I found a jeep for sale, engine problems?

I found a 1990 xj today for sale for $300, the guy said that had a broken head gasket

so I test drove it and problems happen, while the jeep was not moving... foot on the brake.... and jeep in drive... I felt the transmisson shifting from neutral to drive and back agaim - not moving -,

then I drove it around the block and back and every time I stop the jeep and pressed the gas it took a while for the jeep to move/move into first gear,

got back to the lot and saw that fluid from the radiator was ALL on the grown.

Guy said that the transmisson fluid was leaking into the radiator and caused the radiator to exploid, and under the jeep was all wet from fluid

is this true?, a good deal?, new engine...radiator...and tranmisson?

thanks

Is the body any good? The tranny problem sounds like low fluid, but where is it going? If in fact it's leaking into the radiator, is the coolant funky? If you have the mechanical ability to fix any of those problems, the price ain't bad. If you don't posess the talent, it'll be a few grand just to fix what you know is wrong, and then it's not a $300 find any more.

it sounds like it could be a good deal, for a buyer that knows these rigs top to bottom.

and to me, you sound like your in the market for a rig you can learn on slowly as you go.

this does not sound like the deal for you!

but. that is just my $.02

Real risky for a newby. Might get lucky. You could buy it, try to figure out quickly what is bad, and what is good. May just need a radiator, may need engine work, may need tranny work. If you get lucky, drop a $100 radiator in it, and change the fluids several times to flush the mixed garbage out you might get luck. If not lucky, you might be able to sell it and get most if not all of your money back, if you are able to keep it running. I paid $300 for one 2 years ago that half the stuff stripped already, and blown engine, rod through the block.

Depends on what ypou can afford. A old jeep on its last legs, if you need a daily driver, can eat lots money real fast.

What is your story? Needs, what can you afford?

i bought my 95' for $300 and it runs perfect

id look at the jeep closely to at least find any more potenial problem, if not any, get it and fix the fluid problem and use it

I have many ideas, I already have a 2000 with a 3.5 under it,
and no Im not an awsome engine fixer guy, but Im willing to get dirty and learn

thought I could buy and if I could fix it up and sell it for more, or it could drive daily to work and back, or rip the jeep apart so I can learn more about the engine, trans, tcase, differi., to see how it all comes together

thanks for the replys

I wonder if the owner thinks its a blown head gasket because of the tranny oil in the radiator. Dumping coolant into the tranny is never good, and it will require lots of flushing to try and fix. If its been driven that way or left that way for a while any bearings might be toasted and you're looking at replacing the tranny.

Honestly if you're not real good with mechanical work yet, this might be over your head. Or it could be a great learning experience if you've got some basic skills, lots of free time, and a desire to learn. On the plus side, there are plenty of experienced folks here willing to lend a hand.

You have a 3.5 what under the 2000?

One thing for sure, he wont find a running jeep for much less. I would expect the tranny to be toast, unless the T fluid is in the radiator, and not coolant in the tranny, but it sounded like the tranny already has issues.

You should sample the T fluid, engine oil and coolant, to see what all is contaminated.

You might try disconnecting the tranny tubing ends from the radiator, and hose the 2 ends together for tests, then cap the radiator ends. Then run the engine (only if there is no coolant in the oil) to test the radiator and engine for a head gasket leak, by putting a ballon on the top, open, filler neck of the radiator to see if it airs up from a head gasket leak. Or just look for lots of air bubbles.

The problem I forsee is that the coolant and tranny fluid doen't mix very well, so flushing it out will be hard. I would maybe flush with a detergent based flush first. If its still slipping, then I'd probably hit the junkyard for a used tranny and t/c. That would be the quickest fix.

If the engine oil is milky, then it's also a blown head gasket and again there is the risk of torn up bearings.

thanks for all the info, when I test drove it.. it did shift gears fine if that matters, Ill see what I can do if its still for sale

thanks