I've been looking at a few Jeep Wranglers, for a second vehicle, & thought I would ask a few questions here. I have never owned a Wrangler & I am not real familiar with them. I am looking at a 2001 4.0L I6 5spd w/ 79,xxx on it, I am also going to look at a 1998 2.5L I4 auto w/ 83,xxx miles on it. I test drove the 2001 & like it a lot, I am gonna try to test drive the 1998 tomorrow. Any opinions about these Wranglers, or anything I should look for? Thank you in advance.
A few questions about Jeep Wranglers...
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Stay away from the 4 cylinder if at all possible. They do not have enbough power to keep up with traffic on the hwy and you will be a menace to yourself.
Hopefully the 01 has the D44 rear axle and 3.73 gears. The D35 is known as the Turdy five. It is a very weak rear end and they break often.
Some TJ's had 3.07 gearing which is terrible for power and MPG since the engine is working too hard to maintan speed.
If you experiance death wobble the culprit is usually the track bar bushing at the front axle. You can easily replace the stock rubber bushing with an aftermarket bushing thats made out of hard plastic.
I now have 132K on my 02 that I bought new. It's the most comfortabe and dependable car/truck I have ever owned.
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pretty chilly in the winter with a soft top on, the turning radius is just stupid awesome on them, they can go most anywhere withine reason. Cargo capacity is a joke. Most jeep owners i know look at there wranglers as toys v.s. daily drivers. i dont own one, but have spent plenty of time behind the wheel and around owners. ohh,, be mindfull of the rust.
There bullet proof the 2.5 is one [censored] of a strong four banger it'll take an absolute beating. It's not very fast but I disagree that it wont keep up with traffic. My buddy had one and it pulled my stuck up to axles 88 f150 out of the muddy lake it had to work a little but I was pretty stuck. the 4.0 is good but I still believe the 2.5 is probably tougher and will take more abuse before throwing a rod or something. Soft tops are definetly noisy and chilly but jeeps have decent heaters. I think you would probably love um. Most people do. Either love them or hate them
It's not fair to call the Dana 35 a weak axle that breaks. It's actually really good, and your only option if you want ABS. They are probably not ideal for someone who wants to lift up their Jeep and put huge tires on it, but for a normal vehicle it is perfectly fine. The '97 and up are a night and day difference. Coil springs, and somewhat of an interior make the world of a difference. Go with the 4.0l, it is indestructible. No matter what wrangler you get, don't expect good mileage at all, they burn gas like no other. Tons of fun to drive, fairy dependable. Track bars go bad just like any other vehicle with a solid front axle. And as said, they prob have the best turning radius ever! I used to have one, but replaced it with a truck because the wranglers simply don't have any tow capacity which just made it another toy vehicle for me.
I can't decide which is slower; a 2.5 Wrangler or a 1.3 Samurai.
They are both capable off-road. But on road, man are they slow. Short entrance ramps to busy fast moving freeways are to be feared
Not sure if the later 2.4 was really any better. It has a timing belt to deal with and only gets marginally better mpg than the 4.0
Look at the rear axle cover.if it has a rubber plug its a 35.if its a metal plug its a 44.there is a tag on each axle under 2 bolts that hold the cover on.I think the 44 only came with 373
The 44 was available with abs. I did not want abs so I passed up several new jeeps on the lot with 44s and abs.the 4 cyl gets 1 mpg more than the 6cyl.mines my daily driver and seems to run better with age.btw they are picky about what sparkplugs you use so consult us before you buy those.
I've had numerous jeeps: a CJ, a YJ, 3 XJ's, a newer GC, and a Liberty. the Dana 35 axle is fine unless you put crazy big tires on it. I had 31 or 32's on mine, did a fair amount of off-roading and tens of thousands of miles of towing. at 175k the axles and tranny had never been touched. there is no reason to run anything other than Champion plugs. the "death" wobble might be caused by bushings, but for 3 of mine i had to replace the steering stabilizer. (essentially a shock absorber for the front axle - and only the Jeep OEM was stiff enough to fix mine) gas mileage is horrible. but hey!
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I have a 1999 Sahara with the soft top; I have driven it in -0F ambient temperatures and the heater had absolutely no problem keeping the interior warm. As for rust, my 1999 sits outside and the only corrosion consists of a bit of surface rust on the chassis and on the trailer hitch. As other owners have noted, the D35 works fine unless you go to really big tires.
And I ran mine as a daily driver until I took early retirement in 2008. I plan on keeping it forever, I am not impressed by the JK and my Sahara does everything I need or want it to do.
i have a 2001 jeep wrangler 4.0L automatic.
the Dana 35 is FINE till you go 35 inch tires or bigger. with 35 inch tres you can install a super dana 35 kit with new shafts and run 35 inch tires just fine.
many say the 2.5 is a turd and since its soo underpower gas milage is no better.
3.73s is nice but i run 3.07s on my jeep and have a 3 speed automatic with 31inch tires and LOVE it. i pulled a 2000 pound trailer for 3 hours. biggest problem was the brakes.
soft tops in the snow are not much colder in winter (i have both, live in michigan) the problem is its hard to scrape ice from soft windows without damaging them in the cold, they get brittle when frozen. the heaters work beyond good anyway. plus hardtops are not insulated. so get the top YOU want for summer as either one sucks in winter. i like having both but couldn't live with no soft top.
as for cargo...you would be surprised. i fit SO MUCH [censored] in mine. the back seat also folds up and can also be taken out very easily. making it better for cargo.
be careful with 05s and 06s http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/2005-06-jeep-opda_cps_distributor-failure-1144202/ they have big problems with the oil pumps
with 2000s and 2001s the cylinder head can crack when they over heat and cause coolant to get into the oil. if not found in time the engine will die due to coolant contamination. this was on cylinder heads with cast numer "0331"
its not a big problem, keep on eye on coolant and oil and dont over heat it.
only the jeeps without distributors (use a DIS system) are picky about spark plugs (my 2001 is DIS, i think it changed in 2000, before that they used distributors) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekCpGSR4oMA&feature=player_embedded thats why
I guess my yj with a 2.5 and p235 tires didn't destroy 2 d35 axles?must have been my imagination.I don't beat on my cars either.
My dad bought an '85 XJ new with the 2.5L, 3.73 gears, manual trans, and slightly larger optional tires. At the time the 4.0 was not an option, just the GM 2.8 V6 which he definitely wasn't going to buy. My dad has said that he wished the 4.0 was available at the time because he would have bought that instead. My dad usually goes for the smallest engine he can get and thinks his first gen Civic Hybrid has plenty of power, so that's saying something. Granted, this Jeep did have a 1 barrel carb, so it wasn't as powerful as later versions. It was reliable, except for an unusual appetite for water pumps.
A lot of my friends have bought Wrangers, but many were ragged out and had been modified at some point in their life, so that by itself introduces some issues. Seems like the 2.5 is fine with stock tires, but anything over 30" or so will often require a regear with that engine. Soft tops are much louder than hard tops, so keep that in mind if you're going to be doing commuting or highway driving in it. The '97+ interior was definitely an improvement, but it's still very spartan.
The only major mechanical failure I've heard of a Wranger having was when one of my friends had the t-case literally explode on his 2.5 Wrangler. Not sure what caused that, but it had about 120K or so miles at the time and it just grenaded as he was making a turn on a paved city road. The Jeep did have larger than stock tires (33" IIRC).
A Toyota 4Runner is a great alternative, if you're open to it. I've always been impressed with the reliability and utility of my '88, not to mention being great offroad. Toyota tended to overbuild the drivetrain and suspension and underpower the engines -- not the other way around. And you can actually carry stuff in the back of it...
My dau. has a 1998 Jeep Wrangler with the 2.5L four and 5 speed manual trans and stock tires. This is her daily driver. Soft top with roll up windows. The 2.5L may get 17 to 19 mpg on the highway. It doesn't have a lot of power on hills and would not be good for towing anything heavy. It has been reliable transportation with only routine repairs like water pump,TPS, and alt. I would rec. the 4.0L six esp. if you get an automatic trans. The gain in HP is far better and the loss in MPG is minimal. Also if you are going to add big tires, tow a lot, and drive in the mountains, you would want the six cyl. If you look on the net, many have stuffed a V8 engine in the Wrangler. I have seen the new Hemi, the Chevy LSX, and several Ford V8's, but that is a major operation not for the novice to tackle.
Well whats the verdict? Did he buy one or not?
Originally Posted By: Jim Spahr
My dau. has a 1998 Jeep Wrangler with the 2.5L four and 5 speed manual trans and stock tires. This is her daily driver. Soft top with roll up windows. The 2.5L may get 17 to 19 mpg on the highway. It doesn't have a lot of power on hills and would not be good for towing anything heavy. It has been reliable transportation with only routine repairs like water pump,TPS, and alt. I would rec. the 4.0L six esp. if you get an automatic trans. The gain in HP is far better and the loss in MPG is minimal. Also if you are going to add big tires, tow a lot, and drive in the mountains, you would want the six cyl. If you look on the net, many have stuffed a V8 engine in the Wrangler. I have seen the new Hemi, the Chevy LSX, and several Ford V8's, but that is a major operation not for the novice to tackle.
heard same. 70mph is about all they can do. 80 best case. but whoever wanted to drive a short-wheelbase rough and tumble wrangler beyond 70 may have some judgment issues anyway.
One thing that hasn't been mentioned.... regardless of engine-- there is one gotcha--- rain+rwd+on-ramps. The 6 especially has so much torque that you can break even the bigger tires free in lower gears in the rain. The 6 can move out if you get on it, and a younger driver could find themselves in a tailspin quick if they aren't prepared for it.
I personally love the unlimiteds, with the slightly longer wheelbase.
The 4.0 is infamous for a long life. it doesn't care what oil you put in it. it lives down low, you will destroy it if you rev it like a honda. If it's generally stock, the d35s hold up well but there have been bad runs with them.
The 4x4 does require more maintenance, and they will beat you on long highway drives.
BUT--- they are fun. period. they are noisy even with the top up, so if you need something quiet to commute home with, forget it. But if you like open air and sunshine and how it looks when you walk up to it, and how it feels to actually feel like you are driving a steel car instead of a highly-tuned, rubber-damped, isolation chamber, you might never buy anything else.
And btw, having driven both, I see no problems with the later models that use the 3.8L v6. It's a great powerplant on its own.
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