Never had a Jeep. How hard are these old Cherokees to work on?
Guy wants only $500 but it doesn't run (says he thinks it needs an ECU). Has a lot of miles & its not 4x4, but its an early 90s two door & standard trans (only reason I'm considering it). Should I jump on it?
Dude jeeps are easy as fuck to work on.
it is always going to be breaking down but okay
no. you should buy a decent working car.
Most have rusted to death by now, there's not a lot left at the auto wreckers, thus parts are getting scarce. At least it's not 4x4 so you don't have to worry about the transfer case breaking.
I had a 1990 cherokee. prepare to work on it every weekend, something will break guaranteed.
other than than it ran awesome, and the inline 6 is a workhorse engine.
I've had several jeeps. They're not bad vehicles. Old ones are very good. They're just old and most have been abused, so you will end up fixing it a lot unless you decide to just dump a grand or more all at once to replace the usual stuff. Entire suspension and just about all the engine accessory drives.
If you live up north, rust will be a definite concern so look it over.
All that being said, if you are not decently skilled with electrical and have wiring diagrams, you will be chasing your tail and throwing parts at it. Especially since it's OBD1.
These old jeeps are a dime a dozen where I live, not sure how it is where you are. My advice is to hunt around for something that at least runs and drives and needs simple work. Like a radiator and some other easy stuff; things that are definite easy issues to diagnose and fix.
Check the floorboards for rust, the worst is always driver side. If you're in 303 I've got some rare vent windows from the 2dr I'm selling.
Also xjs fucking suck fucking dick in the snow in 2wd. I can't explain it, muy Comanches with unloaded beds did better than my loaded Cherokee in 2wd.
Swapping another trans/case and front axle in should be cheaper than dirty though.
>OBD1
At least ODB1 doesn't throw codes for down pipe O2 sensor or loose fuel cap. The 4L is pretty damn simple and has been around for a long time.
You got a 2 door, so that's good
I've literally had those exact codes on my OBD1 BMW.
His price of 500 comes from the fact that the outside of the body is good, it's 2 door and the running boards/wheels.
Everything else will be bad. Otherwise he would be screaming "solid frame, runs and drives great just needs a censor to be perfect!"
Never owned a Jeep but
>rockers are gone
>tires are gone
THEN
>front corner is held together by zip ties??
>hood doesn't close right/for/bent.
Collision/someone fukt up
Prepare for the shit tier Chrysler electrical quality that plague 90s Cherokee models. Plop a battery in and test the electronics and inspect wiring for corrosion/mouse teeth damage.
They can be a good if not let to totally rot.
They're piss easy. I have an MJ. Wiring's not fucking horrible to deal with, just re-do all the grounds when you get it. You'll have to put a bit of time doing a bunch of little shit but it'll be a fun project and reliable once running right.
Parts are still everywhere and southern trucks can still be found without too much rust. And OBD1 is easy to fuck with, scanners and laptop hookups exist. At least you're not dealing with a Renix ECU, or having to emissions test with OBDII. I actually prefer the earlier ones.
I found a good selection of OBD1 readers on Alibaba, they're all cheap no name Chinese made units, but the broken English reviews seem to be good.
>Also xjs fucking suck fucking dick in the snow in 2wd
Can confirm
Its a 1990, so I believe its pre ODB1. Not sure if that's good or bad.
Excellent. You've got the latest Renix year. Now, assuming he's not lying, you should be able to find an ECU no problem. Pick and pulls should have them. Just go to the XJ forums and go through the list of shit to do to it off the bat. Renix has it's own set of headaches and all XJs have inadequate grounding to tackle. Assuming he's not, you're still sitting on a good couple hundred dollars of bodypanels, trim, and wiring harnesses before you even start taking apart the stuff under the hood. Part it out, further diagnose the problem, do whatever. Hopefully it just werks once you get tinkering with it. They're not awful to diagnose, but have a multimeter handy.
Not hard at all, parts are abundant, engines are built like a motherfucker and with the horsepower to justify it
Not bad as long as the body and frame are straight. And the 4WD likes to shit out on those when they get real old but you don't have to deal with that. Tons of room in the engine bay because I6 and a bunch of room on either side.
Just expect it to ride more like a truck than a car if you have never owned an SUV like that.