How Safe Is My XJ?

[joejeep92]

I have rolled them down hills, hit a Explorer head on, nailed a couple dear, flipped them end over end into a ditch etc. etc. and I walked away from them all without a scratch. And yes they were all in XJ's of late 80's early 90's vintage.

 

[Swamprat]

i've taken an S-10 at aprox. 40MPH to the driver door of my old 91 2dr. the lady in the S-10 was texting and didnt even see me till she struck me. it launched my jeep across 2 lanes and on the the curb. the S-10 didnt drive away, but my jeep did. and is still on the road somewhere today.

 

[Hickboii]

i wouldn't worry when your talking about children in car seats, airbags don't really enter into it. The xj may not have the best crash rating, but your child is in a five point harness designed for anything. GET A GOOD CAR SEAT!!! A new one and with no recalls. spend the extra money on the best seat, not the one that looks cool or that matches your wifes purse, the most expensive or the cheapest, but the one that has the best customer reviews and is recommended by the state patrol and fire department. oh and CONGRATULATIONS!!! and a cage isn't a bad idea if your super concerned. or go buy and Excursion diesel like i did, their HUGE.

 

[Bigjfb]

Wow, thanks guys. I really did not want my sentimental attachment to my XJ clouding my judgement. I really can't afford another car right now, would have had to sell the XJ after buying something else.

Now I need to round up a rear seat. My XJ has no rear seat so if anybody knows where I can score one, please let me know.

 

[heyhar]

Just take a look at the other XJ in post #12. It took a wild hit in the front, and the crumple zones seem to have worked as intended. Yeah, the door and A pillar are racked, but the passenger compartment seems for the most part intact. Probably the XJ's biggest fault is that it's relatively small, and a little lighter than its modern competition. The design is pushing thirty years old, after all.

 

[yossarian19]

xWhatever on XJs being sturdy enough...
A buddy of mine got rear ended by an SUV of some sort, guy was doing 40+ and never hit the brakes.
Totaled the cherokee but he was doing fine - jumped out of the car and started helping the guy who hit him (Jim is an EMT)

 

[FlexdXJ]

Just take a look at the other XJ in post #12. It took a wild hit in the front, and the crumple zones seem to have worked as intended. Yeah, the door and A pillar are racked, but the passenger compartment seems for the most part intact. Probably the XJ's biggest fault is that it's relatively small, and a little lighter than its modern competition. The design is pushing thirty years old, after all.

Yeah except for this:

My feet were trapped briefly but I managed to walk away with some bruises and a sore back. I think if I didn't have the front bumper on it, it would have been much worse.

 

[heyhar]

Was any of that due to rust, or possibly the control arm mount ripping the floor pan back? I think, bottom line, every vehicle has its strong points and weak points. Hopefully, none of us will find the shortcomings.

 

[043500]

Just another YAY on the XJ bandwagon.

We have 3 kids. The 8 year old was in an XJ the day he came home from the hospital. Our 5 year old has been in one since he was less than a year old and I just bought our current XJ right after our daughter's 1st b-day a few months ago and she rides in it all the time.

Hell I tote my kids around in our CJ5 all the time and our daughter (now 16 mos) prefers it.

 

[FlexdXJ]

Was any of that due to rust, or possibly the control arm mount ripping the floor pan back? I think, bottom line, every vehicle has its strong points and weak points. Hopefully, none of us will find the shortcomings.

Thats from the axle snapping at the pumpkin and shoving the tire through the floor! The truck driver said they had to hook it up to a winch and pull the tire out of the floor just so they could get it to move on the concrete.

 

[Brown Dog]

Having a newborn grandson (okay, he's 4 now, but seems like just yesterday...) around with both a Jeep and a Mercedes, we always strapped him into the safety seat in the Jeep, not the Mercedes.

We've had the Jeep for 19 years. The Mercedes only 7 years. Being able to see over most of the traffic makes the Jeep a far safer vehicle IMO...

Congrats on the little one!

 

[ERratIC]

XJ Is safe as long as the maintenance it kept up. My wife rear ended a BMW caving in the whole back end of it. The XJ Drove home and needed a new bumper and brackets (stock). A year ago me and my 5 year old daughter were rear ended by a Lexis SUV. We were both fine. The XJ's trailer hitch took the brunt of it and tweaked the "frame" slightly. We drove away from the accident the Lexus was a write off.
My 1992 XJ didn't have car seat anchors installed. I picked one up from the dealer. You will have to drill a hole through the cargo floor though.

If you do not have Rock slider installed yet it would be a good argument for side protection too