Newbie needing some light tech advice

Hello all, as you can tell, I'm new to this site. You guys have come highly recommended for the Full-size site (ifsja.org) of which I help to moderate.

Let me tell you a little about myself which may help you save some time in replying to the tech questions. On a shadetree mechanic scale, I'd give myself a 7 outta 10 on older, non-computer controlled cars, and about a 2 outta 10 on anything newer than 86 (with the exception of Grand Waggies, of course). I've rebuilt my 77ish Cherokee Chief from the frame up, including the engine, xfer case, brakes, pretty much everything but the tranny and the diffs. If you want to see a picture of it go here...

http://gfsj.org/forums/index.php?&act=Garage&CODE=12&CID=4

So you ask, if your a full-size guy, why are you here? Well, I also have a 97 Jeep Cherokee Sport that my wife uses as a daily driver. It's got about 90k on the ticker, and has been a great car so far. Typically, I let the pro's do all the wrenchin on my DD's, but do to my current state of finances (or lack thereof), I need to perform the 90k maintanance myself. I don't know too much about the specs except it's the 4wd 4.0 inline 6 and an automatic tranny.

I recently ran into some trouble with it with the check engine light coming on, the codes for it are P0700, P0705, and P0705pd. It looks like the problem was with the neutral safety switch. Is this an easy thing to change out?

As for the routine maintanance, I need to change the plugs, fuel filter, PCV, all that standard crap. Can anyone tell me if there is any "gotchas" lurking out there to bite me in the butt? Do I have to disconnect the battery before I do any type of maintanance on it? This is the one I'd really like to get some advice on. Things like...should I run platinum plugs? what type of fluid in the xfer case? Anything special about the gear lube? etc. etc.

Thanks!
Brad

I run regular Champion plugs and like em. Tranny fluid in the transfer case, (Dexron III), and 80W-90 gear lube ( I use the napa stuff) (don't forget to add friction modifier if its a limited slip).

i use bosch platnum+4 i like em huge difference in power when i put em in but i changed cap and wires witch were original ones with 173,000 miles on it. old plugs looked ancient. but anyway thats what plugs i use

Hey, welcome! I think you would be best off getting the plugs, wires, cap and rotor from the dealer. I used NAPA ones and they sucked. Your manual will tell you what fluids to use. Also, don't forget to lubricate your chassis at all the zerks. Consider switching to Synthetic engine oil if you are going to keep it a while. You can go twice as long between changes and it is much better for your engine. Also change your fuel filter.

I forgot, I think you will be surprised how easy the thing is to work on. My 96 is easier than my old 69 Cutlass!

Maintenance is pretty standard, you don't have to DX the battery or anything wierd like that.

Plugs? I run Autolite Platinum, and I rather like them. Then again, I do have Der Kalifornia Smog Kommisar to deal with, and I think the AP plugs help with that...

The automatic transmission used behind the 4.0 is the Aisin-Warner AW4 - it's a solid box, but I'd not be surprised to hear you've never heard of it before, unless you're a Toyota wrench... There is an oddity, tho - the Neutral Safety Switch.

You'll find the NSS on the pax side of the transmission, directly opposite where the shifter rod enters the case. It's a "fan-shaped" switch that looks about like a quarter circle.

Taking it off for service is a bit of a pain - the adjuster bolt (up top) is easy, but the collet around the shifter rod isn't. You'll take off the large nut, then you'll need a couple flat tools to get behind the switch to G-E-N-T-L-Y pry the thing off - you don't want to break the case.

Why? Easy - you can service it yourself for about $10 (less, if you're like me and keep RTV, dielectric grease, Ox-Gard, and stuff like that around...) or you can buy a new one for about $300. Given a choice, service it - the main problem people have with it is that it is a farily complex switch and gets crapped up fairly easily. It usually just wants a good cleaning and put it back - but I like to reseal the case while I'm at it.

I'll not go into the details of the process, as it has been done to death rather thoroughly elsewhere. For writeups, a search will turn up several - I don't have any URLs handy. If you are in or near San Jose, I'd be happy to show you how to do the job - it's really farily simple - just time-consuming and you have to watch for some small internals while you work.

Driveline Parts (for your edification...)
Front Axle - likely Dana 30
Rear Axle - Chrysler 8.25"
Engine - AMC/Jeep 242ci Inline Six
Transmission - Aisin-Warner AW4 four-speed automatic
Transfer Case - Two possibles -
If you have "2HI-4HI-N-4LO" it's an NV231
If you have "2HI-4FT-4PT-N-4LO" it's an NV242
Both use Dexron II/III for fluid. The AW4 also likes Dexron, but reports from the field indicate to stay well away from synthetics - apparently, they're TOO slippery for the AW4 clutches. There are no band adjustments for the AW4 to worry about on a periodic basis. The "filter" is a sump screen, and needs no changing. I probably pull mine and clean it every 50K or so, but usually just draining the fluid and refilling with four quarts of Dexron will do (AW4 service fill is 4 quarts, overhaul fill is 8 quarts, including torque converter.) All other fluids are as you probably expect.
U-joints are (usually) greasable from the factory, so check for Zerks. If they're "permalubed" (yeah, right!) from the factory, getting Dana/Spicer replacements with grease fittings typically poses no trouble.

Anything else we can help you with? I think you'll find that, for the most part, the drivetrain on the XJ is fairly solid, and the only real maintenance issue you have at the moment is that you should find an inexpensive OBD-II code reader - AutoXray makes a good one, and there are some PDA-based units out there if you have a Palm or similar.

5-90

Thanks for the advise all, just got her all done. It was pretty quick and straight forward, and for the most part I had enough room to work. I'm starting to like the Jeep a little more - though it will never replace the 77! LOL!

I did run into one problem, how do I know if I have a trac-lok in the rear or not? Just trying to figure out if I need to add the limitied slip magic juice. Any help on that would be appreciated!!!

Thanks again!
Brad

Sitting Bull said:

Thanks for the advise all, just got her all done. It was pretty quick and straight forward, and for the most part I had enough room to work. I'm starting to like the Jeep a little more - though it will never replace the 77! LOL!

I did run into one problem, how do I know if I have a trac-lok in the rear or not? Just trying to figure out if I need to add the limitied slip magic juice. Any help on that would be appreciated!!!

Thanks again!
Brad

Click to expand...

If you have a working trac-loc, then with the rear end jacked up, box in neutral, turning one wheel should cause the other to turn in the same direction. Of course that won't tell you if you have a worn-out trac-loc. There should be a tag attached to one of the cover bolts, and on a 97 there's a good chance it hasn't rotted off yet.