After replacing the Ujoints, hubs, calipers and pads, it suddenly occurred to me that my XJ is a money pit.

Thought back on all the stuff thats been replaced or rebuilt over the years.
Crate engine
Differential and Tcase rebuild
Alternator
Power steering pump
Budget lift
Adj. trac bar
Leaf springs
Sensors
2 radiators
Water pump
Fuel pump
Cam and all throttle body sensors
The list goes on and on.

I ask myself why keep dumping money in a 17 yr. old vehicle?
Whats the 'carrot in front of the horse'?

Easy answer, out of all my vehicles past and present, i enjoy driving my problem free XJ the most, hands down..no contest!

 

Yes, yes it is a money pit. A lovely little tank of a money pit.

 

Not really. I've had my '96 for 8yrs and other than routine maintenance parts the only thing I needed to replace in that time were the radiator,HCV (which I eliminated),and the IAC. Any other money spent was my choice.

 

mines more like a money black hole

 

If I separate the money into 2 buckets...."things I HAD to do" vs. "things I WANTED to do". It hasn't been a money pit. But I have spent a lot of money on it all together.

 

I wouldn't call it a money pit. Even with spending money on the list of NEEDED plus the WANTED items it is still cheaper than having a monthly car payment.

No monthly car payment plus fairly low insurance means I can spend money on fixes things and upgraded as well.

.. That is until I have selectable locker, winch, maybe exo cage and the value is nowhere near the amount put into it. Oh well I don't plan on selling it

 

Plus, because of the type of vehicle it is, and the availability of parts. When I do fix something, I can put very decent parts on it for way cheaper than some newer vehicles.

I rebuilt almost the entire front end, including knuckles, control arms, all steering linkages/adjusters, and ball joints, using all high quality name brand parts for less than about $500. For some vehicles, you might spend that just replacing control arms. At those prices, I often end up replacing far more than just a single worn out part, just because I can (why not, since I have to take it apart anyway).

Now, if I was to take the Jeep to a shop every time I wanted to do or fix something, I would be dead broke within the first few months of owning it. That is just not doable.

 

Idk man all the stuff you listed are maintenance items that wear. It's stuff expected on an older vehicle.

 

Moparado, like you say, if you like driving it, then it is money well spent.

And like others have mentioned already, no monthly payment, easy to work on, and fun to drive.

An hell, eletronics so old no one can track you or your traffic history..... I got my tinfoil hat here somewhere.

 

Money pit? Here's what a real money pit is:

Monthly payments including or eventually including interest on a vehicle whose value is almost certainly in a death spiral and paying toward a price magnitudes higher than the price of an older vehicle.

Regular maintenance and repair costs on top of that. I've been told by people with newer vehicles that my old XJ is a money pit; meanwhile they're repairing problems with their vehicles as much or more than I am and spending tons more to do it. OR they're ignoring preventative maintenance that I'm not which is shortening the life of their vehicle and/or planting the seed for a more expensive problem down the road.

Or, if you sell/trade before you have to encounter anything more than the regular maintenance of filters and fluid changes, then you get to finally cash-in on that depreciated value and start the cycle all over again.


I paid cash for my used vehicle. Not only that, but I paid less than what most people will spend in car payments in just 6-10 months of their 60 month repayment plan. I've had this XJ for over two years now. I replaced my entire exhaust system awhile back, and because I wanted something very specific and high-end, I spent WAY more than I had to to get it done (let's say about $1000 for the sake of discussion; it's close enough). Sure, I spent $1000 that month replacing my entire original, degraded exhaust including header, but my girlfriend's sister also spent money on her car that month. She spent $300-400 on her car that month. And each month before and after. Many months before and after my exhaust I spent nothing. I got a brand-new exhaust system that will lengthen the life of the vehicle I already own. She got....a little closer to actually OWNING her vehicle. And if I hadn't been as particular about products and materials, I could have done what I did for half or less of what I paid!

I've owned my XJ for over two years. My girlfriend's sister has "owned" her vehicle for less than one. She's already getting close to having spent more money on her vehicle than I ever have on mine (purchase price included).

Money pit.


DISCLAIMER: I admit the attitude portrayed in this post is self-destructive in a sort of way. If no one was buying new cars, there'd be no used cars for guys like me to buy.

 

Nailed it. The bucket for Wanted is much fuller than the Needed bucket. I'm starting to need more maintenance parts since she hit the 73k mile mark but overall there are plenty of original parts still on her.

 

True.
Other than the budget lift, the rest are maintenance items i spent bucks over the 327k miles and 17 years i owned my XJ.
Maybe its because i owned it for that length of time and put all those miles on, it just seems like a money pit. NaaH!

Like others said and now that i think on it, all those repairs were spread over 17 years.... compared to big payment$ on a new vehicle every month, maybe its not so bad after all.

The good news i suppose is that just about every maintenance item has been replaced.
The bad news lately, now i got to take a 2nd look at that leaking Tcase to see if the new output seal fixed it!
If not, looking at replacing the bushing!

Somehow it never ends though!

 

My XJ was indeed a money pit. Now it's somebody else's money pit.

 

Great disclaimer. I don't always keep that in mind.

I hope people continue to buy new cars so I can continue to buy used

 

There's just something about that new car smell that puts smiles on faces!
That smell makes those first couple huge monthly payments somehow easier to make!

But then that new car smell goes away quickly and before one knows it reality sets in and those payments become a PITA!
Been there done that many times over the years including my XJ.
In fact doing it now with my 2016 F150.