old jeep cherokee questions

bigdee · Dec 18, 2011

I found an older 1998 Cherokee Laredo that I thought might make a decent tow vehicle and daily driver. Does anyone have any input on the reliability of these older Jeeps with the 4.0 I-6 engine ant AT? I currently have a 2001 Blazer that is getting a little tired. I love the look and feel of the pre 2001 Cherokees but I don't want a money pit either. This car is in very good condition with 90k miles and checks out to be mechanically sound.

FunInDuhSun · Dec 18, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

No problem if it's well maintained and the load is under 3K. Go above that and you better have good trailer brakes because the jeep discs are marginal.

GA_Boater · Dec 18, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I've had two of these for towing. Both had the 4.0 6 cylinder with AT. One was an older 4wd, the current one is a '98 2wd - you didn't mention that. 90K miles on these barely broken in. Commonly go over 200K mi. before major motor work. The trans is a good one. I don't remember the tow rating because currently I'm no where near it. They are light - my 2wd is not much over 3000 lbs, so good trailer brakes are needed for a heavy load. But I can live with about 21-22 mpg when not towing.

MTboatguy · Dec 18, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I have a 96 grand with 191K on it and regularly tow about 5 K with it, it is the V8 model, full time 4wd, so I would have no problem towing 3 k with the 6 , but a good brake system is a must, and if you have a chance upgrade the discs to a modern material, I have slotted and vented discs on mine with ceramic pads, that work quite well.

86 century · Dec 19, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I have 99 2wd 4.0 with 220k runs like a champ.
+1on the lack of brakes they will pull alot more than they will stop.

Only thing prone to go out is the oil sending unit will start to leak and the gauge will drop to zero.(mine has been running this way for 20k)

tomdinwv · Dec 19, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I miss my Jeep. I had a 93 Cherokee with the 4.0/AT. I loved that thing. These guys are right, the engine/trans is easily good for 200k miles if properly maintained. They are also right about the brakes. I had mine for 2 or 3 years and the only repairs I had to make was a water pump and a headlight switch. In my opinion, the worst thing Jeep ever did was to retire the 4.0 I6. That was a great little engine.

I have also had 2 S-10 Blazers. They were dependable, but both had the 2.8 engines. The 2.8 was not the best engine GM ever produced but I never had any bad problems with them.

To me, the Jeep was way better than the Blazers. If you go with the Jeep, just stay on top of the maintanence and it should give you many miles of service. Good luck!

bigdee · Dec 19, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

Thanks guys. Good info. The Laredo is 2wd and has never been used for towing so I would have to install a hitch for about $150. Everything I tow is under 3500# and I used to tow with a 4cyl S-10 and a 4.3 blazer. The only issue is one of the door locks is not working but that is minor,my main concerns are the engine,transmission and drivetrain. The wimpy brakes bother me because I do not want to put brakes on my trailers. My boats stay in a slip so I only tow a couple times a year and that is just from the ramp to the house (1/4 mile) and occasionally 30 miles if major service is needed.

sublauxation · Dec 19, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I don't remember what years but they did have a problem with the rear differential at some point. There are a lot of them out there so finding a cheap replacement isn't that big a deal. As a family we owned 8-10 of them and aside from radios all being junk and a rear differential we never had problems. We towed a 20 foot very heavy glass boat once and I'm glad we only had to go one mile but the last one towed my 18' aluminum with no problems.

bigdee · Dec 19, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

Well I went back to test drive. I brought it home and spent some time checking things out. Crawled underneath....no grease or grime or rust,some of the OEM paper stickers were still in place. Carfax report came back clean (one owner) and the service records are in the glovebox. One concern is the drive train noise is a little loud,sounds like tire noise but it has a new set of tires on it. Dealer said he will take it to a jeep dealership to have it checked out (ya,ya) and the other issue is the price....I cannot get him below 6900 on a cash sale. This is above average retail but I have not found another 98 that is comparable to this. Is this too much for this vehicle? I have searched a 100 mile radius and found alot of 98s but most were high mileage dogs and averaged around 5500.

MTboatguy · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

Used cars around my area are priced high, but at that price your dealer is quite high, I can by nice 98's for about 4500 all day with decent mileage and in very good shape. Must be an extremely high demand for that vehicle in your area. I was looking for a used Subaru or another used jeep, and have decided I will buy out of my area, fly in pick it up and drive it back home, heck I have even started looking at the used Mercedes SUV as they are in about the same price range.

sublauxation · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

$6900 sounds crazy, I know prices have gone up but I sold my 98 with about 85K miles for abpit that price 6 years ago. Heck, I'm trying to sell my 04 Expedition with the same mileage and probably wont get much over 8K.

bigdee · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

I guess I will keep looking but it is frustrating to find what I want.......it has to be like new,white,I-6 & one owner.

bigdee · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

Heading out to look at a '04 for about the same price....it is 4wd with the 4.0 straight six and leather interior with 90K......any issues with this model year?

dockwrecker · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

6900 for a two wheel drive is nuts for a 98'. The 04' grand is a better deal and also has better brakes.

bigdee · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

well I went with the '04 because it seemed like a better deal and my wife liked it.......it has all time 4wd which I am a little sceptical about......oh well, it is over with anyway. Anyone have a similar setup that would like to share info?

dennis461 · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

first. 1998 is NOT old.
My 1991 has 215,000 plus miles and has been waterlogged more than once.

But.

When buying SUV's, you pay more for the name JEEP on the side.
The 2 wheel drive is a rare bird, but, why would anyone buy a 2WD Jeep??
The price is much too high for a 2WD vehicle.

MTboatguy · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

bigdee said:
well I went with the '04 because it seemed like a better deal and my wife liked it.......it has all time 4wd which I am a little sceptical about......oh well, it is over with anyway. Anyone have a similar setup that would like to share info?

No reason to be worried about the all time 4WD, my 96 is an all time and I have never had a problem with is and for the type of vehicle it is, the mileage is not bad at all, around town with the 5.2 V8 I get about 19, on the road, I have recorded over 23 several times in addition that all time 4wd makes it a very stable vehicle. You should be happy, I am glad to see you went with a newer model for about the same price, you should love it.

bigdee · Dec 20, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

MTboatguy said:
No reason to be worried about the all time 4WD, my 96 is an all time and I have never had a problem with is and for the type of vehicle it is, the mileage is not bad at all, around town with the 5.2 V8 I get about 19, on the road, I have recorded over 23 several times in addition that all time 4wd makes it a very stable vehicle. You should be happy, I am glad to see you went with a newer model for about the same price, you should love it.

Thanks MTboatguy, glad to hear that. I just happened to luck up on this one,it was a trade in on a new vehicle at a local franchise dealer and it is their policy to ********* trade-ins that are over or close to 100k regardless of condition. I arrived the same time the whole saler was bidding on the car and the dealer declined the offer and gave it to me (good to live in a small town) It is the limited edition with leather ,sunroof,heated power seats and lots of options. I will pick it up tomorrow, I was so excited that I forgot to see if it had the tow package but a class II hitch is just a $120 bolt-on.

eavega · Dec 21, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

Comb around CL for the hitch, and one will come up. I acquired a '97 Cherokee about a year ago for $1000 to drive as a replacement car while my daily driver was involved in some litigation, and have since kept it as my short-distance tow vehicle. I poked around CL looking for the hitch, and within two months came across one for $40.

For the record I love the jeep as a utility vehicle, and even my wife has come around to appreciating "The Black Pearl". Nice thing is that the I6 motor lets it pull like a tractor. I get the exact same gas mileage on it whether I'm not towing anything, towing my 1500 Lb boat, the 2200 Lb camper, etc.

Rgds

tomdinwv · Dec 21, 2011

Re: old jeep cherokee questions

My wife had a 99 Grand with the full time 4WD and 5.2 (318) engine. I really liked that Jeep. Check the driver's side door hinges though. Most Grand Cherokees around here have driver's doors that doesn't match. The hinges on my wife's broke as she was turning a corner. Scared the crap out of her.

old jeep cherokee questions

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