well...
borrowed my friends jeep for the last couple of days cause my cars are stuck in my drive way. it was a stock 97? 4cyl wrangler, and probably the slowest vehicle i have ever driven. but that did not stop it from being a blast, i went offroading in Centraila Pa, on trails i would have previously thought were just for four wheelers and dirt bikes. I also got introduced to that weird jeep wave thing. odd.. felt like a real jeep owner. now i want one!
I should say I'm not new to cars, just jeeps. i have a 69 240z that is in the middle of a rb26dett (skyline motor) swap, a 307 hp turbo mr2, and a AWD turbo Talon making just shy of 300 all-wheel hp. I'm also not unfamiliar with being off the pavement, i get out and compete in rallyx pretty regularly.
i have no idea whats going on with jeeps however and i would be selling one of my cars to get one this summer. i do have a boat that it would have to be able to tow, as i would be getting rid of the suv as well.. so i assume that rules out the 4cly, didn't seem to me like it had enough power at all. it should be said that i dont expect to modify this jeep in any major way, just some bigger tires (nothing crazy) and maybe a moderate exhaust to free up some power..
how many miles do these things run for? What should i be looking out for on the higher mileage ones?
i dont particularly care how new it is, ac would be nice because it will be a daily driver but not required. any particular years to avoid?
how much do the 4L usually run for in a given decade.
i know these are vague questions but i'm sure it will narrow down to more specific ones as i learn more from this thread.
The TJ I6 years 97-06 usually 10k-15k (newer ones 04-06 up to 20k) decide your preference auto or man. Check craigslist in your area to get an idea. One thing I would look for, the sports and the sahara model, some of them came with an optional Dana 44 rear axle. If your gonna go bigger on tires you want this option. The D35 that the rest come with is pretty weak. Good luck with your search!
make sure the maintentance is done on the jeep and has been done routinely. if the 6cyl is properly maintained it can easily get 200k+ miles out of it.
was the sport and the Sahara option package the only ones to come with the I6 or was that the only one that came with the danna 44?
my price range would be below 10k so perhaps i'm looking at pre 97 models, does the sport and sahara still come with the danna 44?
so the I6 is good for a lot of miles, dosent suprise me at all. if i find a jeep in the mid 100,ks should i be checking for anything else wearing out by then? do the hubs and diffs start to wear out. trannys fail, ect. (deffinately looking for a manual)
also i am assuming the I6 is SOHC and runs a timing chain, is this correct.
I have no idea what the weight is, its a small ski boat. 16 footer maybe i have no idea that weight. i usually tow it with a durango and a v6 Dakota no problem...
towing with a tj is very limited. it is not a question of power, it is a fact of stopping. the tj is too small to stop heavy loads. the book stated limit is 2000 lbs. which is a real small utility trailer, motorcycle, or ski-doo, etc.
I pulled an 18' cuddy cabin from Tampa to Pensacola 70mph and then from my house to the water every weekend with no problems. I had the I6 in my 94 YJ with an auto. The TJ have a few more ponies so even better.
ive seen tjs tow a trailer that can hold nothing bigger than a tire to towing an 18' fishing boat. does your boat trailer have trailer braking? that helps a whole lot when it comes to towing. just think of it like this. your dakota and durango both have longer wheelbases and arent as tippy as a wrangler. you dont want a short vehicle towing a long trailer. seems like common sense but ive seen alot of people towing long campers with vehicles like pajeros and exploders..also for sure get an equalizer hitch if you dont already have one.
A 16' boat is probably on a single axle trailer. It also probably dosen't have trailer brakes .....That could be a problem (lots of experience towing, new to Jeeps). Think of the trailer weight at about 500 to 600 +lbs., the drive at about 400 to 700 lbs. (sounds like you probably have a V8), the boat...maybe 800 +lbs., gear, fuel, you get the picture. My TJ is rated at 2000 lbs. with a TW of about 350 lbs. I put two 44 pound bags of dog food in the back and can feel it.
I just purchased my first jeep and found the following:
The pre 96's, YJ's, are a different unit than the TJ's. The interior and suspension was completely revamped in the TJ's. The things that turned me off from the YJ's were the leaf springs and also the front hubs. The YJ's have a vacuum actuated hub locking system, and the TJ's are full time. I also found that MOST of all jeeps I looked at, unless they were stock, were hammered. The ones that had D44 axles were used up, just like the ones that were modified. These guys that own, modify, and use their jeeps off road love them. They mostly only sell them when they have problems.........or something newer, bigger, better comes out that they cannot attach to their present ride.
Good luck with your shopping.........however remember, you won't know about potential towing problems till you have to make that emergency maneuver or stop.
well thats an issue... ill have to rethink this perhaps. should probably sell that boat...
Its on a single axle trailer but it does have a break system built into it. I'll look up the weight of the trailer and boat next time i get the chance. Its got a 4.3l inboard v6 if memory serves me. i only make the trip 2 or 4 times a year because i leave it in the water for most of the summer. if you think ill be able to make the trip with a wrangler, even if i have to upgrade the breaks then i can still hold out hope. ill get the numbers and post them here.
if the trailer starts coming around when i slam on the breaks it wouldnt matter if i was driving a big rig.... jeep or not, if the trailer is coming around then your ****ed.. im worried about not being able to stop with the trailer behind me, not locking up the trailer coming to a stop too fast..
true, but if you had a longer heavier truck, you may have a chance if the trailer started swaying to give you a longer window of opportunity to control it before you totally lose it. granted the wrangler is heavy for its size, but having that tiny wheelbase is a whole different world. and yeah, sudden stops is pretty much the #1 concern when it comes to the biggest problem when towing with a jeep..
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