oddly optioned xj's

anybody out there have strange option combos?
ive got an 87 xj, 2 door, tow package (d44), rubber floors, all vinyl interior, 4.0 aw4 4wd, power steering cooler(tow package includes?), full gauges, and nothing else. so somebody ordered a complete stripper for people comfort and the heaviest duty drivetrain and components. rumor has it from the previous owner that it was a fleet vehicle down in Klamath Falls, OR. has a hole in the roof with a rubber plug in it and i found a shoddily repaired hole in the passenger quarter. qp mounted cb antenna and another one in the roof?

anybody else got strange equipment combos?

Out of the four I have owned here is the weirdest:

1990 XJ 2-door 4x4
4.0L
AW4 Auto
NP-231
Government Package in Canada. It was in metric. I had to swap the gauge pod to an american one.
Power/Comfort Switch for AW4
Had column shift, there was a black radio rack in the center.
Had Vinyl floor mats, no carpet.
Basic Steel Wheels
Bare bones. No options for comfort. No vent windows in the door or side windows. The wipers had two speeds, on and on fast. No tint, no power anything. No roof rack. Very basic AM/FM radio with two front door speakers. But get this, it had full skid plates (front/engine, transfer case, gas tank) but no tow hooks???

MN-Cherokee said:

Out of the four I have owned here is the weirdest:

1990 XJ 2-door 4x4
4.0L
AW4 Auto
NP-231
Government Package in Canada. It was in metric. I had to swap the gauge pod to an american one.
Power/Comfort Switch for AW4
Had column shift, there was a black radio rack in the center.
Had Vinyl floor mats, no carpet.
Basic Steel Wheels
Bare bones. No options for comfort. No vent windows in the door or side windows. The wipers had two speeds, on and on fast. No tint, no power anything. No roof rack. Very basic AM/FM radio with two front door speakers. But get this, it had full skid plates (front/engine, transfer case, gas tank) but no tow hooks???

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Sounds like a Hydro/Electric company unit. Probably needed to tow to remote areas to service hydro towers. Nice and easy to clean with vinyl floor mats.

The Telecos up here also use Jeeps in their fleets for accessing remote towers and such. The yard next to my shop is full of Liberties & Cherokees at the moment.

The only thing that struck me as odd about my '94 Sport is that it has the NP242 (Selec-Trac) t-case. Seems like a rare option on the Sport models.

The interior, however, is slowly turning in to that of a high-end Country/Limited

It already has a few goodies like power locks and windows, but I've added the following factory equipment from the higher-end models:
- overhead console w/ compass and temp display
- visors w/ lighted vanity mirrors
- clock
- miscellaneous missing lights (under-dash courtesy lights, ash tray light, and cigarette lighter ring)
- pin switches in the rear doors (for dome lights)
- factory fog lamp switch/panel (to replace the generic switch for my aftermarket lights)
- factory tweeters (mounted behind those grilles in the lower dash)
- auto-dimming rear-view mirror (okay, that one actually came from a ZJ!)

I'm keeping an eye out for the seats from a Country or Limited and the woodgrain instrument panel bezel. When it comes time to sell this Jeep, the next owner might be a little confused when he sees that the build sheet doesn't list all this "factory" equipment!

iBran said:

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I'm keeping an eye out for the seats from a Country or Limited and the woodgrain instrument panel bezel. When it comes time to sell this Jeep, the next owner might be a little confused when he sees that the build sheet doesn't list all this "factory" equipment!

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this reminds me to ask why you guys buy Sports and Base models than dress them up as Countrys/Limiteds?

Is it harder to trim the fenders of a Country/Limited over a Sport?

streetpirate said:

ive got an 87 xj, 2 door, tow package (d44), rubber floors, all vinyl interior, 4.0 aw4 4wd, power steering cooler(tow package includes?), full gauges, and nothing else. so somebody ordered a complete stripper for people comfort and the heaviest duty drivetrain and components.

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Makes perfect sense - sounds like it was specced as a working vehicle.

I've seen an MJ in the junkyard with a 2.5, automatic, NP242, no power toys, floor shift, D44 rear, tow hooks, tow package (it had an aux. tranny cooler as well as receiver), and full instrumentation. I don't know if this was ever a possible factory combo or if it was someone's bitsa special, but it struck me as being possibly the weirdest mix of options on an XJ or MJ I'd ever run across.

I've read on other threads that the column shift was a popular option for police vehicles. Makes room for the radio rack and things like that. I think if I had an automatic I'd like the column shift, and sometimes I think it would be nice to have a bench seat too (my 47 year old patootie isn't that thick but it is wide and the buckets get confining when the arthritis acts up).

But I think back in the day you could order a Jeep any way you wanted it. My '87 Pioneer has air/tilt/cruise/power, full carpeting, D44 rear and guages (though no tach til I swapped in a cluster just last weekend), the nice factory roof rack, and cloth seats but the nice ones that have the full seat angle adjustment, but it has steelies and a manual tranny. I guess if they upgraded much more there wouldn't have been much Pioneer left. I like the steelies (all the jewelry is intact on them), but I don't like the Peugeot tranny much, leaks oil like a sieve and syncros are real tired.

Around here there are a lot of ex USFS Jeeps, just plain Cherokees in that green color they used to use for everything, grey vinyl interiors no frills. All 4.0 And automatic. My twin sister's XJ was equipped about the same way inside but it was a civillian version and had some decorative exterior trim. A lot of the ex FS rigs I see have a metal cage behind the rear seat and inside the rear side windows. To me, that would be a nice set of features to shart out with for a trail rig.

The fleet used to be parked in large numbers at the federal building parking lot. With the once huge USFS staff there was like a hundred of them, but over time they have been auctioned off and belong to private parties.

These days the government buys loaded Ford Super Duties in assorted colors. Thinking of resale value I imagine. Pretty sure the agencies lease through GSA, run them a year or two, then turn them back in to be sold through dealers as program vehicles. They probably don't save much by doing that, but they darn sure get nicer and newer vehicles for their (well, our) money.

Theres a Renix era XJ in a local salvage yard - Black and white paint, column shift, e-brake under dash, full rubber carpet. Axles are gone but looked like a 4 cyl at one time. I think it was a campus vehicle at a college from the decal residue.

As for the bench seat - I put one in my 90 to deliver mail. I used a Comanche bench on the XJ pedestals - so I'm looking at the factory e-brake underdash as another mod.

It drives just like my old F150 so much I look for the granny low shifter.

I saw a 94 for sale a while back, which looked like a government vehicle but showed no signs of having been one. It was a tan 4 door, 4.0 automatic, total stripper in trim and accessories, rubber mats, column shift and a bench seat, which I'd never seen before. I forgot to look and see if it had an extended idle switch. But it had no sign of having had signage or antennas or lights on it. It was super clean, and priced too high, so I didn't look it over fully. I still don't know whether it was a custom job or a fleet vehicle, and if the latter, what fleet.

FRAM said:

this reminds me to ask why you guys buy Sports and Base models than dress them up as Countrys/Limiteds?

Is it harder to trim the fenders of a Country/Limited over a Sport?

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Because the plastic-cladded Country/Limited models are kinda ugly?!

Kidding aside, it was more of an availability issue for me. I just wanted a Cherokee with the 4.0 and full-time; didn't really care what other options/trim level it had. Seems like the Sport model is the most popular, anyway.

Edit: As far as I know, the fenders are the same on all models; the base/Sports have black plastic flares, the others have painted flares. Only difference I've seen is that the Country/Limiteds usually have plastic cladding on the rocker panels, which probably needs to be removed when you cut the fenders.

MN-Cherokee said:

1990 XJ 2-door 4x4
4.0L
NP-231
Had Vinyl floor mats, no carpet.
Basic Steel Wheels
Bare bones. No options for comfort. No vent windows in the door or side windows. The wipers had two speeds, on and on fast. No tint, no power anything. No roof rack.

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That sounds a lot like my 1990, except that mine has the AX-15. No console, no carpet, no window vents, idiot lights, no power, et c. It's about as stripped-down as it was possible to be (was a/c standard or an option?). I think it was an EMS fleet vehicle (there were small EMS stickers on each rear window when I bought it), but it came with no paperwork from the dealer, and the CARFAX report said nothing about commercial usage.

I guess my 1990 doesnt say country or anything on the outside like i am accustomed to seeing. However it was purchased with everything there was at the time of purchase.EVERYTHING..4.0, 4wd,leather, power everything,cruise, tilt, power tranny switch, rear wiper,rear defroster, fog lights, all guages,has that dark blue with gold trim and goldies on the wheel setup.I dont know what package that is.If anyone can clue me in, hit me up please. Even the Jensen super duper speaker setup.Unfortunatly,...they didnt want the tow packsge (its a d35) : (
But it has an electric seat for the passenger but a manual seat for the driver >:| and ,..alltho i am allmost 100% sure this is an after market add-on,a fully functional sunroof.It was real clean install also. Of course, not a mention of a cupholder.... Now THAAAAAAAT would be the strangest factory option if you found it.I'd have to see pics.

Wallymander said:

I guess my 1990 doesnt say country or anything on the outside like i am accustomed to seeing. However it was purchased with everything there was at the time of purchase.EVERYTHING..4.0, 4wd,leather, power everything,cruise, tilt, power tranny switch, rear wiper,rear defroster, fog lights, all guages,has that dark blue with gold trim and goldies on the wheel setup.I dont know what package that is.If anyone can clue me in, hit me up please. Even the Jensen super duper speaker setup.Unfortunatly,...they didnt want the tow packsge (its a d35) : (
But it has an electric seat for the passenger but a manual seat for the driver >:| and ,..alltho i am allmost 100% sure this is an after market add-on,a fully functional sunroof.It was real clean install also. Of course, not a mention of a cupholder.... Now THAAAAAAAT would be the strangest factory option if you found it.I'd have to see pics.

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that my friend is a Limited just like mine except the manual seat

funvtec said:

that my friend is a Limited just like mine except the manual seat

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Gracias mi amigo.

'90 XJ Larado, auto, 231, Power windows, locks, mirrors, keyless entry, Tilt, AM/FM Cass, Rear wiper/defrog, driving lights, BUT NO FRIGGIN CRUISE CONTROL. I had thought it had been taken out. But there isn't even a hole in the firewall where the cruise unit would have been.

Kingfish said:

'90 XJ Larado, auto, 231, Power windows, locks, mirrors, keyless entry, Tilt, AM/FM Cass, Rear wiper/defrog, driving lights, BUT NO FRIGGIN CRUISE CONTROL. I had thought it had been taken out. But there isn't even a hole in the firewall where the cruise unit would have been.

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I am like Kingfish. I have an '01 Limited with power everything under-the-sun but no cruise. Who orders (In fact who builds) a vehicle with every option available and no cruise?

The only thing odd about mine, is ME. :spam:


Sorry guys, couldn't resist.

Mine came with the floors painted to match rust and all kinds of holes to let the water out.....lol.

DaJudge said:

I am like Kingfish. I have an '01 Limited with power everything under-the-sun but no cruise. Who orders (In fact who builds) a vehicle with every option available and no cruise?

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The 1st owner of my 90XJ Limited never used the cruise control. He asked me what the point of it was.