WTF is this? I fix one thing, and something else breaks?

I spend the day installing some front tow hooks I bought off eBay and a new transfer case gear to correct the speedometer/odometer for my larger tires. I'm as happy as can be with new parts and WHAMMO, I notice my passenger side window stops working.

I mean, what kind of justice is this, anyway? I thought we were supposed to make our JXs better with upgrades and improvements. Now I have a broken window switch to boot? What the hell trade off is this, anyway? That's sort of like having your wife finally say, "yeah, I'll do that thing you've always wanted" only to find out you need root canal.

Here's my question...

How many of you Jeeple have had one thing break right after improving something on your Cherokee?

ALL THE TIME!!!
i often wondered if i was the only one that had this kind of problem.
i finally decided that i was going to just rebuild everything and not have anything to worry about anymore. and thats what i am in the rpocess of doing right now

i had the same thing happen... put on my RE lift and the next day my passenger side window quits working!

It happens. Usually when I don't have time to fix them.

Just happened here too. Rear passenger window would not roll up. Turned out to be the switch cluster on the drivers door not sending power. Fix that, but now all my power locks keep locking over and over on their own Also seems to happen each time I put any money into the jeep and the wife wonders why I dont put that money into a down payment for something newer.

Your "window lock" switch is shot. I found a writeup around here and fixed mine in 20 minutes if that by jumping the switch with some 14 gauge wire. The window lock switch don't work, but who needs one anyway.

When I bought my Cherokee, I just looked for one that had everything imaginable wrong with it. That way I don't have the problem you're experiencing, as everythings broken already. I also saved some green.

rocknxj said:

How many of you Jeeple have had one thing break right after improving something on your Cherokee?

Click to expand...

Yep. Happens too often. Sometimes it's "coincidental", sometimes I break other stuff while fixing something.

Next week's game is a cracked exhaust manifold. Who knows what will happen?

Im sure you have heard this one before.............
J ust
E mpty
E very
P ocket

Tell me about it! I just put new exh/man gasket in Friday eve.. Get up in morning tell the wife the MJ's fixed so lets run over to the coast. Get half way there & the alternator goes out. Drove last 40 miles to beach on battery. All the auto parts are closed up so after enjoying an afternoon on the beach head home on battry. Made it 20 miles and it dies middle of no-where. Scrounge a battery out of a passerbys boat, and fortunately it had enuf elec in it to run me last 55 miles home. So, Monday AM back at it working on MJ to change out the alt.. No, on old MJ's it never seems to end. Hell, I guess that might be why I own one.

yup, theres always something. This summer I got to a point where I was ready to sell the XJ..but then I cooled off, fixed the problems and decided to drive it for a bit longer. The more I got to thinking about it, the more I liked the notion of keeping the XJ. I figure that any other older vehicle I buy will have some problems, maybe even more! Ive already invested alot of time into learning to fix my jeep, and I'm pretty happy to be able to tackle just about any job..something that I'd have to completely re-learn with another brand of vehicle. Ive been slowly fixing the XJ up to a point where I'm happy with it and I think at this point I'm going to keep it for the long haul and just fix things as they come up, since I'd rather have a rig that I know inside out than something too complex for my backyard mechanic skills to fix.

PS, I had my driver side motor go out a while ago after doing a bunch of cooling system work..same thing! That was right around the same time I vowed I would sell the jeep..strangely enough, the window motor started working again the next day and now zips up and down like it was brand new! Sometimes you just gotta scare the bejeesus out of the old girl.

For me it's not so much things breaking right after I improve something, as things breaking when i'm far away from home.

For example, Spring break 2 years ago. Jumped in the Jeep and drove 250 miles to the beach after school, excited as all could be. Get to the beach house and go to roll my window up, and whaddya know...passenger window won't roll up.....son of a...! Spent the next 3 hours improvising in my buddy's grandparent's garage of the beach house, trying to get my window up. A piece of molding and duct tape did the job perfectly.

The next day, driving to the other end of the island to do a little wheelin on the beach (the main reason I brought the Jeep with me). CEL comes on, and my scanner is at home. Drove it the 20 miles up to town to Autozone and get them to scan it. o2 sensor problem (fluke), thought OK it's the same deal it's been doing for months, there's nothing wrong and the light will go off eventually. I'm driving back from Autozone and it all goes to hell. Starts trying to stall at lights, and not staying in any particular gear driving down the highway. Limped it back to the beach house, and went to work on it the next day, only to find the CEL off, and it running perfectly...:banghead:

What I learned from this trip.....never, and I mean NEVER, leave home with out some basic tools, and if your Jeep is new enough, your OBDII scanner! I now keep some basic tools in the Jeep, along with my scanner, at all times.

It only seems to break when I put more than 1/2 a tank of gas in it. The last time I filled it up I had to replace the D30 up front.

we all go through this phase with the jeep. i had it over the summer. just be patient and it will pass.

When mine acts up (my window switches quit working too over the weekend) I take it out and spank it in the woods.

Jeeps don't like to be fixed up, just leave 'em alone, change the oil every so often and they'll run forever. Try and be nice to one or call it a JK (see your post) and it'll turn on ya.....lol.
It really does seem like whenever you make an improvement it rejects it and breaks something else.

Most recently, after overheating problems caused me to be strapped over Imogene Pass and taking the XJ home on a trailer, I replaced the radiator, thermostat, fan clutch, and the upper radiator hose just because I had an extra. The other hoses were less than five years old.

I still had a high idle problem, so a whole bunch of messing around, and a new TPS, plugs, a new IAC, cleaned up rotor and distributor cap, oil flush, O2 sensor,and it was purring like a kitty. It was idling in the driveway, and I was cleaning up, putting tools away. I was walking away from the jeep, I just happened to look under the motor, and there was a fresh puddle. WTF!! It was coolant, popped the hood, there was a thin stream shooting from the upper heater hose right by the clamp. I wiggled it and it stopped. Happened to have a hose that fit perfect, replaced it.

Keep your fingers crossed. I'm going to try to go wheeling this weekend. :laugh:

Fred

For me it seems like I can't even fix one problem before I have another. But maybe it is a related problem. I've been having intermittent spark issues, but now it seems as though my alternator is malfunctioning (just replaced it about a year ago). My Jeep just breaks down all the time. Seems that when I beat on it the hardest is when it lasts the longest.