Looking at a Jeep tomorrow.

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dlundblad

dlundblad

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We are going to look at a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee (5.2) with just over 140k for my brother tomorrow. Aside from giving the ATF fluid a good sniff and checking the oil, is there anything else we should look for?

Its up in north east Indiana and seems to be in decent shape for the asking price. It appears to have the "AWD" transfer case. Its not my first choice as these seem to fail, but its certainly not a deal breaker either. A selec trac swap doesn't seem too bad and we have plenty of ZJs to pick from at local yards and WM parking lots. (JK
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I also plan on looking the door seams over for rust as well as the unibody rails. Once again, cant be too picky because of the asking price, but we don't want a lemon either.

Thanks in advance BITOG!
 
Originally Posted By: Chris142
Blend door issues and axle noises.BTW this gen of the grand is probly the most problematic jeep ever made. just Empty Every Pocket defiantly applies to this model.


Oh yes. Also, at 150K that transmission is living on borrowed time if it has not received proper maintenance - on a vehicle that old, you really can't tell if that's been the case. Budget up for replacing that transmission if the rest of the vehicle is worth buying.
 
Ouch. Things don't look too promising for this old girl. Lol. I don't know much about ZJs, but I was under the impression the blend doors would only be an issue for models with duel climate control. Judging from the photos, it doesn't appear to have it.

Cherokees can be found for roughly the same price. Might not be a bad idea to keep an eye out for these too.

*I cant remember the transmission these had. The xxRH I think? Do these have serviceable bands?
 
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Not only was this Jeep GC 5.7 among the most problematic vehicles but, that 5.7L is an absolute HOG on gas. Yes, I know that there are owners that love'em and had little issues with their but, they're problematic just the same!

AND yes, gas prices are still dropping but, it will go up as always and you'll hate yourself for buying such a HOG!.

I would personally stay away from anything JEEP! Yes, I know there are those who love'em! I already know that but, it'll bitecha!
 
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I believe 97 was one of the better years for that generation of Grand, but as mentioned those with the v8's were absolutes gas PIGS.

A ZJ with a 4.0 and the part time 4wd set up would likely be less problematic IMO.

As far as looking at older Jeeps, aside from looking down the fill hole and checking the tranny fluid I always suggest asking about services to the transfer case and differentials. Unfortunately 99% of the time you'll get nothing but a blank puzzled stare in response...not good.
 
My dad bought a '96 Grand Cherokee Laredo with the 5.2L brand new in early 1996. We put over 120k fairly hard miles on it. It went through three different Jeep Jamborees, towed a 6,000 pound 20' Terry travel trailer all across Virginia and Maryland, and did so without any major issues. Ours had the Up Country suspension which was nice. The V-8s came with a Dana 44 in the back which is a stout axle. A '97 V-8 should have a 44RE for the transmission. There are two bands in this transmission that can be adjusted, as well as a throttle valve cable which adjusts shift points. I had the same transmission in my Dodge Dakota (which had 170k miles when I bought it and about 190k miles when I sold it).

A '97 ZJ is nearly 20 years old now and, like any car of that vintage, it can have issues. Mechanically, they're pretty tough vehicles.
 
What are your brothers needs? must have 4wd? must have v8?

I suggest looking at the Chevrolet Blazer/GMC Jimmy/Olds Bravada 4.3L Easy to work on, parts are cheap and plentiful.
 
Must be a 4WD, but a V8 isn't needed at all. It doesn't necessarily have to be a Jeep either. He is just partial to them as its all we had growing up. (My mom used to have a ZJ just like this one actually.) It'll just be commuter. He has looked at quite a few S10/ Blazers, but they all seem to be very high miles (well over 200k)

I take this to mean they are so reliable, nobody wants to sell them. Lol.

Thanks for all the input so far guys.
 
Jeeps are addictive and as a result tend to fall into the hands of those who will keep them. The absolute newest ZJ is now 17 model years old and I still see them everywhere.
 
The biggest potential problem: its almost 20 years OLD. The interior and plastic parts are probably showing their age. The ZJ is a very good mechanical design, the 5.2 Magnum (with one exception-see (*) below) is a 300,000 mile engine, and the transmission is an A-727 with an overdrive in the tailshaft (46RH or 46RE- the changeover was right around that model year and I don't remember exactly when it was). The 46RH is an easy 200,000+ mile transmission with even halfway decent maintenance, but the RE is a little more twitchy. They eliminated the direct-acting hydraulic governor, put in an output shaft speed sensor and a variable-duty-cycle solenoid to let the computer control the same old analog "governor pressure" signal in the valve body, and... meh. It works, but not as well or reliably as the old analog governor did. They tried to get fancy with the governor pressure to make the transmission behave a little more like a fully-electronic transmission, and it just made things weird. Shifts and lockup schedule are odd even when everything's working right.

(*)There is one potential weakness with the 5.2L (318) Magnum engine from that era- the bottom plenum cover plate on the intake manifold was prone to leaking. That let a) oil mist enter the intake air, raising oil consumption and causing TONS of pre-ignition pinging, and b) let EGR enter the crankcase creating a lot of gritty deposits that tend to break loose and plug the oil pickup. If you drive it and it doesn't ping or rattle, smoke blue on startup, and has good oil pressure, it almost certainly does NOT have the intake plenum issue. But if it wants to ping every time you touch the gas, has an unusually high idle, or the oil pressure light flickers at a stop when hot... I'd run away. Its an easy fix, but the problem is that once its been neglected it tends to do collateral damage from all the grit in the crankcase. Now, we had one develop the problem to the point the oil pickup plugged solid with grit. We cleaned it out with kerosene, fixed the plenum, and it ran to over 250,000 miles- so its not necessarily a death sentence. But its a risk.

All in all, if you can get it for a decent price I'd go for it. They're TOUGH, and very fixable when things go wrong.
 
Biggest problems with the ZJ....

Turn the tightest donut you can on pavement and see if the tires hop. If they do the viscous coupler in the AWD transfer case is bad.

Take off the intake tube/hat and look down the throttle body. If you see any wet oil the plenum gasket is bad.

Make sure you start the Jeep from dead cold and go for a drive immediately. The governor pressure solenoid and sensor in the transmission like to act up when cold. It should have no delay shifting into third gear from cold.

Make sure the A/C works and drains condensation. The evaporator core is prone to failure for several reasons. Poor part quality and poor housing design. Automatic climate control is dependent on the A/C working, so is defrost. The Jeep will never defrost on a wet day without A/C.

Diff noises, although these diffs are cheap and easy to work on, I don't really see these as a reason to not buy the jeep.

If it has the Dana 35 rear it's going to be a pavement only Jeep for the most part. If it has the Dana 44A you can run 35s and do some wheeling but the housing is aluminum instead of steel and will crack if you slap it with a large boulder.
 
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
He has looked at quite a few S10/ Blazers, but they all seem to be very high miles (well over 200k)

I take this to mean they are so reliable, nobody wants to sell them. Lol.
.


Uh, no. They're not. It means people that didn't dump them years ago have already spent such a fortune on them that they can't let go... :p
 
As others have said, check the plenum pan (not a bad fix it it's shot). Also make a few tight figure 8s at the end of your test drive to check the viscous coupler in the t-case. If it binds, the case will need a rebuild / replacement. A 231 or 242 from a 96+ ZJ or XJ swaps right in if you want to ditch the fulltime 4wd.

The V8s are just as solid as the 4.0, excluding the plenum pan issue. The trans holds up better in the V8s, it seems. MPG is a little worse with the V8s, especially on the highway. It's not a huge difference though.

Trans in a 93.5 - 98 4.0 is a 42RE (early 93s were an AW4). 93 - 95 5.2s had the 46RH, 96 - 98 had the 44RE. 98 5.9s are the 46RE.
 
Using an old V8 SUV as a commuter and getting 15 MPG in the process seems a poor financial choice. Gas will be $4/gal again before we know it. I swallowed my pride and gave up truck driving when I realized I really didn't need it.

How about a Subaru, Honda CRV, or Toyota RAV4? 25 MPG is a heck of a lot better than 15.
 
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
Aside from giving the ATF fluid a good sniff and checking the oil, is there anything else we should look for?
Yes, a Cherokee with a 4.0L!

Does your brother have a good income? A gas hog doesn't seem so bad at first, but when gas prices are $4 a gallon, it's no fun. My daily driver was a 96' Chevy truck with the 5.7L V8. I loved the truck, but 14-15 mpg was killer at almost $4 a gallon. I spent a ton of $$$ on gas.

Then I sold it and bought a Camry, lol.
 
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