looking for opinions on my xj

[lilcoxj]

first off sorry if this is posted in the wrong section. so my jeep has recently started having horrible drivetrain problems. its a 1997 cherokee sport 4.0 inline 6 with 305,xxx miles. the motor itself seems to run strong but has a leak somewhere i nor any shop can seem to find. who knows. it has developed a tendency to bog down. its hard to describe unless you drive it. i feel like it is either the fuel pump, sending unit, or filter. i took it in and had it serviced and tuned to see if this would cure my problem. it didnt. it also has a pretty bad knock coming from the headers. exhaust manifold? from there my rear dif is shot. the spider gears pop everytime i accelerate moderitly hard. not suprising cuz of the dana 35. so pretty much im just wondering what to do at this point. do i keep pumping money into my heep or do i look for a new rig? also what would be my best bet. rebuild wise i dont really know which way to go. simple 4.0 swap, stroker, v8? or new rig wise i was thinking either a newer xj or yota(i know i know) so idk. let me know what you guys think. thanks

 

[darkoverlift]

If it is not your primary vehicle I would use this opportunity to improve it since you know what was wrong or going wrong prior too these current issues.

 

[RedChuck]

like above if its not you dd. find a smashed up donor with a good drive line and swap the drive line. look for one with an 8.25 and your getting a better rear axle. if you can swap it all out on your own your saving much more than getting a new rig.

then part out the remainder of the donor and recoup some cash. and sell the carcass to a junkyard or a scrapyard.

i just chewed off some teeth from my spiders and i just got a set to swap out from a junk yard for cheap

 

[RedChuck]

find something like this. that you can buy the whole jeep
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1999...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

 

[comancheon33]

What I did on my 99 XJ with 220000 on it and a very tired and noisey 4.0 is. I found another 99 that had been rolled over with 101000. I pulled the motor and tranny out of both resealed the newer one and installed in my 99. I bought a 94 2.5 5 speed 4x4 with a bad motor and swapped the axles in and got cheap 4.10s. Plus the 94 had a HP30 and 8.25.

 

[jeepinwi]

I'd say it's time to put the Heep to rest and part her out. Either that or sell it for $500 and upgrade to another vehicle. With that many miles, it'll probably become a money pit if you hang on to it much longer.

 

[xj92]

I agree, unless the body and interior are pristine, which they're probably not with that many miles, just sell it for whatever you can and start off with a lower mileage rig.

 

[Dr. Dyno]

I suggest you buy a newer XJ that's in good condition with a lower mileage and keep your old one as a parts donor.