'XJ' Jeep Cherokee - shit or shite?

[Lacquer Peel]

 

I'm not really interested in most American cars or off-roading (what is point trashing your car for leisure?) but I love the 'jacked-up estate car' look of these.

 

What are they like to drive and to work on?

Some of them seem to be VERY rusty now, not great because it's a monocoque shell IIRC.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1996-JEEP-CHEROKEE-2-5TD-BLACK-/272082872570

 

This one looks good, the wheels and expensive tyres suggest it's been looked after.

I prefer the style of the pre-facelift models and I think this age of diesel will have a fully mechanical pump for socket set tuning - later ones have electronic diesel control.

 

Aye, it has to be the unrefined 4-headed monster, I'm not interested in the petrol ones at all.

 

[cort16]

Horrendous parts costs and self shiteing diffs seems to be the main issues I've heard of. I'd have one.

[Cavcraft]

Horrible, horrible horrible. And horrible not in a good way.

[Lacquer Peel]

Horrible, horrible horrible. And horrible not in a good way.

 

Do go on.

 

I have heard about Chrysler/Jeep parts prices being horrific, but I think because they sold quite a lot of XJ Cherokees here, the prices of service parts aren't bad.

[Lacquer Peel]

 

I think Radiohead wrote a song about the side panels on this.

[Richard]

Am I right in thinking they have the four headed monster engine?

[Lacquer Peel]

Indeed. Earlier seppo and continental Europe spec ones got a Renault 2.1 turbo diesel.

 

 

This Renault-engined 3 door looks great.

 

 

NOISY.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

They're okay. 4.0 petrol version for a grand, better than any junk from Solihull.

[Barry Cade]

I really really really like these. Had a 96 Grand Cherokee with the 2.5 VM and it were good. Have another in a heartbeat, but I'd like to try the straight 6 just for giggles. Used to look after a Hemi V8  late one, with all the off roading stuff added on. Woof.

[Lacquer Peel]

Didn't the Grand Cherokee overwhelm the VM diesel? Newer GCs are available with a 5 headed monster which seems fraught with problems.

[skattrd]

My brother (barmatt) had the ex-Wuvvum 4.0 petrol one until recently, cheap as chips, crap plastic, shiny leather, but he liked it. If he still had it I'd prob be asking for a little borrow to see what they are like for myself.

[red5]

Utter shite. hateful crap with platinum coated chocolate diffs.

[twosmoke300]

Just terrible . I had the misfortune of doing a torque converter oil seal on a v8 one running on gas . Honestly the worst job I've ever done and I have worked on some shit over the years

[Asimo]

Nice and small for a 4litre, Escort size inside.

All engines have pushrods, except that Renault Diesel. A VM owning friend swears by "water-wetter" for these engines. I think it is supposed to improve heat transfer from the cylinder head into the coolant. I wonder if the 5 cyl. VM from the Grand Cherokee can be made to fit?

 

I'll take a two door and 2WD 4 litre manual please, on steel wheels. Red or Grey.

 

[Bren]

So the verdict? Cherokee = shite.

 

Lacquer Peel what's stopping you?

[Cavcraft]

Lacquer Peel, on 24 Dec 2015 - 2:39 PM, said:

Do go on.

 

I have heard about Chrysler/Jeep parts prices being horrific, but I think because they sold quite a lot of XJ Cherokees here, the prices of service parts aren't bad.

 

Vile inside, cannot/do not handle, diffs shit themselves, rust like there's no tomorrow and appear completely and utterly devoid of anything good, except the 4 headed monster itself, of course.

[Barry Cade]

Shit hot off road, torquey,love LPG, simple as a hammer, easy to fix, cheap to buy and no scene tax like a Defender. Plenty forums/info, fits in a normal parking space, great air con, and all the parts come in MOPAR boxes.

 

Keep your Descoveri.. now they ARE crap.

 

 

[Barry Cade]

Just terrible . I had the misfortune of doing a torque converter oil seal on a v8 one running on gas . Honestly the worst job I've ever done and I have worked on some shit over the years

Strange, I love working on Jeeps!

[Lacquer Peel]

Vile inside, cannot/do not handle, diffs shit themselves, rust like there's no tomorrow and appear completely and utterly devoid of anything good, except the 4 headed monster itself, of course.

 

Frontera 2.5 TDS, FTW?

 

The negatives in this thread don't put me off at all, I'll probably end up buying one of these sooner or later.

 

I have heard about weak diffs, are they as easy to drop out as Land Rover diffs?

[dollywobbler]

Frontera TDS is my preferred way to do four-headed monster. I really like the Frontera. Don't rule out the Terrano 2.7 TD either, just watch the later TDis and especially the 3-litre. Unburstable mechanicals, just dissolvable bodywork. I would have another Mavrano like a shot. Put not with petrol power.

 

By the way, off-roading to me isn't about trashing your car. Very much the opposite. I was horrified when I scratched the bumper on the Maverick (at a pay and play site, or pay and trash more like), and almost inconsolable after scraping the side of the Disco while laning. I'd no more want to damage my car when off-roading than when on-roading.

[Cavcraft]

Have to confess I'd never want to own one for long enough to find out. I've had 2 LWB Fronteras, neither were especially great yet they're still better than a Jeep. The beauty of this forum though is to do what you suggest and buy one at some point, there's every chance you'll love it. Just don't do anything silly like take a roundabout or corner in the wet.

[twosmoke300]

DW had he right idea . 2.7 td Maverick / terrano or a frontera is a handy cheap tool .

Brother has a 2.2 dti lwb fronty and is been a handy tool with a 2.8t tow weight

[brickwall]

These are an abomination. Cost me 12 quid for a seal, that would usually be around a quid 20

[Madman Of The People]

Just terrible . I had the misfortune of doing a torque converter oil seal on a v8 one running on gas . Honestly the worst job I've ever done and I have worked on some shit over the years

 

 

V8?  That would be the completely different Grand Cherokee.  Either a ZJ (1993-98) or a WJ (1999-2004).

 

The small boxy Volvo-esque looking one, known simply as "Cherokee", is the 1984-2001 XJ.

[Lacquer Peel]

Frontera TDS is my preferred way to do four-headed monster. I really like the Frontera. Don't rule out the Terrano 2.7 TD either, just watch the later TDis and especially the 3-litre. Unburstable mechanicals, just dissolvable bodywork. I would have another Mavrano like a shot. Put not with petrol power.

 

By the way, off-roading to me isn't about trashing your car. Very much the opposite. I was horrified when I scratched the bumper on the Maverick (at a pay and play site, or pay and trash more like), and almost inconsolable after scraping the side of the Disco while laning. I'd no more want to damage my car when off-roading than when on-roading.

 

What's wrong with the Terrano 2.7 TDI? I think it's just like the earlier TD engine but with electronic diesel control and an intercooler. I'd prefer a fully mechanical pump but it's still quite a simple setup.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1994-M-FORD-MAVERICK-TERRANO-2-7-DIESEL-MANUAL-7-SEATER-4X4-12-MONTHS-MOT-/281843475133

 

This must be the nicest early Maverick left, but I can't get over the gawky styling.

 

There are a lot of 4x4 yobs around here, I think the green laning scene in England and Wales is a bit more sedate - we don't really have green lanes or off road byways in Scotland.

[hauserplenty]

High center of gravity, even with the stock wheels. I would recommend the Peugeot straight six and a mush-matic but those are the most common setup here.

Diffs grenade at around 90K, replace the axles, gasket and don't forget the friction modifier, and you'll be fine. It's seen as a poor man's Land Row-vahhh around these parts. As stated elsewhere on AS, Cherokheaps have leaf springs, Grand Cherokheaps have coil springs. Pre-Daimler ones were less refined but stronger. Getting a bit thin on the ground here due to high demand / cash for clunkers. Not quite an excellent all-rounder due to coarse road manners, so buy it they're great cars I would if I had the money &c.

 

Edited to add: a machine shop press is required to replace the rear axle bearings. It's otherwise a simple job, but this adds to the cost. Listen for diff whine on the test drive for MOAR NEGOT88N POWAH.

[62 Austin]

Nice and small for a 4litre, Escort size inside.

All engines have pushrods, except that Renault Diesel. A VM owning friend swears by "water-wetter" for these engines. I think it is supposed to improve heat transfer from the cylinder head into the coolant. I wonder if the 5 cyl. VM from the Grand Cherokee can be made to fit?

 

I'll take a two door and 2WD 4 litre manual please, on steel wheels. Red or Grey.

 

image.jpg

 

My wife bought one just like this new in '92, except it had 10-hole alloy rims and was green. It was a great car and we put 190,000 miles on it before we sold it. Once pulled a 5,000-lb trailer from Kansas to Wyoming(had to go slow going over the Continental Divide, but it still made it). Routinely went on 1,000 and 2,000-mile trips in it. Very reliable. I can't imagine how wimpy it would have been with a Renault 2.1 L four. The 195 HP 4.0 L did fine. The base motor was a GM 2.5 L petrol four, and an awful GM 2.9 L V-6 was available [less HP than the 2.5].

 

I bought the pickup version of the Cherokee, an '89 Comanche. Had the 4.0 "Powertech" engine and 4WD like our Cherokee. In '86, during Renault's brief love affair with Jeep...you could get a very tiny turbo-diesel engine in it...in the U.S., but I'd be surprised if anyone bought one except by accident. For lovers of Peugeots, '86-'88 Jeep Comanches came with a feeble Peugeot transmission. The Cherokee was sold here from 1984-2001 and no V-8s were ever available, except in the pre-1984 Cherokee, which was kind of a Wagoneer (360 Cu. In. V-8 maybe).

[Felly Magic]

Not driven a Cheap, but heard waaaaay too many horror stories from owners, especially when it comes to parts prices, driven a lwb Terrano 2.7 TDi quite a lot and didn't mind it, it did feel like a proper 4x4, not like a limp wristed soft roader, and the owner regularly towed a BFO caravan with it, and no he wasn't a steak and kidney lock opener. It was the staff car for a coach firm I worked for, and it was a tight squeeze with 6 of us in. Seats were reasonably comfy, and it seemed pretty well kitted out

[HH-R]

I'd roll an early AMC era one, there's something attractive about one designed/built by a car company that went Pete Tong and was working with Renault.  Wood sides too, please.

[cort16]

I fancy one of slightly more modern lardy Grand Cherokee 4.7 v8 ones. I'm sure it'll be awful but there's something about them I find appealling.