I'm an Uber-noob as far a jeeps go...

OK...
I've been a member for a whole 3 hours but I'm anxious....
Please bear with me. My experience with engines is ONLY on 50'-60's SBC's... carbs not FI, no electrical, no smog, etc.

I recently inherited an 89 Cherokee IL 6 MFI.
My Father in Law drove it until the day he died two years ago. So I know it was running well enough for freeway speeds...

Anyhow, it's been sitting on our ranch all that time. Untouched.

I used to have a 71 GMC 4X4 and missed wheeling...so..my new project is getting the old man's Cherokee back on the road.

This weekend I pulled about 30lbs of rats nesting out from under the hood.
I vacummed & blew the engine clean, added fuel since it was almost empty
(I know, I should have drained the tank...), replaced the air filter, new cap and rotor, checked for obvious rat chewing on the hoses, etc...and started it up...

It barely idles. In drive it would not stay running in 2WD but I did get it to move, slowly in 4WDL. If I wiggle a couple of the the injectors I can see fuel seepage while it's running. That's an obvious source of trouble but would that make the car run so poorly? Could it sitting for 2 years have allowed the injectors to varnish over and plug up? Or cause the o rings to deteriorate?

So here's my trouble shooting plans...Am I on the right track?

Stalling / No Power :
Injectors (O rings first)
EGR Valve
Clogged Cat (un hook and test?)
O2 Sensor pull and test?
Spark Plugs
TPS (throttle Position Sensor)
Coil
Fuel Filter
Cap & Rotor - Done
Check for vac leaks again?
Air Filter - done
Fuel pump
IAC motor?
Powerlatch or Fuseable link?

I look forward to and appreciate your sage wisdom and comments!

hard to say....but if it ran before he shut 'er down....go with the cheap things first...

basic tune up...check all electrical wiring...rodents love to chew...

First things first. New fuel filter and a can of BG44K in the tank. No substitutes on this. Yes, I know it runs about $20 a can, but worth every penny. It will clean those injectors and take out any carbon.

While you are at it, get a set of the cheapest Champion plugs you can get. They run as good as anything in a 4.0L. If you pay more than a buck a piece, you got ripped. Since it has set for a long time, an oil change might be in order. No Fram filters please.

Do these things and try to get a few miles on it before you spend any money on anything else.

Seafoam it!

Thanks very much for the input guys...I REALLY appreciate your time.

I will try to find the BG44K today. I've never heard of it..
Seafoam..isn't that an un-appealing color for VW Bugs? ;-)

I have the fuel filter and will install tonight. According to Haynes and Chilton there's only one located near the tank (?). I'm always a little leery of these two publishers...

Plugs and oil/filter this weekend along with the already purchased EGR valve.

I started it again last night and it backfires pretty bad now...and won't stay running. This is gonna be fun.

Mark

I think Seafoam is similar to BG44K. I've never used BG44k, but I run a can of Seafoam through the tank every oil change and I'm running strong. I've run it through the TB before as well and that cleans out a lot of carbon/junk. If you add it to the TB just be sure you're in a well ventilated area, they are not joking on the can when they say it smokes. I recommend it to everyone and it's only $4.79 a can at my Advanced Auto Parts store.

Biernuts said:

Thanks very much for the input guys...I REALLY appreciate your time.

I will try to find the BG44K today. I've never heard of it..
Seafoam..isn't that an un-appealing color for VW Bugs? ;-)

I have the fuel filter and will install tonight. According to Haynes and Chilton there's only one located near the tank (?). I'm always a little leery of these two publishers...

Plugs and oil/filter this weekend along with the already purchased EGR valve.

I started it again last night and it backfires pretty bad now...and won't stay running. This is gonna be fun.

Mark

Click to expand...

on the pre97's (which yours is) it is on the drivers side near the tank, tucked in next to the frame rail...

follow the fuel/brake lines back towards the tank and you cant miss it

another praise for BG44K and no fram filters

Again..thank you.

I have one more question...It's been a while since I've worked on cars and I'm a little rusty.

When I replaced the cap & rotor, I just pulled off the old cap, pulled out the rotor and popped the new parts on. This is correct right? No need to find TDC on the #1 agin since nothing moved...

old_man,
I've used nothing but fram filters for oil and air in all my cars for the past 13 years. I'm always willing to improve so please enlighten me why I shouldn't use Fram.

I've used Fram before and had nothing but problems. I've been using K&N Air and Oil Filters for the last 2 years now and everything seems to be fine. They are alittle more expensive, but worth every penny.

Fram took their manufacturing offshore. Since then, I have personally seen three vehicles where the Fram filter element inside collapsed and choked off the flow of oil, cratering the engine. I personally had low oil pressure due to one partially collapsed. They used to be the premium brand, now they are trading on a good rep to pass crappy quality. Ask around.

Personally I use a Frantz oil filter, but that is a whole different thread altogether. Not for you younger folks.:repair:

old_man said:

Personally I use a Frantz oil filter, but that is a whole different thread altogether. Not for you younger folks.:repair:

Click to expand...

then how about us OLDER FARTS there, Tom ?

FYI-- when you change the fuel filter make sure you follow the procedure to relieve the fuel pressure from the system and even then stay clear to make sure it doesnt spray all over you. When I did mine I followed the procedure exactly and I still got sprayed all in the face. It was really painful and sucked so by all means use caution.

Biernuts said:

If I wiggle a couple of the the injectors I can see fuel seepage while it's running.

Click to expand...

If those are the original injectors, it would be a very good idea to replace them ASAP.

The injectors on the pre-HO engines had a tendency to leak when they got older, and more than a few XJs of that vintage have been lost to engine fires started by leaking injectors. One fellow (who no longer posts in these parts) had his burn up in the dealer lot as he was inside buying new injectors.

Your description suggests that your seepage is at the o-rings for the moment, but if you're going to go to the trouble of pulling the injectors out to do them, I'd say just go all the way and get new injectors in there.

If these are new injectors installed shortly before the XJ was left to "lie fallow", they might be salveagable, but it might take a LOT of cleaning (or maybe even rebuilding).

Good luck, and keep a close eye on that fuel seepage.

Rob

Thanks Rob...

I'm buying O rings at lunch today...I don't want to spend the $$ yet on the injectors until I know they are bad. They are original so they probably are I suppose....I have a fire extiguisher handy even though it's not drivable.

If the car has been sitting for several years and you still find some gas in it, then the tank must have been with a lot when it was parked and that liquid which has evaporated has left a lot of GUNK inside the tank.

In my Yamaha Wave Venture tank in the old days I left the gas from one summer season to the next, when I started the motor the following summer I always got a completly fouled up pair of carbs which forced me to an expensive carb overhaul, afterwards I learned, and found, that a sticky gunk had been left in the bottom of the tank by the gasoline just standing there for several months, to clean it solvents were no solution and I had to take the tank out and wype it clean with rags until clean, this is done easily in the Yamaha as the tank is white plastic and you can notice the deposits easily from the outside.

In the XJ I would strongly recomend, taking out the gas tank, opening the fuel level sensors lid (only way inside the tank) and cleaning it througly before going to expensive repairs that are going to get clogged again as soon as you start driving and sloshing gas around the tank.

Really it's not that difficult and you can change in the way the back gasoline filter and blow through the fuel lines to clean them.

Have a nice time rebuilding the XJ this is an increadibly faithfull and fun vehicle.

Cheers

SACEM

RyleyF said:

Seafoam it!

Click to expand...

2x

Check BG products website they have a dealer locator

http://www.bgprod.com/home.html

Check BG products website they have a dealer locator
__________________________________________________________
There's a Volvo repair shop around the corner from my office....all they use is BG products...
She said she sells cases of BG44K to buys like me all the time...at $26.00 incl/tax per can.

It's easy for me to find. I already have one can in the tank. No help with this one...

Thanks