Selling my JK, going for an XJ - am I crazy?

[winkosmosis]

I think the 3.8 V6 is just a lot more efficient than the 4.0

 

[x2elite]

I have both, and both are lifted DD and wheeling rigs (My wife drives the JK mostly and I drive the XJ). Personally for street manners the JK beats the XJ anyday. The only complaint I have about the JK is the lack of power, but once I regeared it wasn't as bad (but still down on power). However, I love the fact that my XJ was less than a 5th of the cost of the JK (and thats including all the mods done to my XJ). Its paid for, has plenty of power, and I don't get upset if i put a scratch or a ding on it. However, the JK still gets some offroad duty, just nothing as extreme as what I will do in the XJ

 

[XJ AV8R]

But, I'm consistently getting between 19.5 and 22 mpg in the JK (with stock 32" tires)! My last tank was 21.5 (calculated, not by the trip computer) and that included a full day on the trail in low range at Twin Cone).

No kidding! My buddy gets 13 mpg with 35's and stock 4.10s. He said he was getting 18-19 with the stock 32s. It must be driving habits...I stand corrected.

I second all of the above guys concerning the Chrysler 8.25 29 spline. I swapped in a 2001 into mine. If you get that axle from the start, you won't have to change a thing if you go to 33s. If you get a Dana 35 you WILL have to make a change if you go bigger on tires...either voluntarily or otherwise.

 

[mizedog]

It's been several months, but I finally just got rid of the JK. It's gone! Tomorrow I'm off to shop for an XJ, or possible a Grand. There's one 2000 XJ with 33's, and a Tera Flex lift that's overpriced, but I'm still interested in it. It appears to have the 8.25. There are several stock ones around here. None under 80k miles.

I have to admit, the comfort of the ZJ or even the WJ is enticing, but I'm drawn to the simplicity of the XJ (and the running gear). Wish me luck. Any words of wisdom for my search are appreciated.

 

[89xj]

2000 xj is known for their head cracking if it overheats and some have cracked without it overheating. also has a low pinion dana 30

 

[sunburned]

X2 if you will go with 33's or even 35's. Stay with a '98 or '99 model.

I drove mine for a year and put 25,000 miles on it before I parked it in favor of a new Civic. I loved it as a DD and miss it terribly on the weekdays, but it is always waiting for me when I get home. My XJ is like man's best friend.

Bingo. Bought my '98 a little less than a year ago and have put 14k miles on it so far. Got it for $5k with 92k miles and it was already lifted 3" with 32's. I even sold my modded mustang because I was having too much fun offroading and the Jeep was perfectly fine as a DD.

Now that I've gone a bit far with the mods (gears, rear locker, mud tires, bigger lift) its getting a bit daunting as my only car so I'm probably gonna pick up an Integra here soon. Still, the only time I've been stranded is when the battery went bad, but I was only stuck twice for 15 minutes each before it started back up again.

I'd love to have a new JK with all their cool features and stuff, but for $25k less, I've got something that is just as capable offroad and looks way meaner.

 

[aparke4]

yeah - 99 is the last year with the distributor - everything else has the coil packs - 2000, 2001

i hate to say it but stay patient - a good low milage xj can be had for under 6k - there are a few around me - one with 74k for 5500 obo and another with 90k for 3700! oh and anything under 100k for a 97 and up xj is not too many miles at all - honestly it has already been broken in and is ready to roll...

good luck.

 

[mizedog]

2000 xj is known for their head cracking if it overheats and some have cracked without it overheating. also has a low pinion dana 30

Thanks for pointing my in the right direction. An other suggestions are appreciated.
I was originally looking for a '98 or '99 because they had the hi-flow intake, and the hi pinion D30. I didn't know about a change from distributor. Are these things really that important? What's better, hi pinion, or lower miles? What is more reliable/ desired, the distributor, or coil packs? With the TJ low pinion, will I need to mod it to go with 6" lift? How likely is a later head to crack running around the Colorado mountains, maybe pulling a small camping trailer?

I'm probably buying tomorrow. I found '99 listed for $10k but the guy quoted my $5750 + tax as a cash price but says it hums at highway speed. He doesn't know what's causing it. This Jeep has just over $80k. Should I be afraid...? It spent 9 years in Michigan and Wisconsin (rust belt).

 

[XJ AV8R]

I had mine in Michigan for five years of it's life where they salt the crap out of the roads. It was beautiful when I drove it to MI from Washington. After the five years I returned to WA and lifted it. It was a total pain in the ass with all of the rust...lot's of broken bolts. It also began to rust out at the lower rear of the front fenders and right above the front fender flares. Check it over REAL GOOD if it's been in the rust belt! Nine years is a long time in that region. I think it is a grand conspiracy by the big three automakers to make everyone buy cars more often. Hopefully you end up with a good one.

 

[redneckguy0404]

93 XJ 130,000 miles on her, not a worry about anything drivetrain wise happening, do research on anything you do to one and you are golden, if it can be done someone here has, dont go cheap, buy good springs, SYE, quailty **cough cough* steering, if you want a good ride drop brackets or 3 link/ylink, its like anything you get out what you put in, they are bombproof or near such, treat them right and they do the same to you. XJ LOVE YA'll FEEL IT

 

[xjtrailrider]

We have a mini van, 5 XJ's and a 08' JK. We love our JK but we do not wheel it, its too new, my wife uses it as her daily driver. The XJ's have been extremely dependable and I drive the oldest one, a 90', as a daily driver. My 2 oldest sons both have XJ's and the youngest wants one as well. I have a trail rig that has 200k on it and would drive it or wheel it anywhere.

The only reason we keep the minivan around is for long trips, you will find that the XJ is a little tight for anything more than some pre-teens in the back seat. Then again we have 3 boys who are all football players and are big for their age. If you are a family of 4 and your kids are on the smaller size you will be fine, you may want to consider a small trailer to haul stuff in on long trips. I used to use a cheap 4x8 utility trailer and put 2 roof top carriers in it for trips. I had no wind drag since it sat lower than the Jeep and didn't loose hardly any gas mileage since the weight of the traler was light.

 

[Timmy2XJS]

i have 2 XJs. one is an old girl *88* and the other is a 99.

the 88 has been floating around my family for like 10 years. been up and down from Miami Florida all the back to north eastern NC a few times and is still my daily driver.

the 99 does the same thing but also get the snot beat out of it anythere i can find.

ditch the jk and get an XJ. keep oil in it and youlll be fine.

 

[mizedog]

Update: Sold my JK, bought a '01 XJ!

Well, I missed the chance at a '00 with a long arm kit and new tires. But, I did snag a '01 XJ with 79K miles, auto trans, 4-inchish lift (short arms), Cragar Soft 8's, newish 32" Yokahama a/ts (way too cupped - LOUD). It also have these cool things already done:
1. ARB in the rear 8.25 axle!!!!!:rof:
2. SYE, and CV drive shaft
3. Some HD steering gear with new TREs
4. JKS quick discos
5. JKS Supernerfs!!!

It's got a Rusty's track bar, and intake, what looks like a Flowmaster (can you say UPS truck?). The Jeep has pretty good power even though I think it's got stock gearing. At 75mph (verified by my wife in another car), it's running at about 2000 rpm. I have to check the head series number for the cracking problem ,but will keep it cool anyway.

I'm looking forward to having fun with this. My JK had 32's and a 2.5" BB and looked like a lead sled compared to this. I even think the seat height is close. No frame = more ground clearance.

Hoping to meet some XJ owners in the future on the trail.

 

[hurley842002]

Sounds like a sweet find. I just bought a stock 99 XJ 2 door sport. I've got an almost brand new set of 32" BFG AT's sitting in the garage, and an RE 3.5" on its way. I'm in Parker, so we'll definately have to hit the trail sometime.

 

[FlexdXJ]

Hey all. I've lurked for a while but never posted much. I'm nowhere near a newbie to Jeeps, only to XJs.

I bought an '08 JK Unlimited X in October. I love it and am amazed at how well it does in the snow here. But, I've come to the decision that I'd rather keep my wife at home with my little girls instead of keeping the car payment. Like Dave Ramsey says, "sell the car, sell the car!".

Anyway, I'm considering an XJ. But, it seems like so many of the XJs on this forum eventually turn into just cut up tin cans or hybrid tube buggies.

My questions are:
1. Am I crazy for going for an eight year old Jeep as a daily driver?
2. Is it possible for an XJ to hold together as a daily driver, and do weekend warrior trips (I'm hoping for 33's, or at most 35's)?

Remember, I like XJs, but I know the doors can literally fall off the unibodies as I saw it happen to my buddy's (don't read this, Jesse!).

Lastly, please give any advise you have. Budget is important. Will Rough Country's 6.5" lift be ok?
Thanks and I'm expecting to spend a lot more time on this site.

you're not crazy to want to look out for your family dude we know how it goes.

you say cut up tin cans like its a bad thing


No your not crazy for buying an XJ. They can hold up quite well as daily drivers as long as they are properly maintained. A good friend of mine has on sitting on 37's that he DD's Hell another buddy drives a beat up ZJ on 33's everyday, so cherokee's should be good DD's. Shit half the guys on here DD their rigs that haven't had a roof for years. I believe that door problem was mainly on the pre-96 2dr's. I would say you would be quite happy with a 97-99 with a Chryco 8.25 trac-lok and a HP D30. I KNOW I AM!

I would say no to RC but he does give a discount if you are set on their product. Rubicon express is the lift of choice for many guys and they are happy with the quality of their products

 

[mizedog]

Well it's funny how old posts come back to haunt...
It's time to pull off the Supernerfs to repaint or powdercoat. So I was doing some searching for installation instructions and found this old post.

I'll give a quick update on the '01. It's been three and a half years of trouble free service. I drove it from Colorado to California and back for a three week family vacation right after adding 4.56 gears. With 32s, it wound up the motor pretty high but WOW, the power gain at sea level!

I also replaced the horrible Yokahama 32s with 33x12.50/15 in Goodrich KM2s (siped). They stuck like glue in Moab. I really think the sipes helped. Did Poison Spider/Golden Spike/Gold Bar Rim, Kain Creek, Hell's Revenge, Little Lions' Back. All with no stucks or damage.

Added a winch bummper and Smittybilt winch. Haven't used the winch yet but slammed the winch bumper down on hard going up the ledge on Kain Creek, only minro dent.

Have done Hancock Pass, Alpine Tunnel, Iron Chest, Mt. Antero, trails around Ouray, Colorado, and fishing trips in Colorado.

Living just east of Colorado Springs, Co, I see ice and snow. The XJ can drive through 8-10" of snow in 2wd easily and the sipes do really well going straight. The KM2s will slide sideways pretty easily when in slippery stuff.

I still daily drive the thing and it's still more comfortable than the JK was (dash and window roller handle killed my knees). I generally get about 15mpg communiting but got over 19mpg on a recent fishing trip to Spinney Mountain Res.

I've got to take off the Supernerfs to recoat them, and need to replace a broken JKS quick disco (been broken for 2 years now, driving disconnected), put a new muffler on, and change a tranny fluid hard line. Other than that, it's been solid as a rock. I'll be taking up in the mountains this summer again.

There ya go. I see pretty JKs all over, and do get jealous sometimes, but my Jeep is paid for and on has 109k on the clock.

 

[XJRN]

Nice rig! Glad you have been happy with it.

 

[Redsnake]

Nice Rig!! I have an '01 Silver XJ... looks like yours minus the lift and front bumper...

BTW, how's your Debt Snowball going? Glad to hear you got rid of the JK in favor a 'cheaper' XJ to drive. BTW, my wife and I are Financial Peace Facilitators and have done about 10 FPU classes. We are Debt Free (going on 18 months now) and it makes life so much better plus it frees up some extra $$ if you need to 'upgrade' your rig... Keep up the good work and continue to have fun in that XJ!!

 

[mizedog]

Nice Rig!!

BTW, how's your Debt Snowball going? Glad to hear you got rid of the JK in favor a 'cheaper' XJ to drive. BTW, my wife and I are Financial Peace Facilitators and have done about 10 FPU classes. We are Debt Free (going on 18 months now) and it makes life so much better plus it frees up some extra $$ if you need to 'upgrade' your rig... Keep up the good work and continue to have fun in that XJ!!

Thanks for the compliment!

We're not debt free yet. But, when we first moved to CO, our plan was to keep my wife home with the munchkins for two years. It's now been six years with her at home. She's looking for ways to earn $$ for the household, and is becoming an active writer and looking for part time local work. We are definitely in a different place compared to our DINK years. Quality of life is better and my commute is a fraction of what it was in Southern California. Thanks for the encouragement!

 

[Redsnake]

Thanks for the compliment!

We're not debt free yet. But, when we first moved to CO, our plan was to keep my wife home with the munchkins for two years. It's now been six years with her at home. She's looking for ways to earn $$ for the household, and is becoming an active writer and looking for part time local work. We are definitely in a different place compared to our DINK years. Quality of life is better and my commute is a fraction of what it was in Southern California. Thanks for the encouragement!

You're welcome... keep up the good work!! "Live like no one else, so later you can LIVE like no one else!!"