filter and call it good. I have seen MANY friends buy used 4x4s around here to only later on find they need to rebuild the engine 5k miles later and once torn apart find fine sand in the oil pan and bearings. Plus that fine sand gets in the axles and it just tears everything up. I use to wheel in stuff like that and got tired of having to replace axle bearings every 6 months. Now I just like to trail ride and eventually I want to start taking trips out to Utah and do some moderate rock crawling. I would prefer a clean slate to build to do this. I guess if I could find a modded XJ in a state where its not primarily mud riding, I would be inclined to purchase one that is already modded.

What we need is some good ol' fashioned $3 per gallon gas prices to make these sissies ditch their Jeeps. I use to work at a local Honda dealership way back in the day and I watched as gas prices hit $3 a gallon, everyone dumping 4x4's and buying civics, accords, and such. Our lot was full of V8 SUVs on trade in and we couldn't keep a civic or accord in stock. Best time to buy a fuel efficient vehicle is when gas prices are under $2 a gallon, and the best time to buy a 4x4 is when gas prices climb over $3 to $3.50 a gallon.

This is the new reality for XJs in Texas right now at least in my area (Dallas) and will be the new reality nationwide in time, regardless of what people THINK the XJ is worth. The fact is the XJ hasn't be produced in 18 years, even if they did produce 2.8 million of them, they were bought cheap and modded with sawsalls, they were abused and destroyed because they were so cheap, and 4WD Cherokees were the 6th most traded vehicle in the dreaded Cash for Clunkers program. Clean stock 4WD models are going to cost you. Even a 4WD model with serious problems (head gasket, wont start, ect) in my area will pull 1 to 2 grand. Now 2WD models you can still get cheap around here, it's starting to look more and more cash efficient to buy a 2wd an convert to 4WD.

This was one of the last "boxy" SUVs that was also fairly capable. Many people who grew up in XJs are in positions now to be able to pay more money for them. The same thing has happened to Grand Wagoners which stopped being built about 10 years before the XJ ended production. Go find a clean running Grand Wagoneer and let me know what people want for those.

As of now the only way in my area to get a good deal on a stock 4WD Cherokee is to find someone who simply isn't a Jeep person and has no clue, to them they are just selling another car.

If the prices are simply too high for you on the XJ take a look at ZJs and WJs. I was looking at WJs a while back that were very stock and in excellent condition with relatively low miles that were selling for less than XJs were.

the more people pick them up for a few hundred $, cut the **** out of the body, do a half ass 6" lifts and throw 37's on stock axles only to roll them over six months later and start again, the more the clean ones will go up. Have you seen the price on a clean Bronco from the 90's? It's coming to an XJ near you, soon enough

I was literally just thinking this. I see fairly clean Grand Cherokee's with under 150k miles, 4.0, 4x4 for around $1,500. Some of the 2wd Cherokee's are asking ridiculous prices as well. I have seen two of them asking $7,000 to $8,000 that were again 1998, 1999 and with 150k. They were clean, but not ridiculous clean. I would be hard press to pay that for a 4x4... sure not paying that for a 2wd. So are the 1998 and 1999 Grand Cherokee the best years just like Cherokee's?

Oh also, whats crazy is I can find 1999 Wrangler TJ 4x4, 5 spd, 4.0L cheaper than the Cherokee's. I know where there is one right now that has only 135k on it, new top, new brakes, new radiator, new water pump, new clutch, and he even pulled the interior and had the whole inside Rhino lined professionally. It is all stock, never wheeled, and came with the offroad package with 30x9.50 tires. He wants $5,500. I would just rather have a XJ. I have 3 kids and a wife that won't fit in the Wrangler.

Consider the cost and complexity and lack of appeal of currently manufactured vehicles. The only solid axle 4x4 that I know of other than medium duty (Bigger than a one ton) trucks is the Wrangler.

It's getting to where dumping $10K + into an old vehicle that Blue Books for maybe $1500 is not all that unreasonable of a plan, whether you're talking used purchase price or repairs, compared to maybe $40K to $60 for a new vehicle that's not even that useful for the purposes of many of us.

Whats irritating is there are literally dozens of videos on YouTube posted in the last 12 months talking about how XJ's are one of the best cheap 4x4s you can get under 3k or under 5k lol. They clearly have not looked around.

So articles like this definitely are not helping the situation:

https://www.autotrader.com/car-news/...old-suv-263118

Screw it, I just found a 1999 XJ in 2wd for $1200 with 130k miles. Its got a couple small dents and scratches and the a/c doesn't work, but the way I see it is I was planning on spending about $7k. I can buy this, go get a transfer case at a junk yard, and still afford to buy a dana 44 for the front and still come out cheaper than buying a 4x4 for these ridiculous prices! Anyone know a link to a good write up on what all parts are needed to covert a 2wd to 4x4?

Looks like the cheapest route is to find a donor vehicle of the same year. Seems I will need the suspension, drive shafts, transmission, transfer case, wiring harness, 4x4 shifter bezel, front axle, and might as well grab the rear as well as the gearing will likely be different. Reading all this, seems like it would be easier to find a high mileage 4x4 and just run it until the motor gives out and then have the engine and transmission rebuilt. Decisions decisions.

Wow this is beyond frustrating... I found a 2003 Rubicon with 72k on it for $13k. It floors me people are asking $11k for a stock XJ with 130k miles when Rubicons with far less miles are just a couple grand more. I might have to bite the bullet and get a Rubicon. Bang for buck seems a lot better.

Here is another... 2004 Rubicon with 150k miles, all stock, very clean, manual transmission, $9,400. That's crazy. Yeah, I am going to have to pick up a Rubicon.