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96 Cherokee Sport AW4 issues and cel?

Thunderballs

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Norcal
Hey guys/gals, new to this site old Jeeper this is my 8 or 9th. This cherokee has 150k on it I thought the rear main was leaking replaced it and the pan gasket only to find out the filter adapter is leaking gotta fix that asap so I'm not driving it. I have a 70mile commute roundtrip and today the tranny started acting funny. When in standstill traffic it doesn't seem like the converter wants to slip enough and the motor runs rough. (Aw4 straight six) However even in idle the motor is running rough with a lope like a cam.

Still gotta replace cap/rotor/wires. Not sure if the oil issue is related or coincidental? Any suggestions?

Great forum btw!
 
Probably coincidental, unless the plug wires, plugs, cap and rotor have been saturated with oil.

My first thought would be that you are overheating, and that the overheating is effecting the running and the transmission.

Before we go to far down the trail, what year/engine/modifications?
 
96 bone stock bought it to wheel and dd. No overheating on the guages anyway, oil pressure around 60 70 not sure if thats good? Idle oil pressure around 40 psi. AW4 and 4.0 motor.
 
Oil pressure is great.

Later models have a problem with "heat soak" due to a change in the manifolds that increased the heat getting to the fuel rail, but that shouldn't be your problem.

You said it started doing it in standstill traffic. Did you put it in neutral and see what was happening? Did it continue to do it after you got moving again?

And what engine? 4.0?
 
Yes 4.0 and yes thats the weird part the engine was running rough like it was cammed in neutral and in stop and go in D with my foot on the brake. the torque converter felt very strange like the lockup was not disengaging?
 
I missed where you said 4.0 the first time.

You could have a problem with the TCU, transmission control unit. You could unplug it and see if it shifts trough the gears manually.

Anyway, did it continue after you got going again, or was it just that one time?
 
Yeah it pretty much did it all the way home I'm going to fix the oil leak, gunk the oil off everything, replace the plugs cap and rotor and reset the ecu to get rid of the cel so I have at least a starting point tomorrow then I'll disconnect the tcu and see what happens. Thanks for the info/suggestions!
 
Might also test your TPS, if it is bad it can play havoc with the trans.
 
Also, you might try the Idle Air Control Valve, sometimes called the AIS (Automatic Idle Speed) Motor. My experience with other Chrysler products is that if this is getting carbon'd up, it will cause a very low idle speed, eventually causing the vehicle to die if you don't hold the throttle down. The TPS symptoms more often cause an erratic high idle, something like 2000+ RPM. I haven't experienced these problems on either of mine yet, so I can't speak from experience on a 4.0 liter. Good luck!!!

Jim
 
Welp I changed the three orings in the oilfilter adapter and the oil is still leaking rght near the rear main. Guess I'm gong to install a second new one and add a little more silicon to it this time. I'm going to change the valve
cover gasket first just to be sure as it has some leaks in the rear also.

Solved the rough idle problem. Yanked the plugs and the po had a shop do the tuneup and they installed autolites. They were all hard fouled. Put in new champions cap rotor and wires and it runs great probably picked up 30 horse feels like it!

This oil things a real stickler though.
 
x2 on checking the valve cover gasket.

Also, after what has been going on, you should clean it up down there as what is coming out now might just be residual.

I like Simple Green 50/50 w/water in a pump garden sprayer, and don't get carried away with the garden hose when rinsing.
 
Wilco Joe!
Yea I got under there after driving it last night and carefully watched what was going on by the rear main. The leak would intermittently start leaking a solid stream of oil which really looks like the main both sides of the block near the main I cleaned up and the leak still came out right under the main on the pan lip. I did notice a large amount of oil seemed to be accumulating behind the torque converter debris shield however. Not sure if it pools up there from above then works its way down to appear as a main leak but man it sure did come out like it was under a little pressure then it would stop. Then it would start again. I bought the main from kragen and it looked fine to me I put some sealant on both sides of the cap per the install instructions but I'm at a loss if the valve cover doesnt do it I guess I'll try another main seal. Not sure if anyone makes a better sealing main?
 
Well more bad news (I guess, but a good opportunity to freshen it up!) My Jeep started smoking white and when I got to work it had lost some coolant. The heater control valve had a small seep but I figured that wasnt it. Pulled three plugs and they all had white residue indicating (I think) water in the combustion chamber so I hop my head and block are ok. I'm going to order a overhaul kit and just pull and inspect everything. While I'm at it I'll replace the rear main again arghh! Anyone know where to find a gasket overhaul kit for the 96 4.0?
 
Try rockauto.com
 
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