need to make my jeep road trip worthy???high kms

hey I just bought a jeep off my buddy my plan was to get it running for as cheap as possible and sell it to make some extra money as I have recently been laid off but Im starting to really consider keeping it and making it my daily driver as I really miss having a XJ

its a 95 jee cherokee 4.0 sport. with 342xxxkms on it. which i know is high. I did a compression test on the engine at it was 145psi across

I need to make sure this jeep is ready for a road trip by the summer. Im planning on drivinging it from Vancouver to Calgary and back in the middle of summer and I cant afford it breaking down.

I have replaced the starter, alternator, spark plugs and leads.

what else should i be replacing/checking with such high milage to make sure I will have a worry free road trip?

Im planning on doing the timing belt, replacing the valve cover gasket, not sure what else I should be checking or replacing?

thanks

I've had to do a couple of water pumps, radiators and hoses. Might want to give those some thought. I'm at 295K miles eace:

There is no timing belt on the 4.0. It is a timing chain and it is pretty hearty.

The best bang for your buck for maintenance? Okay, here you go.

Plugs, plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, fuel filter, air filter, ALL fluids including coolant, transmission, differentials, transfer case, oil and filter.

While you're doing coolant, put on all new hoses and a new OEM 195 degree thermostat purchased from Jeep.

Cleaning the throttle body and idle air control is always a good idea as they get carboned up over miles and time.

Oh yea, a new air freshener

I agree about the belts and hoses for sure wouldnt hurt to grease up all the fittings and take a peek at the brake lines and hoses and cylinders and you should be good mine has 369000:wierd:

For such high miles and for a long trip, I'd be thinking bearings as culprit that could leave you sidelined in the middle of very beautiful country...

Check u-joints for slop.
Ditto front hubs, see if there is play or resistance.

SMTCapeCod said:

For such high miles and for a long trip, I'd be thinking bearings as culprit that could leave you sidelined in the middle of very beautiful country...

Check u-joints for slop.
Ditto front hubs, see if there is play or resistance.

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u mean engine bearings? not much I can doif they go..any way to check if they are in decent shape?

is there anything I can do besides compression test to check if engine is running properly?

birchlakeXJ said:

There is no timing belt on the 4.0. It is a timing chain and it is pretty hearty.

The best bang for your buck for maintenance? Okay, here you go.

Plugs, plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, fuel filter, air filter, ALL fluids including coolant, transmission, differentials, transfer case, oil and filter.

While you're doing coolant, put on all new hoses and a new OEM 195 degree thermostat purchased from Jeep.

Cleaning the throttle body and idle air control is always a good idea as they get carboned up over miles and time.

Oh yea, a new air freshener

Click to expand...

I would add a new accessory belt--Gator Back, and I would change the thermostat to a Stant SuperStat Premium 195.

birchlakeXJ said:

There is no timing belt on the 4.0. It is a timing chain and it is pretty hearty.

Click to expand...

X2, use a mechanic's stethoscope to listen to the timing chain cover. If you hear rattling, the chain may have stretched a bit, if you hear nothing, you're good to go.

birchlakeXJ said:

The best bang for your buck for maintenance? Okay, here you go.

Plugs, plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, fuel filter, air filter, ALL fluids including coolant, transmission, differentials, transfer case, oil and filter.

While you're doing coolant, put on all new hoses and a new OEM 195 degree thermostat purchased from Jeep.

Cleaning the throttle body and idle air control is always a good idea as they get carboned up over miles and time.

Oh yea, a new air freshener

Click to expand...

Agreed. I would add new transmission cooler lines to the list if they are rusty on yours. $70 or so on rockauto, you want 1 each of Dorman 624-300, 624-301, 624-334, and two 800-714s. Do this while you're changing the transmission fluid, use compressed air to blow the old fluid out of the cooler while the lines are off.

chris y said:

I agree about the belts and hoses for sure wouldnt hurt to grease up all the fittings and take a peek at the brake lines and hoses and cylinders and you should be good mine has 369000:wierd:

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Agreed. Make sure your fuel return line is not as heavily rusted as mine was, double check your brake lines like chris said. Throw a new fuel filter on it also.

Spares to bring on the trip - a crankshaft positioning sensor and tools to change it, some relays, some fuses, some bulbs, some fluids, some transmission cooler rubber line (3/8"), some fuel hose (3/8" and 1/4" iirc, only a foot or two of each, just for emergency patches), some hose clamps to fit both (fuel injection clamps preferred, they'll handle higher pressures), print out the instructions for bypassing a faulty NSS in case yours flakes out, maybe a junkyard spare ECU and an alternator if you are afraid yours might blow up. Might consider a spare fuel pump (and new J-bolts and nuts) as well but that's entirely up to you, I am not sure I'd bother. Bring your old serpentine belt as a spare - I just throw the old one under the back seat when I replace it.

EDIT: check your harmonic balancer, too.

EDIT2: oh, and motor/transmission mounts. And replace or eliminate your heater control valve, that sucker is very delicate after a decade+ of hot coolant flowing through it.

One more important tool...........multimeter. Also wiring diagram.

Two more fluids to change.........brake fluid and power steering.

get C.A.A.

SWAMPMAN said:

get C.A.A.

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Is that like AAA, but for Canadians, eh?

"How did they name Canada? The letters were thrown in a bag, and the first one to be picked was 'C' eh?, then 'N' eh? and finally 'D' eh?"

The fact that it's called C eh eh cracks me up yeah, I agree, get that. And write down a full list of the junkyards along your path... you can make it a pretty good distance even with breakdowns that way.

If we havent made you paranoid yet check the ujoints as well mainly just plan ahead and good luck it is always stressfull on that first outing to me anyway..:wave1:

chris y said:

If we havent made you paranoid yet check the ujoints as well mainly just plan ahead and good luck it is always stressfull on that first outing to me anyway..:wave1:

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Im a little paranoid now..maybe i should just rent a car..we will see if I feel confident enough when the time comes..I cant really afford to break down as we are going to a wedding and cant be late

Is it just me or am I lucky?

I jump in my XJ drive from Miami to Boston MA a distance of 1,200+ miles one way to visit family, from Miami to Des Moines IA a distance of 1,600+ miles to work and I never think about it or what I need to do to make the XJ road/trip worthy. Of cource I have the XJ for some months before I had to drive more than 200 miles from home.

You (OP) on the other hand just got your XJ so there are a number of things that may need to be done in the way of regular maintainance and a once-over to make it more reliable especially if it was not serviced properly. While the advice given are good and the posted are well intentioned, the amount of advice could become ever whelming.

Vehicles today including the XJ are very reliable and road worthy. If time allows, chance some of the things mentioned in the above posts and inspect others. While it is always good to put the miles on someone's vehicle, you do not get the pleasure of driving your own.

The thing i would do is log several miles close to home first lots of stop and go at lease few hundred before going way far i kinda inch farther nd farther every trip i go from home.

There should be plenty of time between now and summer to check things out.

There's really not that much about high mileage you need to worry about if everything is in good repair. In addition to things already mentioned, I'd make sure the brake pads and shoes are good, and check the condition of the radiator, since at that age the fins might be corroding. If that happens you'll tend to overheat under stress.

I regularly take my high mileage XJ's on long trips without much worry. By summer you'll know its quirks pretty well, and should be able to determine what is a threat.

Are you confident in your mechanical ability? If not, breakdowns while traveling can be VERY expensive. You are at the mercy (LOL) of whomever tows you in to their garage. Been there MANY years ago without tools.

If you have traveling companions (significant other, etc.), it can also be very stressful on your relationship. You may want to just rent a car. The gas mileage difference will make up a lot of the cost.

OK so you bought the jeep from a buddy .. at least you should know the history of the jeep then.. did he have an major issues with it . i didnt see anywhere if this jeep has been lifted or wheeled at all .. i can understand your questions .. my 95 has somewhere around 350,000 clicks as well i . i think its much more cuz my speedo has been outta whack for way too many yrs.. vancouver to calgary aint that far . are you pulling a trailer or anything.. . im heading out on a trip to utah and colorado in sept, and pulling a trailer.. and i have no clue if im gonna make it home again in one piece..think of it as a big adventure..

Check ball joints and suspension/steering connections too. (I had these checked prior to a NJ-Moab run, and found I was due for ball joints). Also, give your pinion seals & rear main a real good once-over.

x10 on the trans cooler lines.

Since it's an older, high-mileage vehicle, bring some of every fluid type along, in case you see drips underneath when you stop and need to top up.