Jeep Cherokee problems

[nonomac4]

What are the main issues that happen with the older Cherokees (97+) I’m looking to buy and heard they are bulletproof, but wanted to see what some common issues were.

[slonomo]

They are not "bulletproof", in fact, they had tons of problems when they got old. Rust is the big one, both underbody and sheetmetal. If the subframe gets rusted through it's basically unsafe and should be scrapped, since it's a unibody, the frame and body are one unit. They also had electrical problems and rear leaf spring issues.

With that said, if the Jeep has a 4.0L straight six engine, they are nearly bulletproof if they were maintained. They will get a lot of sludge buildup if the oil is not changed often, but they have been known to run 250,000-400,000 miles. The problem is the auto trans usually needs rebuilt 3-4 times in that amount of time and the body and underbody rots out before that.

I love them though. I acutally just picked up a 2004 Wrangler, same issues, but it's a full frame vehicle and can be repaired. I would vote for a Wrangler if you want a Jeep. The Grand Cherokee is also full frame and is the best vehicle Jeep makes.

[nonomac4]

Originally Posted by slonomo

They are not "bulletproof", in fact, they had tons of problems when they got old. Rust is the big one, both underbody and sheetmetal. If the subframe gets rusted through it's basically unsafe and should be scrapped, since it's a unibody, the frame and body are one unit. They also had electrical problems and rear leaf spring issues.

With that said, if the Jeep has a 4.0L straight six engine, they are nearly bulletproof if they were maintained. They will get a lot of sludge buildup if the oil is not changed often, but they have been known to run 250,000-400,000 miles. The problem is the auto trans usually needs rebuilt 3-4 times in that amount of time and the body and underbody rots out before that.

I love them though. I acutally just picked up a 2004 Wrangler, same issues, but it's a full frame vehicle and can be repaired. I would vote for a Wrangler if you want a Jeep. The Grand Cherokee is also full frame and is the best vehicle Jeep makes.

I love the Wranglers! Just a little more expensive.

[Mooncarter]

slonomo is spot on. I searched for months to find a 1988 Cherokee that was rust free. Found one, restored it to my satisfaction and was stolen shortly after. Intended to use it on the beach in the outer banks of NC. No I did not have insurance to cover theft and it was never found. Happened about 2 years ago.

[Cartmaster]

I agree on the rust! I had a 95 and a 98 if i recall correctly, and the 98 suffered more rust than the 95. Both were inline sixes running on LPG and browns gas. If you can find one relatively rust free, go for it. make sure you get underneath to check for the rust.

[1arunem]

Around 99-2000 they had some cylinder head issues. So you may want to research that. Otherwise I love them. I have had a couple (sold a 96 last year) and wish I still had one.