XJ_NorCal
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Patterson, CA
1998 Cherokee Sport
4.0 Litre with 115K miles
AW4 Automatic Transmission
NP231 Transfer Case
On my way to Tahoe my rig began to overheat on an uphill climb. Normally temp gauge reads slightly to the left of 210 deg. F on open road and slightly to the right of 210 deg. F on uphill climbs and out on the trail. I noticed it was running hotter than normal (225ish deg. F) on a flat road prior to the climb. I was driving with the AC on so I figured that was the culprit.
A few miles into my climb my "check gauges" light came on and the temp. gauge shot up into the red (250-ish deg. F). I immediately turned my Heater on full blast and within 10 seconds my temperature dropped back to just above 210 deg. F. 10 minutes later the exact same thing happened. I pulled over at the next gas station to check my coolant reservoir and it had plenty in it. The jeep cooled down to 210 while idling in the parking lot. It continued to run hotter than normal until I reached Tahoe and on the way home on flat ground.
I've never had any issues running hot prior to this and that includes multiple 3+ hour drives to trails, trail riding and driving 3+ hours back home. I flushed the radiator and installed a new thermostat in November. I'm thinking it was related to my AC running so I'm considering cleaning out my AC condenser. Any suggestions for what else I should check/service?
4.0 Litre with 115K miles
AW4 Automatic Transmission
NP231 Transfer Case
On my way to Tahoe my rig began to overheat on an uphill climb. Normally temp gauge reads slightly to the left of 210 deg. F on open road and slightly to the right of 210 deg. F on uphill climbs and out on the trail. I noticed it was running hotter than normal (225ish deg. F) on a flat road prior to the climb. I was driving with the AC on so I figured that was the culprit.
A few miles into my climb my "check gauges" light came on and the temp. gauge shot up into the red (250-ish deg. F). I immediately turned my Heater on full blast and within 10 seconds my temperature dropped back to just above 210 deg. F. 10 minutes later the exact same thing happened. I pulled over at the next gas station to check my coolant reservoir and it had plenty in it. The jeep cooled down to 210 while idling in the parking lot. It continued to run hotter than normal until I reached Tahoe and on the way home on flat ground.
I've never had any issues running hot prior to this and that includes multiple 3+ hour drives to trails, trail riding and driving 3+ hours back home. I flushed the radiator and installed a new thermostat in November. I'm thinking it was related to my AC running so I'm considering cleaning out my AC condenser. Any suggestions for what else I should check/service?