I bought another XJ for road use, I got it cheap of an old lady, high milage but was in good condition and even had a reco engine fitted at some stage. All was good but when it warms up (not overheating) and I park it, come back later, and try and take of in drive it has no gear (does move but feels like it is down on power), I can take of in 1st, manually shift it till 3rd but will not go into O/D, when I put it into drive it will not kickdown and seems low in power.

I have installed new trans solenoids and filter, drained the fluid, replaced with new, new radiator, replaced the 2 sensors on the injector body, new Stant 195c thermostat, external trans cooler and aftermarket fan is fitted and trans fluid is warm to touch after driving it, no overheating trans or engine wise, and serviced the engine. The problem is still there, but not when it has cooled down, but loses O/D when it warms up, but until than the AW4 works perfect, it sort of feels like it is going into some sort of limb mode although I can still drive it fine with full power when manually shifting it, but is bad in drive.

The only odd things is as compared to my 96 xj, I can shift the 95 XJ into gear without touching the brake pedal, could this loss of O/D because of a faulty brake pedal switch? is there a solenoid in the console ( brake transmission shift interlock system) if it has that on a 95. Could it be the NNS?

I tried the key dance but the light on the dash does not come on for me to read any fault codes.

I am sort of stuck now and not sure what to tackle next, any help would be great.

Cheers

 

Anyone? Don't be shy.

 

I'm also have a 95, I would check the transmission control unit (TCU) first.
Also it won't hurt to take your battery to test it, as weird its sounds last year i was having shifting problems and i even changed the TPS and drain and refill the tranny with fresh fluid with no success until one day the jeep won't start and by replacing the battery it solved my issues. Hope it helps.

 

Cheers mate! I used to be in your neck of the woods just a few weeks ago... moved to the US from living in Adelaide.

I would try what was mentioned with the TCU.
I believe on most it's right under the dash. you can unplug it and try it. I wouldn't drive too far with it unplugged, but you can quickly see if that makes a difference for you with the shifting.

 

Hey thanks for both ideas, easy enough for me to try as I have a 96 XJ as well, battery in the 96 is near new but the 95 (the one with the O/D gremlin) was real flat when I bought the car, although it did come back alive after charging it overnight. I like to think the transmission control unit from a 96 XJ should be the same as a 95 XJ. Can you move the shifter into gear when the key is in the ignition? As I can with my 95 but not with my 96, it could be part of the problem. Will try both suggestions and provide feedback.

 

I’m sorry to post in here. I can’t figure out how to create a new thread believe it or not. I have got a serious question and I need some answers. I have a 98 Cherokee and just put a brand new engine in it. It drives fine 2x4 But when I put it in 4x4, It seems to run fine for a while but then when it low idols be completely disengage is the engine from the transmission. The engine once I hit the gas just revs and the vehicle goes nowhere. Can anybody shed some light on this topic? I thought it might be linkage but it can’t be because it runs fine and 2 x 4

 

Yes, in my 95 with the ignition in the on position i can move the shifter without pressing the brake pedal. It has nothin to do with the transmission there's a bulletin service about that

 

Great too know, and thanks for that, I bet it was never applied to Australian vehicles, but just good to know that at least that was normal. I located the TCM as my XJ's are RHD the TCM is on the left side bolted to the dash facia under the glove box, got it all hanging down and car is running, as yesterday when I fitted more parts and had it running for about 30 minutes I lost O/D just sitting still, so will let it run for a while and check if the TCM gets hot or smells as per Youtube video I found, but even if it does not warm up I will swap it with my 96 XJ and test drive it, but will have to do that next few days, my 96 is loaded up for a hunting trip the next day, would hate to put gremlins in my offroad XJ. I will update any findings.

 

Sam.... helping you out here in case you don't know how to see yet if/when you get PM's (private messages)
When you log onto the forum, go to this thread " OEM XJ Cherokee Technical. All XJ Non-modified/stock questions" At the upper left of the image clip below... see where it says "new thread"? Click on that blue New Thread button. And you're home free to post a new thread. That will help you get responses much faster without thread-jacking.
Hope that helps
Cheers.

 

Yeah will swap it over after I come back from roo/deer hunting trip. I used to live in California when I was a kid, moved to Europe then to Aussieland, now live in far east Gippsland Victoria, and would not live anywhere else, just have to put up with all them Aussies LOL. Will update my findings on here. Cheers

 

Hey mate.... the TCM shouldn't get hot. What it will allow you to do is test 1, 3, and OD I believe. 2nd you can shift into, but I think you need to be at or above 4500 rpm.

I was always on the hunt for a good solid XJ when I was there, but all of them around me that were nice, owners didn't want to part with them...or the ones for sale had seriously been abused.

 

^^ lol... I know exactly what you mean. I lived on the far northern side of Adelaide. Was nice because I was really close to Semaphore beach. Could be there in like 10 mins from my place. I do miss those nice white sand beaches.

 

I lived and worked in Melbourne for years, but was lucky to retire some years ago in my mid 40's, sold my house at a ridiculous high price, got divorced (HI5) and bought a house in the country on the cheap, I am self funded and don't mis the city life. Sure had to step down somewhat in spending cash on mantoyz, bike and fancy cars went, but glad I made the change to a more relaxed stress free life, yeah no wife helps LOL. I love my Jeep's although they are a pain at times and I feel like I am supporting the US economy at times going by the amount of gear and prices I buy/pay for parts, but would not part with either XJ.

I left the 95 running, and new stant thermostat works well, the TCU metal body seems to warm up somewhat, and that could be an indicator of a fault, O/D on the driveway is still working, but switched the 95 off to let everything get warm, as that normally sets of the problem after warming up or driving, park it get back after shopping and the O/D problem is there.

 

OK after warming the 95 up for a good 45 minutes, I turned it of, had a coffee watched the idiot box for about 15 minutes (same time when parked after going into town), started the 95 slipped it into drive and the problem was there again, push the accelerator and it feels like I am down on about 75% power or even feels like it is slipping. Turned it off and unplugged the TCU and restarted, problem was still there. Turned it off and plugged the TCU back in, and presto drive was perfect again, it does seem to indicate a problem with the TCU of some sorts, shame my dash warning panel does not work as I think it would show a fault code via the keydance. I am leaving the 95 for now but will do the TCU swap and swap the battery out when I am back from going bush. Stay tuned.

 

OK, I pulled the TCU from my 96 and put it in the 95, problem still there. Swapped batteries over, problem still there. Seeing I can not do the keydance due to the dash warning light not working I have disconnected the battery and will let it sit for a few hours to clear the ECU memory (I know the trick to do it faster but busy with other things and its hot outside). If this does not work I will pull the NSS, clean and make sure that it is mounted correct.

Any other ideas besides hitting it with some 00 Buckshot?