I may be asking a biased crowd... But in your honest opinions, how reliable should I expect a 98 Grand Cherokee to be? 108k, i6, relativley well taken care of. What kind of things should I look for before buying? Do they have a timing belt to change?
defleppardsg
My '97 I6 has been surprisingly reliable. I haven't had any major issues with it, mostly just wear and tear items. I'm just about to hit 148k, btw. Biggest things I've had to do is replace the front CV joints at 112k, and the rear axle seals and bearings at 146k. I did them myslef, it wasn't too hard.
A thing to look out for is the VC in the 249 (Quadra-Trac) t-case, but a 6 cyl will most likely have the 242 Selec-Trac case, which is very reliable and shouldn't have any issues.
Check the AC, chance are it won't work, mine hasn't in years. IMO AC has never been the strong suit of any Chrysler vehicle.
And no timing belt, the 4.0 runs a chain. You'll probably never have to replace it.
Also check the rockers and bottoms of the doors for rust or rot, it seems like that's where these corrosion problems start. If It's got plastic of the rockers and you can't see them, I'd make sure to check the doors....if those are going, chances are the rockers are too. Mine is starting to go in those places, what you want to do is open the doors and look at the bottom inside edge of it, that's where it rots.
I can't really think of any other major issues you'll have, the 6 cyl is pretty reliable.
Oh, and check the parking brake, chances are that don't work either. These things are notorious for that.
And on these, it's really not so much the mileage as how it's been taken care of. You can get 200k easy out of these if you take care of them, hopefully your previous owner has.
The nice thing aobut Jeeps is that if you have any automotive knowledge, or even the willingess to try and learn, they're relatively easy to work on. I've owned mine since '01, and it's only been in the shop 3 times. For the most part I try to do everything myself.
A thing to look out for is the VC in the 249 (Quadra-Trac) t-case, but a 6 cyl will most likely have the 242 Selec-Trac case, which is very reliable and shouldn't have any issues.
Check the AC, chance are it won't work, mine hasn't in years. IMO AC has never been the strong suit of any Chrysler vehicle.
And no timing belt, the 4.0 runs a chain. You'll probably never have to replace it.
Also check the rockers and bottoms of the doors for rust or rot, it seems like that's where these corrosion problems start. If It's got plastic of the rockers and you can't see them, I'd make sure to check the doors....if those are going, chances are the rockers are too. Mine is starting to go in those places, what you want to do is open the doors and look at the bottom inside edge of it, that's where it rots.
I can't really think of any other major issues you'll have, the 6 cyl is pretty reliable.
Oh, and check the parking brake, chances are that don't work either. These things are notorious for that.
And on these, it's really not so much the mileage as how it's been taken care of. You can get 200k easy out of these if you take care of them, hopefully your previous owner has.
The nice thing aobut Jeeps is that if you have any automotive knowledge, or even the willingess to try and learn, they're relatively easy to work on. I've owned mine since '01, and it's only been in the shop 3 times. For the most part I try to do everything myself.
Niice write up Mike!!
x2.... once you get past the petty little nickel & dimers that are typical of 12-17 yr old vehicles, the Grands have been very reliable. The 4.0 & 5.2 are near bulletproof, if you take care of them, and the drive system, though not out of the box tough for off roading, is extreamly stout.
Good luck with your purchase. May you have many fun filled (& pocket emptying) years of ZJ enjoyment!
x2.... once you get past the petty little nickel & dimers that are typical of 12-17 yr old vehicles, the Grands have been very reliable. The 4.0 & 5.2 are near bulletproof, if you take care of them, and the drive system, though not out of the box tough for off roading, is extreamly stout.
Good luck with your purchase. May you have many fun filled (& pocket emptying) years of ZJ enjoyment!
My 98 bought new has been pretty reliable...it has 125K on it now...major repairs were the trans seals at 80K and the ac evap at 85K...the rest just brake jobs...exhaust system...next I'm going to put in a new radiator (just starting to leak)....I have an 07 as our newer vehicle for long trips but I drive the 98 around town all the time...
My 98 4.0 is at about 210k and still runs well. The transmission is original and has not been rebuilt, but I have had to replace the transfer case. I bought a used transfer case from a lower mile zj for 200.00, installed it myself in the driveway with no special tools.
If you take care of them they will last a long time.
If you take care of them they will last a long time.
Just keep in mind that they are not what you would call troublefree low maintenance machines but the fact that the ZJ especially is very mechanically simple and the parts are available and low priced so many repairs you can do yourself and just about any mechanic out there can fix most of the issues...
Jeeps aren't exactly low maintenance, but if maintained, they're pretty reliable. Most of the time if something happens, it's not something that would leave you stranded somewhere, and it's usually easy to fix. The only issues mine's had in almost 102k miles are 1 radiator replacement, an e-fan replacement and basic maintenance and wear items (belt idler pulleys, etc). This is based on the maintenance records going back to the first owner. I've had it since just before 100k miles, and other than replacing the idler pulleys and belt to quiet a little noise, I've put no repairs into it.
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