Greetings all. Grew up with a wagoneer (not grand) in the family, and also owned an 84 xj with the v6 (ugh) when I was young and dumb. But I've been waiting a long time to get what I really wanted. Today I brought it home.
I have been patiently waiting for the right XJ to come along. Yesterday, I pulled the trigger and today she sits in the driveway.
It is an unmodified 1996 Cherokee. It has power nothing (manual mirrors, locks, windows). The paint job is nearly flawless, except for a few dime sized spider webs in the hood clear coat.
It has 49K miles on it, and has sat garaged for most of its life.
They wanted $7000 firm. But through some patience and a little luck I ended up getting it at $5900.
I don't feel like I got the best deal ever, but the folks selling it specialize in used Cherokees, so they knew what they had on their hands, and were pretty confident about their pricing.
Most of the vehicle is in perfect condition. There is some surface rust on the undercarriage and the steel rims.
I plan on using it as a DD, and if I get even 100K good miles out of it, I will be perfectly content.
I plan on babying it a bit, so if I can get the body and underside to last until 200k I'll feel especially lucky. (that would about 10 yrs of driving for me, so here is fingers crossed).
I like to work my own vehicles, but I do have a lot to learn about this particular vehicle.
I have been patiently waiting for the right XJ to come along. Yesterday, I pulled the trigger and today she sits in the driveway.
It is an unmodified 1996 Cherokee. It has power nothing (manual mirrors, locks, windows). The paint job is nearly flawless, except for a few dime sized spider webs in the hood clear coat.
It has 49K miles on it, and has sat garaged for most of its life.
They wanted $7000 firm. But through some patience and a little luck I ended up getting it at $5900.
I don't feel like I got the best deal ever, but the folks selling it specialize in used Cherokees, so they knew what they had on their hands, and were pretty confident about their pricing.
Most of the vehicle is in perfect condition. There is some surface rust on the undercarriage and the steel rims.
I plan on using it as a DD, and if I get even 100K good miles out of it, I will be perfectly content.
I plan on babying it a bit, so if I can get the body and underside to last until 200k I'll feel especially lucky. (that would about 10 yrs of driving for me, so here is fingers crossed).
I like to work my own vehicles, but I do have a lot to learn about this particular vehicle.
Junior Member
Looks GREAT and welcome! My '98 is all manual too (not even a roof rack but I'm glad) and I'm glad I don't have to worry about window motors, door locks actuators, etc... but it does have cruise control and a few other nice things plus I did swap out my instrument light cluster for a gauge cluster and like it much better. Congrats on the low mileage too.
Newbie
Very nice XJ. Looks so clean. I am jealous in some ways, since yours looks way nicer than mine.. but, I am not afraid to ding mine up a bit in the mud somewhere. 
Great jeep though.
Great jeep though.
Welcome to the forum. If u take care of it, it is not uncommon for them to last well into 300k range
Seasoned Member
Yeah, you should be able to get 200K out of it easy. Some things to consider. Keep an eye on the metal under the carpet. Carpet holds moisture and that is where you will see rust. Rockers rust usually due to clogged drains but if they do, you can replace them with 2x6 rock rails. Rear quarters rust for the same reason.
Mine has 262K on it and the usual problems I have had are the cabin fan resistor pack, the fan motor, battery, tires, brakes, cooling thermostat (overheating), worn suspension bushings, and the neutral safety switch on the transmission. That's been it.
Nice vehicle. I like no electrics myself. Less to go wrong.
Mine has 262K on it and the usual problems I have had are the cabin fan resistor pack, the fan motor, battery, tires, brakes, cooling thermostat (overheating), worn suspension bushings, and the neutral safety switch on the transmission. That's been it.
Nice vehicle. I like no electrics myself. Less to go wrong.
Here are a couple shots of the external engine condition. All original.
Newbie
Quote:
Damn.. VERY clean. I like it. Too bad my engine bay will NEVER look like that. hahaOriginally Posted by jordan96xj
Here are a couple shots of the external engine condition. All original.
Put my first 70 miles on it today. Everything went great. I need to do the brakes this weekend, and at some point an alignment (nothing major). I ran OBDII data for the entire trip to keep an eye on the numbers, and everything was where it should be.
