Hi everyone,

29 year old from So Cal. Lost my 4x4 Nissan Frontier in a divorce this year and I'm planning my next 4 wheeling vehicle.

I liked my truck, but there were some not-so-great things about it that bothered me. I hated the electronic transfer case... I actually had it go out on me while descending a hill. It's scary when you're going down a steep rocky road and then start freewheeling! I think it may have overheated and some sensor shut it down. When I eventually got down to the bottom (thanks to the hill descent feature on the truck), I turned the truck off, let it sit a few minutes, and when I turned it back on, everything was fine. The transmission behaved a little strange at times as well. I'm not exactly sure what was wrong with it. The 4.0 liter V6 engine in the Nissan was awesome, though. 260 hp, and I was still getting nearly 21 mpg on the highway. The payment was a killer, too, although it was nearly brand new.

I've decided to go a different route with my next vehicle. I would love to buy a Cheep Cherokee for $1500 or so and then have money to put into repairs and replacements. I am planning on selling my house at the end of the year and hopefully I will walk away with a decent chunk of change. I was going to buy a newer SUV or truck, but I think I'll have more fun, get a better wheeler, and save money by going this route.

I was planning on buying a 1999 (I heard this was the best year), and either rebuilding the engine or replacing it. I see used engines on Craigslist for $500, or I can get a reconditioned one for $1500 or so. Should I consider doing the same thing with the transmission? What other major replacements should I consider? The vehicle will probably already have about 140k on it when I get it, and I'd like to start off as fresh as possible. I figure even if I spend $8k in repairs and upgrades, I'll still only be 1/2 of where I'd be if I had bought a new vehicle.

Anyway, I hope to read a lot about the Cherokee in the meantime so that when I am finally ready to buy, I'll be equipped with plenty of knowledge.

Thanks for reading.

 

Welcome to the forum. The xj won't disappoint you like the xterra did.

 

welcome, I have a 98 xj with 200k running strong. you can rebuild the engine but if it has 150k or less from my experience your golden if it was maintained. these engines are great just give it the cooling it needs

 

Welcome to the forum man! Good luck on your future build/ vehicle !