Hello All! Name is Nate and I just purchased a 2001 Cherokee for 1000. I purchased it because I got tired of my previous project (81 Ford) which seemed to not go anywhere after a while and I couldn't give up the beach any longer. I'll post pictures of my jeep later today. But I'll list current issues

Bad roof rust
Coolant seems dirty will flush this weekend

and that's it.... i test drove it before i bought it and it drives good. 4x4 engages. no overheating. a/c blows cold which is important here in the RGV.. anyhow looking forward to get to knowing some of you and hope that you more experienced ones can help if i ever need it. thanks

 

Welcome to the sickness

 

Hey Nate, congrats on your new ride. Enjoy

 

Welcome.
Do you know anything about the maintenance history?

Just some not-asked-for-yet, but possibly useful advice: That coolant system needs to be really up to scratch, since you have the "0331" head...prone to cracking with overheating being the main culprit (besides the engineering flaw), just for future reference (plenty of info/threads on this).

Happy wheeling.

 

It belonged to a friend who said he took care of it but I'm sure it needs some TLC. I'm familiar with those 0331 heads and hope I have some time before I need to address those

 

Welcome

Yes this XJ thing is a bit of a disease at times. I agree get the cooling system in good shape first then see about a tune-up or when your friend last did a complete one. Might be a good idea to plug it in and see what codes might be shown on it, free at AutoZone and other places.

Then later have the rust issue on the roof taken care of before it gets real bad.

 

I had one of those cheap walmart scanners but i gave it to my brother. the good news is that he only lives two blocks away. just waiting for this cold spell to sub due...... and as for the rust....





So the rust might need addressing sooner rather than later but this is my weekend toy not really a DD..... i just pray that the heads haven't cracked yet.

what i read it's not a matter of if but when. i'm already trying to save

 

Looks like it had a sun roof at one time. Those things always seem to leak and then comes the rust! What's your plan of attack? Quick and dirty or time consuming and nice?

 

It still has the sun roof. it was a night time pic and my tablet doesn't have a flash so it was bad and yes that is a hole in the roof you see.

As far as plan, get everything to bare metal do some bondo work in the small holes. For the hole towards the back use something like.... http://www.walmart.com/ip/Bondo-Self...Patch/17130353 ... that. And probably around the sunroof also.... I really don't know how bad it is around the sunroof.... i'm worried that the structure around the glass is so bad that i wouldn't be able to save it.

1) So sand with angle grinder
2) hammer out rust
3) use some kind of acid to get rid of remaining small rust
4) bondo
5) rustoleum primer
6) paint it with truck bed paint to prevent further problems.

My concerns are: protecting the interior while doing this work. I don't want to take our seats or what not. My brother says we should just spread a plastic they use for painting to cover over seats and catch whatever junk that falls.

Any tips would be great. Have a great weekend!

 

Yeah, sort of...lol

 

where in S texas?

 

lol i know...i know

 

Brownsville... you familiar with?

 

Well this week end I was able to pull some codes with the scanner....

1)P01491-Rad Fan Control Relay Circuit An open or shorted condition detected in the radiator fan control relay control circuit. This includes PWM solid state relays.
2)P01494- Leak Detection Pump Sw or Mechanical Fault Incorrect input state detected for the Leak Detection Pump (LDP) pressure switch.
3)P01555-O2 Sensor Heater Failure Oxygen sensor heater element malfunction

The descriptions I just got from the stickies so I don't completely understand what they mean but obviously something is wrong with my cooling system..... maybe a hose is broken somewhere? and the water pump is bad? any help?

 

I have heard of it, but don't know that area
I am new to the N Austin TX area
from Chicago,il