I got a 97' cherokee, now what lol

[demonoid369]

i for got to add, its got 250k miles on it, does it still seem alright?

[jetboat]

Talk them down to $2k because of miles... then drive it for the next 10 yrs...

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[BigSki]

Updates? I'm gonna stalk this thread until there's a conclusion.

[demonoid369]

still looking, getting my check and a rental tomorrow or the next day and then needing to find a serious seller or something, kinda actually hard to find a 93-99 cherokee or grand cherokee with an in line 6 and either 231 or 242 t case lol but I'm still holding out for the dealer one that i mentioned earlier, also found this, has the 231 t case but the miles is high. talk him down on price maybe?
1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4 4.0 L

side note, I see a LOT of 92 cherokees? whats up with that?

[jetboat]

197k miles is allot but well within the normal milage for a xj of that year. I would go look at it, check the normal places for rust (DS footwell, rear frame section by the leaf mount). If everything looks good make an offer of $1900, see if he budges. Im sure they will say " the 4.0 can go 300k plus" remind them that things like wheel bearings, suspension components, tcase chains etc all where out well before that.

[WICKEDWOLFRC]

Cherokee's are a dime a dozen around here.

Drive down and buy one and have a few beers

Or pay my fuel and I can haul one up to you...I have vacation to burn

Jeep Cherokee | ksl.com

Jeep Cherokee | ksl.com

Jeep Cherokee | ksl.com

Jeep Cherokee | ksl.com

[BigSki]

Originally Posted by demonoid369

still looking, getting my check and a rental tomorrow or the next day and then needing to find a serious seller or something, kinda actually hard to find a 93-99 cherokee or grand cherokee with an in line 6 and either 231 or 242 t case lol but I'm still holding out for the dealer one that i mentioned earlier, also found this, has the 231 t case but the miles is high. talk him down on price maybe?
1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4 4.0 L

side note, I see a LOT of 92 cherokees? whats up with that?

XJ in the link doesn't look too bad in the pics, the mud tires are an indication that the truck goes off road. Once you get your rental, expand your search 500 miles up and down the coast, Even look in the Seattle region. Just AVOID USED CAR LOTS. PERIOD.

[WICKEDWOLFRC]

How are mud tires an indication that it goes offroad....And why is going offroad even a problem. Most guys that wheel their rigs take better care of them and maintain them more than the guys that mall crawl.

[jetboat]

The geo tracker the next street over from me has mud T/A on it... and I dont think its even been driven in the rain. So many people buy them for the cool factor. Look at how many Rubicons wont go offroad.

The brushguard on the front kind of tells me it hasnt done anything hard. Those things are made out of the thinnest possible tube. They bend like a twig if you hit anything harder than grass. they really are only good for holding lights and looking cool.

[demonoid369]

well I'll be checking it out in an hour, got my rental car(nissan altima) sweet 30 or so mpg lol compared to my two previous cars(20, 17)
main concerns to check?
throttle sound?
shifting action?
rust
leaks?
pulls or rattles
anything else?

[WICKEDWOLFRC]

Originally Posted by demonoid369

sweet 30 or so mpg lol compared to my two previous cars(20, 17)

And I was happy to jump up to 13.8 from 11 LOLMaybe I need to buy a beater car.

[demonoid369]

Originally Posted by WICKEDWOLFRC

And I was happy to jump up to 13.8 from 11 LOLMaybe I need to buy a beater car.

ya I only get this 30mpg thing for a week so i'll have some fun driving distances(jeep ish related )
but when I do get a jeep sadly i will be bumping back down to the teens lol

[tedo]

Originally Posted by demonoid369

well I'll be checking it out in an hour, got my rental car(nissan altima) sweet 30 or so mpg lol compared to my two previous cars(20, 17)
main concerns to check?
throttle sound?
shifting action?
rust
leaks?
pulls or rattles
anything else?

Rust especially the rockers and floor boards. Also look for patch jobs in that area. Good luck.

[jetboat]

as I keep saying... driverside floor under the heal of the drivers right foot. Rear "frame rail" right around the front spring hanger.

Those are the 2 worst places for rust.

Also, the wiring harness runs right under the carpet on the drivers side. This has been known to corrode badly. Seems stupid but, turn the rear wiper on for at least 2 mins. Ive had a couple where the rear wiper motor shorts out, in 1 case caught fire.

[BigSki]

Originally Posted by WICKEDWOLFRC

How are mud tires an indication that it goes offroad....And why is going offroad even a problem. Most guys that wheel their rigs take better care of them and maintain them more than the guys that mall crawl.

very true, I'm just thinking out loud. You can see mud stains on the front fender flares and the Jeep has a decent looking front grill guard so to me, it looks like it might get used off road. ( Not a bad thing as long as it didn't get thrashed.)

I looked at another 2dr XJ yesterday. It was supposed to be 'never used hard' yet when I got there it had an trailer electric brake control installed! Upon farther inspection I could see that both leaf springs were bending the wrong way and one pack was cracked. I also could see where the hitch mount was actually distorting the sheet metal where it was mounted to. It never stops to amaze me at what people will do w/ vehicle, then try to pass on their problems to someone else.

[demonoid369]

ya it seems good, has the 231 t-case, standard oil leak that looks the same as my olds did, no rust that i could find, noisy as hell with the tires lol but no wobble, no pull, shifts great on tranny and t-case. lowest he'll go is $2200. the cd player looks shabby though, the faceplate kept popping off but i could easily buy a new one lol fog lights dont work, has a switch inside but it doesnt turn on.

whats your guys verdict?

[jetboat]

$2200 is a good price if it was around here. Looks like no rust.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[WICKEDWOLFRC]

I think you could do better....Keep looking and be patient.

[demonoid369]

Originally Posted by WICKEDWOLFRC

I think you could do better....Keep looking and be patient.

I wish I could be patient but I only have this rental car till monday and after that if i dont get a jeep, I'm carless. the thunderbird was my only car so i need a rig to keep me afloat or I'm screwed

the choices that are in front of me are these two:
1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4 4.0 L

or the 95' jeep grand cherokee lerado at the auto sale which has either 124,000 or 142,000 miles, has a straight 6, 231 t-case but has no spare tire, stereo, latch handle to open hood is broken, and my moms bf said that it looks like the tranny leaks....

the issue I have with the 97' chero is that it has 190k miles which could mean lots of wear and tear possibly and because of the tires making so much noise its hard to hear if there is any other noises but as the pics I showed and described, it works.

which would all you guys decide on?

[demonoid369]

also I keep meaning to ask but forget easily, the 231 has no diff so on road use of the 4wd is bad but what if its snowy? like ice and snow is it alright or not to use it. reason for asking is if I went to mt hood and there is obviously going to be snow, I'd hate to be driving around in 2wd