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Churning Crank and no start

WhiteTonka

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Chicago
Alright fellas,

I got my xj (97 4.0) here at school and it won’t start. It won’t even crank unless I put my jump starter on it. When it does crank, it sounds really bad. Like a churning sound. I tried it a few times but stopped because I felt like it was bad for it. Any ideas on what I should/shouldn’t replace? Idk if the dead battery is part of the issue or separate because I’ve had to jump it a few months but not for a few months. Anyways I really need to figure this out and fix it. Thanks all!!
 
A battery cannot last in a badly discharged state indefinitely. First you need a battery. Also a bad battery is hard on the alternator and starter. You may have damaged both .
 
A battery cannot last in a badly discharged state indefinitely. First you need a battery. Also a bad battery is hard on the alternator and starter. You may have damaged both .

Spot on.

Start with the simple stuff. Put in a good battery and make sure you have good connections at both ends of the cables.

If the starter still sounds bad after that then swap starters.

Hopefully you will not need to proceeed beyond there.
 
Not wanting to crank at all is often the neutral safety sensor (NSS). Does it crank with the shifter in neutral? Reverse lights working? Bleepin Jeep has some good videos on the NSS.
 
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