high miles?

[cody]

Does anyone have experience with a later model xj with over 200k miles?
I have had a couple of older ones and they seemed to fall apart around there, with tons of small electrical and other wear items such as bearings going bad. But, they were also 13 years old. I can pick up a 00 with 200k and a newer motor for cheap, but don't want to spend all my time chasing shorts and rebuilding axles.

 

[Flash]

Does anyone have experience with a later model xj with over 200k miles?
I have had a couple of older ones and they seemed to fall apart around there, with tons of small electrical and other wear items such as bearings going bad. But, they were also 13 years old. I can pick up a 00 with 200k and a newer motor for cheap, but don't want to spend all my time chasing shorts and rebuilding axles.

89 XJ 313,000 miles and the only electrical problems have been hidden by a 16 year old, learning, and Green electrical tape repairs. aether then that i had a pin push out of the fuse block for the dash lights. and a bad head light switch (due to the low and hi beam wires at the dimer switch wired together) Had hi beam or........Hi beam w/low beams.:confused1

Flash.

 

[Michaelarchangelo]

98 with 178k miles. Only problem is my a/c compressor went

 

[seanyb505]

My only problems up to 187K in a 97 were bad motor mounts causing other problems, and my fifth gear wore out transmission bearings which caused some other problems. Other than that, everything is solid. It all depends on how well it was taken care of. I thrash on mine daily, but I do all required maintenance and tune ups. Zero electrical problems, with a 750 watt stereo with a new CD player, aftermarket tach(there was no factory tach in a stick, go figure) and an electric fan conversion rerouting the belt so the alternator gets less belt contact.

 

[Dr. Dyno]

Does anyone have experience with a later model xj with over 200k miles?
I have had a couple of older ones and they seemed to fall apart around there, with tons of small electrical and other wear items such as bearings going bad. But, they were also 13 years old. I can pick up a 00 with 200k and a newer motor for cheap, but don't want to spend all my time chasing shorts and rebuilding axles.

You can bet it'll be a money pit but if you're going to keep the Jeep for a long time, then don't spare any expense in fixing it up so it'll be reliable. If you have good mechanical knowledge and DIY skills, you'll save a lot of money on labor costs and you'll also know which parts to buy, saving you even more money. You can make it a good project vehicle.
If your mechanical knowledge is limited and you'd have to pay someone else to do all the repair work, forget the whole idea 'cause frequent visits to the repair shop will make it a nightmare.

 

[Michaelarchangelo]

Err sorry, I forgot that I did just change my motor mounts and cracked header. But other than that, no probs

 

[rockwerks]

Money Pit? my 89 MJ has 242,000 just common upkeep, My 89 xj 120,000 just common up keep, my last 88 324,000 just common upkeep. they become money pits once you start modifying it never stops

 

[cody]

thanks everyone, I might just pick it up.

 

[XJPhoenix]

My 1991 had 304,000 kms on it before it blew a head gasket. (I only owned it for about 20,000 k of it, sold it for parts, the fellow who bought it put it on the road and promptly blew a gasket.)

My 1994 has 190,000 miles on it, and runs very well.

All XJ's are maintenance intensive; they need tweaking and TLC more often than say, a newer car or truck. On the plus side, they're really easy to work on, have a very large database full of folks who've been there and done that, and when they are taken care of can take to the very gates of Valhalla and back again!

I love Cherokee's. I strayed once, bought a Grand Cherokee, and came back to the noble little workhorse that got me addicted to Jeep in the first place.

Another plus I've seen is that the newer your XJ, the fewer gremlins you have to chase.

 

[Dr. Dyno]

Another plus I've seen is that the newer your XJ, the fewer gremlins you have to chase.

I'm not so sure about that. The newer XJs seem to have more niggling problems, and the Renix XJs have funky electronics and EGR, so I think the best ones were the HO versions in the old body style built from '91-'96. The '96 model is the bastard child 'cause it's the only one that has the old body style and the updated 4.0 engine with NVH fixes and reprofiled cam. The bastard child might well be the best model of all.

 

[rockwerks]

I'm not so sure about that. The newer XJs seem to have more niggling problems, and the Renix XJs have funky electronics and EGR, so I think the best ones were the HO versions in the old body style built from '91-'96. The '96 model is the bastard child 'cause it's the only one that has the old body style and the updated 4.0 engine with NVH fixes and reprofiled cam. The bastard child might well be the best model of all.

First time I think we finally agree on an issue! The older rigs have far fewer problems.renix is my favorite..........so little to go wrong with em........91 -95 then but in 96 used different pistons and average only last about 110,000 miles.......eats up the motors quick. they are the worst.

 

[XJPhoenix]

I'm not so sure about that. The newer XJs seem to have more niggling problems, and the Renix XJs have funky electronics and EGR, so I think the best ones were the HO versions in the old body style built from '91-'96. The '96 model is the bastard child 'cause it's the only one that has the old body style and the updated 4.0 engine with NVH fixes and reprofiled cam. The bastard child might well be the best model of all.

Really? I didn't know that. It's so true, you learn something new every day.

I do love the 1991 to 1994 year XJ's, with the 1994 being my all-time favourite. (Last year before airbags, first year of side-impact beams, etc...)

 

[Dr. Dyno]

First time I think we finally agree on an issue! The older rigs have far fewer problems.renix is my favorite..........so little to go wrong with em........91 -95 then but in 96 used different pistons and average only last about 110,000 miles.......eats up the motors quick. they are the worst.

I think there's quite a few '96+ XJ owners who'll disagree with you on that one. There are several around with over 200k miles and still going strong.
Personally I prefer the '91-'95 models with the HO engine and the 3-spoke sports steering wheel. The airbag steering wheel used from '96 onwards looks ugly.

 

[j99xj]

My 1999 has almost 130,000 miles on it.

The only things that have *had to* be replaced are as follows. And by *had to* I'm not including "mods" or normal wear and tear items like belts, hoses, tune up parts, lightbulbs, fuses and such.

-Driver and passenger window regulators (Chrysler really dropped the ball on these.)
-upstream 02 sensor (this one was more my fault for using Seafoam but the can said 02 sensor safe)

Other than that I can't think of anything else. The Jeep is wonderful.

 

[rockwerks]

I know of 7 96's with blown motors under 150,000 miles on em, and have never heard of any others......maybe just a fluke

 

[Flash]

I have a 89 xj (parts jeep) with a rod out side of the block!!!!!!!

To be fair to the jeep(and i I'm a Renix fan) it got swamped, pull out, started (didn't worry about the water in the oil):nono: and when from Moab to SLC............made it to price.....Boom and it was just getting broke in at 180,000.

Flash.

 

[Patriot4x4]

97 w/148k on it... usual stuff, alternator, usual bit of oil leak, & power steering pump. Also the steering box cracked the frame where its mounted to.

 

[Redsnake]

A big KNOCK ON WOOD.... but my '96 has 199,345 miles on the odometer... only things I've done since buying it second hand (@ 124K on the clock) has been routing maintenance such as plugs, wires, shocks, etc...

The only thing I had to do was replace a cracked manifold at about 170K miles... .other than that she's been pretty darn reliable. Nothing too fancy, but get's me where I want to go.

So far so good.

 

[wdyer14]

I wrecked my 94 2wd -285k on it,burned a little oil maybe 1 quart a month
00 4wd -189k runs great no oil usage,never had any problems electrical etc..

I am a pizza delivery driver and my jeep gets about 400-700 miles a week on it without breaking a sweat.All I do is routine upkeep on a regular schedule.
these engines are built to last so if the price is cheap I wouldn't hesitate on 200k,,,just gives you leverage to bargain with.

 

[ChevelleSSLS6]

pizza delivery... stop n go... that's hellish on an engine.

My 96 (yay for crappy slappy pistons) has 190k miles on it and runs like new. I got it @ 181k with a fresh exhaust manifold.
-Matt