Jeep Cherokee Sports any good?

Jester

Jester

In through the Out Door, so She's
I'm looking at getting rid of my little puddle jumper Chevy Tracker, and purchasing something a little more manly. Are '98-'01 Cherokee Sports a pretty safe bet? 4.0 Auto...

Would like to stay with Mopar, but the alternative is an Xterra, Pathfinder or z28 camaro ;)
 
The Cherokees are good vehicles overall, with decent mileage and power from the 4.0. Occasionally, they have head/head-gasket problems--keep an eye on the temp gauge before things get out of hand. One other thing, they're kind of small inside. If I recall, you're a sorta-tall feller... you might find it a little tight in there. However, a friend of mine who's 6'1" has been driving one for several years without feeling particularly cramped. Back-seat passengers may not appreciate your ride, though. The same dude needed a new engine after his former girlfriend blasted the original when the head gasket failed. In defense of the poor little 4.0L, though, she'd driven it nearly 50 miles with the temp light glowing. :doh: It ran until he shut it off, then it welded itself locked. :D
 
I've pulled out some vehicles from ditches in winter conditions that larger 4x4's couldn't do, Driver or vehicle? I know they seem to do well on all kinds of terrain compaired to some others when paired with a good set of tires.
 
Dr.Jass said:
The Cherokees are good vehicles overall, with decent mileage and power from the 4.0. Occasionally, they have head/head-gasket problems--keep an eye on the temp gauge before things get out of hand. One other thing, they're kind of small inside. If I recall, you're a sorta-tall feller... you might find it a little tight in there. However, a friend of mine who's 6'1" has been driving one for several years without feeling particularly cramped. Back-seat passengers may not appreciate your ride, though. The same dude needed a new engine after his former girlfriend blasted the original when the head gasket failed. In defense of the poor little 4.0L, though, she'd driven it nearly 50 miles with the temp light glowing. :doh: It ran until he shut it off, then it welded itself locked. :D
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Not quite 6'0. Actually just shy of 5'11, so the fit should be great. I'm sort of the perfect size for most vehicles, even little Jap ones. I took a '92 Cherokee for the weekend, while at my last job, and it was great going up and down mountain roads. Was just worried about reliability issues, but they sound like a pretty safe bet. I'm gonna go put an offer in on a low miler :)
 
I had my 93 Grand Cherokee 4.0 and I loved the hell out of it! I'm 6'4" and fit quite comfortably as did backseat passengers. Only issue I really had with mine was I had to keep an eye on the valve cover bolts as they would loosen and cause a slight oil leak. I really miss that old Jeep! I beat the s*** out that thing and for the most part, it took it! ;)
 
Um, SmellsALittle? We're talking XJs here. A tad more cramped than a ZJ... though no less durable. :D
 
The one I'm looking at is a 2001 XJ in mint shape, and the guy is asking $9,000 because it only has 72,000 kms (45,000 miles) and has been serviced regularly at a stealership. I talked him down to $8000, but even that seems a tad steep. There are, however, XJ's with 100,000 more km's for $7000 up here, so I don't know if it's a deal or not.

The more I look at other vehicles, the more I like my gay tracker :D
 
I've also always heard the regular XJ's are much more reliable and less trouble than the Grand Cherokee's. Having driven both models, I'd have to concur.
 
Fishy said:
I had my 93 Grand Cherokee 4.0 and I loved the hell out of it! I'm 6'4" and fit quite comfortably as did backseat passengers. Only issue I really had with mine was I had to keep an eye on the valve cover bolts as they would loosen and cause a slight oil leak. I really miss that old Jeep! I beat the s*** out that thing and for the most part, it took it! ;)
Click to expand...

Yes, the valve covers are a constant source of irritation and the oil filter mounts leak also.
I had a 2001 4.0 that I bought at a gubamint auction with 110,000 on it we drove it another 40,000 with zero issues and the right tires make all the difference on snow.
 
I sell more parts for ZJs than I do XJs, no doubt. Are they more reliable? Probably not... they're very similar vehicles and there are a lot more ZJs around here than the regular Cherokees. That being said, the most parts I sell for the Grands are brakes, really. That's the only thing my sister's ever had to do on her 2002 Grand Cherokee other than a window regulator. Both vehicles are rock-solid reliable, and as far as repair costs they're actually pretty similar. For as long as Jeep built the regular Cherokee, they made enough revisions over the years that they're not universal parts--a tie-rod end from an '89 won't fit a '98 and such. So the parts cost isn't dirt cheap like one might think, and labor's labor.

The Grand is a much nicer vehicle overall. Tighter and quieter with more room and creature comforts... just as it was intended to be. That's not to say the XJs are rattle-trap heaps like an S10 Blazer; they were just the budget line and built to that standard, that's all. I know a lot of XJ owners, and most of them are repeat buyers. If it wasn't a good truck, it probably wouldn't have been a sales success for nearly 20 model years.

I think you'd be very happy with the XJ. Simply taking care of it (grease the steering/front suspension parts every other oil change, etc.) will yield a lot of trouble-free miles with good off-roading prowess should you need it, and reasonable mileage to boot. Amy's '02 gets well over 20MPG highway... not bad for a 5000+lb well-optioned tank.
 
I'm probably too late but I'll pipe in. My parents have an '86 Cherokee 2x4 they bought new. It's got over 300,000 kms on it. The engine (2.5L four-cylinder) has never been apart. As far as I know, the 5-speed transmission was replaced around 100,000 and I'm not sure on what was done to the rear end but I know it's original and the bearings were replaced in it about a year ago. I had one myself for a few years. It was an '88 4x4 with the 4.0 and the auto. I loved that thing and would like to have another but with a 5-speed. It had plenty of power and the mileage was acceptable at about 21 on the highway. I didn't find parts replacement to be expensive or difficult. I'm 6'4" and find them to be fairly comfortable so I'm sure you'll like that part of it. Being able to fold the rear seats down makes for a fine camping spot or you can haul a bunch of stuff back there. Hopefully you get it or another one like it. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
 
There's 144 K miles on my '97 XJ (4.0/AT) and I've had no real issues with it so far. I'd get another one in a heartbeat if I ever needed to replace this one.
 
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