Am I right to pass on this '98 XJ?

I test-drove this thing. You can see it here or here. It's a '98 Classic w/the 231 transfer case (Command-Trac) & 186,000 miles (the dealer doesn't list the miles in the advertisements). One owner, acc to Carfax.

I can have it for $3,500 cash from this wholesaler. Same place I bought my 2WD, '96 (currently 111k miles, no leaks, bad O2 heater circuit).

On the test drive it seemed to shift ok, ran ok, _except_ it hesitated when I made a quick left turn, tried to accel hard thru the turn but for a split second it hesitated (didn't stall, no knocking or other noise, just lost power).

I was there when they were cleaning it up just after they got it at auction. The oil was quite black & thick, but no metal shavings in it. Oil sending unit is bad. It may have a small valve cover leak on the passenger side, I'm not sure. No apparent leaks around the head gasket. Underbody is clean w/no sign of leaks or rust. It has small scratches all over the rear bumper, like a large dog w/steel claws was getting in & out of the back. More scratches here & there on the rest of the body. Driver door pivot-pin has been replaced with a large screw, so the door makes horrible noises opening & closing. The passenger rear door was bumped against something & now doesn't seem to close all the way. Power locks don't always work. It has a bloody power sunroof (which works). Cassette deck.

IMO it's too many miles for $3,500. I pd 4k for my '96 at 98k miles. Dealer claims that an insurance company would pay out more than $3,500 if the rig were totaled in an accident, should I believe that? Right now (besides my '96 XJ) I've got a Buick Century with 85k miles worth about $2,500 private party sale, but only $1,500 trade-in. If I were to buy the '98 for $3,500 I wouldn't have money left enough to rebuild the engine if it went bad. I will NOT be trading in my 2WD '96.

I wouldn't be lifting it, but I'd rather have the older style body. And I'd rather have Selec-Trac. & I'd rather have lower miles. I'm probably going to pass on it, what do you all think?

I think you are right very high miles for that price. on ebay it would go fro much less. Id check there

xjnation said:

I think you are right very high miles for that price. on ebay it would go fro much less. Id check there

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I agree with the grease eater from Arizona.

IMO it's too many miles for $3,500

I'd rather have the older style body. And I'd rather have Selec-Trac. & I'd rather have lower miles.



****It seems to me that you answered your own question. It is not worth buying it if you think that you'll have regrets by the time you get it to your driveway****

Cottontail said:

****It seems to me that you answered your own question. It is not worth buying it if you think that you'll have regrets by the time you get it to your driveway****

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Well, I could list some of the positive aspects of buying even a thoroughly used '98:

High-pinion d30 front axle, 29-spline 8.25" rear, built-in cupholders; & the '98 year was generally reliable; the '96 & newer engines had strengthening added to their castings, making them less likely to warp than the '92-'95 vintage engines (and, BTW, making them better candidates for turning them into strokers); deletion/re-engineering of the failure-prone heater control valve; plastic gas tank (won't corrode). Even w/high mileage, I consider these things to be positive improvements over the older models.

Although I'd prefer Selec-Trac & the sturdier, older bodies, I WOULD be tempted to buy a '98 just for the upgraded axles, & supposedly the Command-Trac is less likely to fail than Selec-Trac (but I'm not convinced of that).

I posted b/c I wondered if someone with more experience would tell me that $3,500 is a fine deal & I shouldn't worry about the high mileage. You see, 4x4 XJ's are a little hard to come by in North Texas, for some reason, which is part of the reason the price is high. I've been looking for two years. If I had more money, I could've had a decent one by now (for $7 grand), but I can't spend more than $5,000. This '98 I test drove is just the best option so far. Theoretically, I cld buy it & if the motor craps out in 40k miles I could just rebuild it--but I won't have the money to do so. It'll have to last at least 80k miles from the day I buy it, before I can rebuild it, & I doubt this one will.

If you all think the high mileage is as bad as I do, esp at this price, then I'll let it go.

If you're willing to travel, they are a dime a dozen around here as well as in many other parts of the country.

Just curious, but are there higher quantities of 2x4 XJ's out there? What do they go for? I am thinking of a Jeepspeed rig.

Sorry for the hijack...
Thom

Lawn Cher' said:

If you're willing to travel, they are a dime a dozen around here as well as in many other parts of the country.

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To be quite honest, I'm also 'looking at' a '91 w/Selec-Trac (& ABS & a d35 rear, unfortunately) that has 115k miles--& I'll have to drive/fly/walk 700 miles to get it. I'll try internet-searching for Jeeps in Missouri & see if I find something better.

armchairkrawler said:

Just curious, but are there higher quantities of 2x4 XJ's out there? What do they go for?

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When I lived in Ohio, I probably saw a 50/50 mix of 2x4, 4x4 XJ's. Here in N Texas I could pick up a functioning 2WD for almost nothing. I've seen maybe a dozen 2WD's for less than $2,000 (& you might be able to talk the sellers down to something even lower...). I don't know what the actual 2x4 vs. 4x4 production numbers are.

i just paid 1700 for a 97 XJ with 200k on the clock. new TPS and it runs like brand new with no leaks or using oil. air is cold and heat blows hot. 4x4 is smooth as butta....cant seem to find any major problems with it. if they'd take 2800 cash ($100 bills) id buy it. just me though.

Lawn 'Cher, I see what you mean about the XJ's being a dime a dozen out in MO. There were 68 4WD XJ's within 300 miles of St. Louis on AutoTrader.com, whereas in my area (Dallas) there are only 16 w/in 300 miles, & three of those had over 200k on the clock (but they were still asking 4 grand!!). There aren't many in Oklahoma either, but Missouri, wow. You guys must have a lot of OHV trails or something. Thanks for broadening my horizons, & maybe I'll contribute to MO's economy this summer by buying an XJ out there.

olivedrabcj7 said:

if they'd take 2800 cash ($100 bills) id buy it. just me though.

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They won't go lower than $3,500, but yeah, if they'd sell it for 2800 I'd take the risk. They think they can get at least 4000, &, from what I've seen around here, they're probably right. Unless I stumble on something great, I think I'll take Lawn 'Cher's advice & travel northeast. My parents live in Ohio, maybe I can find something out there--visit them, drive back in a new XJ.

Thanks for the input, all.

HoratioTheJeep said:

Lawn 'Cher, I see what you mean about the XJ's being a dime a dozen out in MO. There were 68 4WD XJ's within 300 miles of St. Louis on AutoTrader.com, whereas in my area (Dallas) there are only 16 w/in 300 miles, & three of those had over 200k on the clock (but they were still asking 4 grand!!). There aren't many in Oklahoma either, but Missouri, wow. You guys must have a lot of OHV trails or something. Thanks for broadening my horizons, & maybe I'll contribute to MO's economy this summer by buying an XJ out there.


They won't go lower than $3,500, but yeah, if they'd sell it for 2800 I'd take the risk. They think they can get at least 4000, &, from what I've seen around here, they're probably right. Unless I stumble on something great, I think I'll take Lawn 'Cher's advice & travel northeast. My parents live in Ohio, maybe I can find something out there--visit them, drive back in a new XJ.

Thanks for the input, all.

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I don't think it is the propensity of OHV areas in MO (I have yet to find them anyway,) but the suburban sprawl around STL... I moved here from NJ 1.5 years ago and it is the same there. A very popular vehicle in the burbs if you get any kind of wintry weather.

The dying in the corners could be from low gas in the tank. Go round a corner and the pump sucks air. With my bad sending unit on my 98 I'm VERY sensitive to this, will do it uphill also and uphill on a corner is a pucker starter too... every once in a while I forget to reset my trip meter which is what I fill by...

i'd say keep looking. my apprehensive nature is whispering that this jeep may have been in a crash and rehab'd. out here it would sit for a couple of months, but they are a dime a dozen here as well.
2%

Lawn Cher' said:

I don't think it is the propensity of OHV areas in MO (I have yet to find them anyway,) but the suburban sprawl around STL... I moved here from NJ 1.5 years ago and it is the same there. A very popular vehicle in the burbs if you get any kind of wintry weather.

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No trails here...unless you count the private property versions. But then I've never really looked hard (2WD XJ). Lots of soccer moms driving XJ's tho. And most would agree with you about the winter weather. Now if they would just learn to actually use it. Didn't really have much snow this year and still watched a XJ hit the ditch from blasting along real fast in the stuff.

Sarge

okay, here's a left-field answer. First, i think that's too much money for that many miles. Next, you said you don't want to lift it, so I wonder why do you want a 4x4? Not that all 4x4s have to be lifted, but even a small lift can improve offroad performance. If its just about having a 4x4 xj, why not consider a 4x4 conversion for your 2x4? Or if 2x4's are plentiful out there for $2000 or so, why not pick one up and do a 4x4 conversion on one? You could likely do it for less than the 1500 dollar difference you are looking at with this well used girl. There's not too much to a conversion and there are several sites out there you can use for references. Just a thought...

Island XJ said:

you said you don't want to lift it, so I wonder why do you want a 4x4?

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Mostly for weather & for camping in secluded areas. Not weather here, but 'up north' (Michigan, Ohio). I'm just a student here in Texas, & I don't aim to stay here after I get my Ph.D.

Island XJ said:

Not that all 4x4s have to be lifted, but even a small lift can improve offroad performance.

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No question about that. I guess I should say I'd be willing to lift it 2-3", but no more. I like the ctr of gravity where it is. I'm not going rockcrawling (it has the same appeal for me as oval-track racing--I know it takes a significant amt of skill, but I want to go out & see natural vistas, not the back of someone else's rig). I will add lockers & be done w/it. A stock-height XJ will take me places other vehicles won't go, & will still be a hell of a lot more fun. Besides, there aren't any rock infested mountains here, nor in MI or OH.

Island XJ said:

If its just about having a 4x4 xj, why not consider a 4x4 conversion for your 2x4? Or if 2x4's are plentiful out there for $2000 or so, why not pick one up and do a 4x4 conversion on one? You could likely do it for less than the 1500 dollar difference you are looking at with this well used girl. There's not too much to a conversion and there are several sites out there you can use for references.

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I've given it thought, but I have the impression I'd need a ton of tools I don't have... unless I'm wrong. I don't even have brake tools. I change my own fluids, make external engine mods (I could do a late-model intake swap w/the tools I have) I have two torque wrenches, etc. But I don't have a press, nor access to one. & parts availability may be an issue. The Jeep/Chrysler junkyards have been ravaged by the local Wrangler drivers. I COULD buy a 4x4 Wrangler, except I don't have money--they cost even more than an XJ (around here, anyway). But do Wrangler axles & differentials have the same spline counts as XJs'? Could I salvage the 4WD stuff f/a Wrangler & put the stuff on an XJ?

A one way plane ticket is 200$ at most anywhere in the US. You need to use the internet to find a cheap XJ and buy it.

Check out craigslist in all major cities.

As for the 98. I have one and have only replaced the AC compressor. 104k miles.
I say stick with the late model XJ's

With that many miles the engine is not the only thing you need to worry about. Everything else on that rig has 180,000 miles.
I just spent 1200 on my XJ, it turned out that the whole brake system was shot to hell and back. Oh why weren't they making any noise! I took it in thinking it was something small but it wasn't.
The whole drive system, axles, diffs, trans, transfer case, etc etc. Will cost a lot more then the engine, and chances are with that many miles those components may be on thier last leg or already dead. Take it to some mechinics before you think of buying it. It might just be held together with glue and invisble duck tape.
What you're planning on using it for a sedan can just as fine. Wait for that Phd to spend your money on expensive toys. You can get a used toyota or honda or a subaru(all wheel dirve) for cheap, and it won't give you any headaches when it comes to your finals. You won't need to worry about how to get the money to make repairs or how you'll get to class to take that all important final.

wigeon said:

A one way plane ticket is 200$ at most anywhere in the US. You need to use the internet to find a cheap XJ and buy it.

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I may not have mentioned it, but, I can get a 'cheap' '91 ($2500, 116k miles on it) from another jeep enthusiast--it's here in Texas but still 700 miles away--I'll probably buy that one but it has ABS, which could cause some headaches. It was in an accident & is currently being repaired, right rear quarter panel had been damaged. I'm not worried about the damage but it's so old its insurance value will be nothing if I get in a wreck later on, just something that concerns me.

I will not be taking a one-way plane ticket to pick up any Jeep. If I have to drive it 700 miles & it breaks down at 350 miles, I will be totally SOL in the 'desert' between El Paso & Dallas. I'll just bribe one of my friends with the opportunity to drive my 2WD XJ, or if my wife is willing to drive, we'll take the Buick. Call it the buddy system, or whatever, I just don't want to be stranded in such a place.

I've recently found a few more 4x4's. One, a '96, has 201k miles (supposedly rebuilt engine, asking $4500!!!), another, a '93, has 220k miles ($2800--yeah, right!!!), & a '97 w/Selec-Trac, 140k miles, ($5000 cash, or $3500 after trading in the Buick--I'd love to have this '97 but I can't afford it. Well, I could afford it, but I'd regret it later when it comes time to pay some college bills). I will not get a better deal than that '97, but I can't afford it, so I'll probably buy the one in El Paso (after taxes, probably cost $3000), THEN I'll sell my wife's Buick, hopefully for $3000, but probably for $1900, ya know. So I'll be out $1100, plus gas to & from El Paso. I can live with that.

Z22_Z33 said:

You can get a used toyota or honda or a subaru(all wheel dirve) for cheap

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Where?!! I could get a used Corolla, 220k miles, for $2880, yes, but I don't want that... who wants that?!! Even imports are falling apart by the time they're cheap enough for me to afford, & no rebuilds imports except maybe ricers.

Z22_Z33 said:

What you're planning on using it for a sedan can just as fine. Wait for that Phd to spend your money on expensive toys.

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A Corolla won't get me across the ditches on the 'mountain' (glorified hill, really) that my grandmother lives on in Arkansas (Ozark foothills). I help her up there clearing brush & hauling stuff. She doesn't have a truck anymore, & I just use my 2WD for now, but I'm afraid I'll get stuck (the 2WD doesn't have a winch, or even a hitch [yet]). Not to mention, if I want to waste my money on "expensive toys," pal, I'd rather pay for a Jeep that I can fix myself for cheap than a piece of archaic asian crap that costs $$$ to repair (even 'reliable' asian cars need maintanence and repairs when they get to 200k!). Come on. & a Corolla won't earn me extra $$$ pulling H2's (& Corollas) out of snowbanks/highway shoulders on the 3 days a year it gets icy down here.

Z22_Z33 said:

and it won't give you any headaches when it comes to your finals. You won't need to worry about how to get the money to make repairs or how you'll get to class to take that all important final.

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I'm a Ph.D. student. I don't have 'finals' to get to. I go to the bloody library to do research, & if I can't get to the library, I buy books over the internet that are shipped to my door. And as I noted above, repairs on imports are expensive, & by the time an import is old enough to be cheap enough for me to buy, it will be needing repairs....

Know whereof you speak before you waste time & cyberspace criticizing what other people would like to spend their hard-earned money on. I can see I'm wasting my time asking for advice. All I get are platitudes about how I ought to spend my money. Good grief, I just want to have a decent 4x4 & I want to keep my 2x4 that I put so much work into. I want advice about the truck & what it's worth, not about my moral/financial/spiritual wisdom.

Since I'm giving you a hard time, Z22, I might as well mention, how could you possibly need to spend 1200 on fixing your brakes? How old is the thing? I'll bet you were shafted by the repair shop. If I were quoted that much, then I'd actually learn to fix my own brakes. You can buy whole rear disc brake conversion kits for $300 & install them yourself--how could it possibly cost 4 times that to do both front & rear (even including labor)? Why didn't you just sell your Jeep & buy a sedan? Hmm?