Ok on my way home with kids, oil preasure drops, check guage light comes on then motor shuts off with in 5 seconds. Checked oil a few days ago and all was ok still have about 1000 miles before next oil change... When I got out and lifted hood, looks like smoke is coming from engine block... Am I looking at new motor, if so any ideas on what motor to go with... Any year of 4.0 better than others or should I go with something else... Never done this before, but I have a buddy who works at Jeep dealership that is head mechanic so he and I are going to work on it.... Any Ideas, solutions?

 

Did check the oil level to be sure it was that? Is it out of oil?

 

I checked oil level and it was alittle low, but not below add line, I didn't get a chance to give good look over b/c I had both kids with me 1 3yrs old other 4 months and yongest was screaming bloody murder, I am waiting on tow truck to bring to shop...

 

sure motor did not shut off first then the others happened?

 

Pretty sure, but it did happen pretty fast... Motor did try to turn over but didn't start and i didn't want to screw it up any more... Will Look at it better when it gets to shop...

 

Ok XJ has been taken to shop, Jeep started right up but was slugish and was smoking, along with spitting water out of tail pipe... Thinking it is head gasket... if wrong let me know.

 

Are you certain that the water coming out of the tailpipe wasn't just condensation? If the smoke was white, it probably is the head gasket.

Only time a motor has shut down on me like that, I had a couple of busted pistons and a few other things wrong. That said, the engine had a valve tick when I bought the truck and I suspected it wouldn't hold up too long.

 

Yes it was white smoke, and the water coming out of tail pipe was a decent amount. Jeep seemed to run normal until it started to warm up then it started knocking and sputtering then wanted to shut off. Also all the radiator fluid was bone dry, which i don't know what to think of, b/c this past weekend I flushed radiator and refilled with new coolant.

 

Could be whatever drives the oil pump (possibly a shaft from the distributor) broke and the oil pump stopped pumping. I saw one hex shaped shaft that twisted so bad it looked like a screw before it broke. The oil pump had locked up and stopped pumping. That would be one cause of lost oil pressure. It sounds like you need a head gasket. On my Saturn that lost oil pressure, the idiot light came on AFTER the engine seized. I like gauges better.

 

Sounds like head issues search 0331 cyl head.....

 

Had to be a Ford. Our Jeeps have good oil pump drives.

 

Fords, Chevy's and Chrysler's have driveshafts for the oil pumps. Our 4.0s oil pump is directly driven by the distributer.

 

And OP, Welcome to the forum.

 

Head gasket for sure.

Outlaw, aren't they built the same way?

 

yup, head/head gasket. 100%

I'll give you 100 bucks for the Jeep as it sits.