Considering purchasing

I am considering picking up an 89 Cherokee Limited for a good price. I have not been to see the rig yet and just wanted some advice/opinions before I head out there.

It's appears in good shape inside/out and has a 4.5" rough country lift installed on 32" tires. Owner says it has bad death wobble over 40mph. Says it has stock trackbar with no drop bracket.

Obviously there can be other causes of death wobble but I have no idea really never owned a cherokee. What are the chances that simply swapping out with an adjustable bar and getting a good alignment will cure the problem?

Anything else I should look for? Thanks guys, hoping to pick this one up if it's not a turd.

a good double shear track bar bracket and adjustable track bar would definitely not be a waste of money, and would probably help or fix it.
there's a ton of other stuff to look at though, although it's all relatively cheap. ball joints, tie rod ends, unit bearings, control arm bushings, loose steering gearbox, alignment, etc..

if he has the stock track bar, he probably still has stock control arms and no drop brackets. if that's the case, whatever lift it has isnt worth much so IMO don't pay a premium for it, not any more than stock anyways. considering it has bad death wobble, i'd lowball him pretty good.

Thank you going to look at it tomorrow hopefully. I'll report back if I find something I'm not sure about

I just wanted to share that I brought the Jeep home

Before I made it down there the PO made an attempt to cure the DW by installing a double shear TB bracket / adjustable track bar. Still had HORRIBLE death wobble when I brought it home. Long story short I aligned it with a tape measure in the driveway and haven't had once instance of death wobble since. Love a cheap fix

Now just to get all the regular maint. up to date before throwing any parts at it.

Thanks for the advice Vanimal. Glad I was able to pick this one up.

Death wobble isn't that big a deal to fix. I would pull the plugs and do a compression test. Open the air box and look for a large puddle of oil. Have an emission test run. Open the radiator and make sure the coolant is nice and green. Pull the dipstick and smell. If it smells burnt or is totally black, I would definately make sure and do a compression test.

Look at the rear axle, there maybe a Dana 44 hiding there.

Vanimal said:

if he has the stock track bar, he probably still has stock control arms and no drop brackets. if that's the case, whatever lift it has isnt worth much so IMO don't pay a premium for it, not any more than stock anyways. considering it has bad death wobble, i'd lowball him pretty good.

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Many, MANY lift kits come without tracbars... i would have to dissagree...

Pic of new rig. Let the fun begin. Believe it or not I traded a Miata for this thing Haha. I also have a 71 cj-5

Cool running lights! Dang, is that a side pipe?

Pop the hood and show some pics of that Renix.

Welcome to Naxja

Yeah the po did the running lights they're ok. And yes the po also has no cat or muffler installed. That'll be remedied soon.

The RENIX needs some cleaning gaskets etc but I did do a few odds and ends this weekend.

First, I ran new drain tubes in all four corners of the sunroof. I think between that and adding some silicon on the inside around the gasket should keep me good and dry.

I also cleared about 12lbs of loose wire out of the jeep and rewired the stereo properly. The PO used a lamp cord to wire up the speakers, LMAO that's a new one for me. Anyhow there was crap ran everywhere so I pulled it all out.

Then installed a mechanical oil pressure gauge where the cigarette lighter used to reside and then added a waterproof dual 12v power outlet next to the console. I plan to add a trans temp gauge also in the dash at that point I may swap out the oil pressure gauge so they match. I had this one just laying around. Also plan to plumb in a T fitting for the factory sender when I get a new one.

old_man said:

Open the air box and look for a large puddle of oil.

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Well, the PO removed the airbox in favor of a cone filter but left all the PCV hoses just hanging there over the filter--but there does look like some oil is getting dripped on it. The PCV hoses and grommets all leak like a civ I plan to replace them but I'd like to find a stock airbox too.