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What to look for when buying an XJ?

Detritus

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Colorado
I'm looking at a local 97 XJ that looks like its never been offroad. Its got 102,000 miles and appears to be in great mechanical condition. Is there anything special I should watch out for or pay attention to before I buy it?

I also located a 93 and haven't had a chance to inspect it yet since its 200 miles away. What should I be looking for on it? Its got low miles for a 93 and supposedly it was a fleet vehicle.

Oh yeah, first post and I'm glad I found this site. Thanks in advance.
 
where are you at?? depending where you're at there are different things to take a look at.... one of them is look underneath and check for rust. Other things... you might want to check if it engages 4wd, but don't drive on solid surface too much, just engage, drive 5 or 10 feet (if it doesn't it's most likely an easy fix and it might get the price down).
Make sure all the windows and door locks work right... and that's all I can remember.. oh... check whether it doesn't have rear main leak and blow by.

Btw, is it stick that you're looking at ? automatic??? There are different thigns to look for with either one of those.
 
I'm in CO. I've already test driven it and I couldn't find anything wrong with it. 4x4 engages fine and there are no visible leaks anywhere. The only thing I noticed that could be a problem is a slight noise when turning. Also, there was no rust that I could find. I was just wondering if there are subtle things to look for that others have had problems with. Thanks.
 
Can’t say if there are subtle things to look for but
Check to see if the engine was re-built?
Are the people selling the xj the original owners?
Check and see if they'll do a car fax?
Any time you buy any used vehicle there's always going to be things wrong with it.
 
Make sure to look for rust right above the muffler and cat too, I've had 2 of them rust out there. Check the door hinges, had one that was all busted up once. Check the front driveshaft CV joint too, make sure it's tight. Both XJ's I've purchased had bad CV joints on the front driveshaft(one at 80K and one at 133K).
 
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