2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0 Clean Up Oil

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My son is looking at 2000-2004 Grand Cherokees for his first vehicle. He's 15, so he's going to be fixing it up before he can officially drive. This is going to be a great learning experience for him. Anyway, we'll land one soon with mileage in the 140-160k range.

We're going to run a couple of OCI's to clean things up and get it ready for its future normal diet which he's narrowed down to Mobil 1 HM, PP HM, or possibly Valvoline HM synthetic.

What oil would work well for the cleanup of any deposits or sluge in that old 4.0? I'm leaning toward advising him to use Pennzoil Platinum for that job, but wanted to see if someone has this kind of experience with this engine? I know some of these get seeping or small leaks from the rear main seals, too. Is there a particular HM oil that plays well with that issue, if it is present?

He'll run Fram Extra Guards during the cleanup runs but says he'll switch to the TG or Ultra Guard when done.

My next question is, has anyone settled into an OCI that works well with this engine? 5k? 6k? 10k?

He's pretty excited about the GC and is looking forward to learning how to fix it up and maintain it. I think he'll wind up a future Bitoger, once the infection sets in!
 
You're probably going to buy one that has oil leaks, and with a year of wrenching time I would just do the RMS. Big jobs like that teach you a lot more than just doing brakes and suspension, he'll learn the most important part about wrenching: Taking things apart and putting them back together without breaking them. Me and my Dad semi restored an 88 Sierra and then swapped the mill when my Sister smoked it later on, that taught me a lot.

That 4.0 is going to be expensive to fuel, those early 2000s SUVs were designed with 90s gas prices in mind. If I had a kid in HS I would want something that wouldn't drain their wallet so they aren't just working to fuel and insure their car. I'm just a city slicker though, the only time I go offroad is over potholes.

I wish my dad was as supportive of my automotive interests at that age as you are, 30 years old and he still gives me a hard time about wrenching in the driveway.
 
I would go with a 6K OCI. But I would not necessarily feel the need to run clean up oil changes. Unless you pulled a valve cover and saw a sludge mess..

Things to consider:

1) Engine is know to have issues with cracking piston skirts.
2) #331 cracked heads
3) Teves front calipers are substandard. Upgrade to Akebono. (There is a kit available from Jeep dealers).
 
How about PP High mileage oil? That or Mobil 1 HM would be my two choices, Pennzoil being on top of the list. If I were certain it needed a good cleaning I might tweak the first OCI with something to do some additional cleaning. Your filter choices are great. But you knew all of this already! LOL

I'd settle on a 5K OCI, but driving conditions here suck. Wish him good luck!!
 
We used 15W40 in my FIL's GC with OCI's whenever I was in the mood to change ut which ment about 10K OCI's. What greanaded it was a warped block. It's a tough engine.
 
Don't bother with trying to clean up old oil with new oil. Just change it with something good at normal intervals and forget about it.
 
I would run any good conventional oil , my son and I did a 1997 jeep with a 5.7 and we ended up running Rotella T-5 10 w 30
worked well and I could get bulk for a buck a quart from my employer ,,,,

clean a whistle internally ,,, motor ran well but electrical gremlins got us
 
I'd run a quality oil and just keep the OCI's conservative and that will do enough cleaning on its own. No reason to go overboard. Those 4.0's are decent.
 
I don't think a 4.0 Grand Cherokee is a bad first vehicle if it is in decent shape.

He will learn a lot, it is a safe vehicle, and what the 4.0 uses in fuel it makes up for in ease of maintenance/repairs. Parts are generally pretty cheap and easy to replace. The 4.0 Grand Cherokee is also not a rocket ship, so not so many worries about speeding.

A few things to mention:

-Avoid 2001 as they had the 0331 cylinder head more prone to cracking
-Upgrade the calipers as Donald suggested
-Look for rust and make sure the engine has good oil pressure (hot idle spec is 12 psi minimum) and no knocks
-Make the the transmission shifts smoothly and the fluid isn't black

While Jeeps can nickle and dime you, they can also live relatively long lives with good maintenance. I know a few with 99-04 Grand Cherokee 4.0s approaching 300k on the original drive train. The best UOA wear numbers I've had in both mine and the 4.0s I service have been with Pennzoil Conventional 5/10w30. Pennzoil conventional is also a pretty good cleaning oil.
 
I loved my 97 Grand Cherokee with the 4.0L. It was a great SUV that required a little maintenance from time to time, but otherwise was solid as a rock. It leaked from the oil filter adapter, but not enough to even require a top off during my 3k mile intervals. I ran strictly PYB 5W/10W-30, whichever one Walmart had in stock at the time.
 
Also just remembered that the main source of 4.0 oil leaks are:

-Valve cover and associated PCV hose grommets
-Oil filter adapter o-rings (if equipped)
-Oil pan
-Rear main seal

The valve cover gasket is $20, oil filter adapter o-rings are $12 from the dealer. Both can be done in 30 minutes. The oil pan and rear main seal are not as fun, but a lot easier than other vehicles I have done them on.
 
Originally Posted by IndyFan
My son is looking at 2000-2004 Grand Cherokees for his first vehicle. He's 15, so he's going to be fixing it up before he can officially drive. This is going to be a great learning experience for him. Anyway, we'll land one soon with mileage in the 140-160k range.

We're going to run a couple of OCI's to clean things up and get it ready for its future normal diet which he's narrowed down to Mobil 1 HM, PP HM, or possibly Valvoline HM synthetic.

What oil would work well for the cleanup of any deposits or sluge in that old 4.0? I'm leaning toward advising him to use Pennzoil Platinum for that job, but wanted to see if someone has this kind of experience with this engine? I know some of these get seeping or small leaks from the rear main seals, too. Is there a particular HM oil that plays well with that issue, if it is present?

He'll run Fram Extra Guards during the cleanup runs but says he'll switch to the TG or Ultra Guard when done.

My next question is, has anyone settled into an OCI that works well with this engine? 5k? 6k? 10k?

He's pretty excited about the GC and is looking forward to learning how to fix it up and maintain it. I think he'll wind up a future Bitoger, once the infection sets in!



You can also teach him about value. This engine is mot picky about what 30 grade and heavier you use just but what is on sale. The ever changing OEM requirements have made oils nearly identical in actual protection.
 
00'&01' are known for bad cylinder heads.

I'm not sure i'd get a Grand Cherokee, they don't have a lot going for them if the engine has issues, the transmissions suck, and the rest of the car is a Jeep...

Look into XJ's 99' and older. Good engines, good Toyota transmissions, simpler electronics etc.
 
Thanks, everyone! I'm going to have him read through this and make some decisions. When we get one I'll pop the valve cover off and look at it. I will recommend he follows Donald and Bottom Feeder's advice and just put good oil in it and start the regular OCI's, probably beginning with 5k. The one we're zeroing in on sounds like it will be a good one. It appears there is strong evidence that the seller was pretty good about oil changes. Again, he'll decide, but I like the idea of M1 or PP HM 5w or 10w 30 and change it every 5 or 6k. We may do a UOA and if it looks good, go further.

He wants to make it like an overlanding vehicle, so he's planning on making it capable of trail use. Once he gets cleaned up, maintenance caught up, and trouble areas fixed, he wants to lift it 1.5 inches with an Old Man Emu kit and put some all-terrains on it. I'll probably try and steer him to a cheaper spacer lift, but hey, it is his money. (This is what happens when you grow up around Jeeps.) He's eyeballing my spare set of JL Rubicon rims, but he ain't gettin' his hands on those, Lol!

I think his plate and wallet will be preoccupied with a lot of small things for awhile. He'll have lots of time to get those knocked out before he can drive it, so by the time he does, it should be in pretty good shape. I'll try and post some pics and info if we zero in on one soon. Time is on our side, though, and we can be picky. No rush.

The best part of this is that he's come out of his video game/computer nerd shell and is realizing there is a real world out there! I'm looking forward to helping him sometimes and watching him work while drinking a beer at other times. This should be a very fun project.
 
Originally Posted by Nick1994
00'&01' are known for bad cylinder heads.

I'm not sure i'd get a Grand Cherokee, they don't have a lot going for them if the engine has issues, the transmissions suck, and the rest of the car is a Jeep...

Look into XJ's 99' and older. Good engines, good Toyota transmissions, simpler electronics etc.


We'll look out for that. He's dead set on the WJ, though. The one we're looking at on Saturday is a 2001 and has 142k on it and is said to run very well. We shall see. If it doesn't pan out, we'll be looking more for an 04. I've seen plenty of them with many, many miles on those trannys, so if it feels good and was well maintained, we'll try and keep it going. The price leaves him room for something big to be fixed, such as a tranny rebuild, if he gets unlucky. He budgeted conservatively on minimum work hours. He usually gets more and he did not count the additional hours he'll get during breaks or summer. I'm pretty proud of the way he's calculating things. Again, very conservative.
 
I have a long history with just such a Jeep (WJ that I still miss) and would recommend avoiding anything older than an 02 with an 04 preferred. The model was plagued by piston skirt fractures that were much more prevalent in the 99 to 01 models, although it has been documented in every model year. As for oil, a heavy 30 (like Pennzoil HM or Rotella as suggested above) or a light 40 (such as T6) are great choices. I would not assume it will need cleaning, and if it does you'll not likely make much progress with any oil and the 4.0 will not care anyway.

The nemesis of the WJ is it was a huge sales hit, the first Jeep to really hit a hard cord with the new SUV buying crowd. As such a lot of them were bought new by what I would describe as "non-Jeep" people and as a result they didn't get proper maintenance. Ask any seller about transmission services and you are likely to get a blank stare. If that is the case you can be assured things like the transfer case and differentials were never touched. Maintenance on a Jeep is crucial and makes a huge difference in second hand ownership experience and reliability.

I have had 3 Jeeps and despite the dogging they get for unreliability they were all good to me and never once stranded me. But our Grand was still in the shop more than our KIA ever has been.

Good luck and enjoy your Jeep!
 
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