Differential fluid suggestions for 2.5L Wrangler
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The 2.5 isn't the most powerful thing on the planet, but they are decently reliable. They added two cylinders to the 2.5L four to make the 4.0L I6 that everyone loves.
Originally Posted By: Shark
Originally Posted By: zeng
Originally Posted By: Shark
Originally Posted By: zeng
Shark said:
Not even auto locking hubs for those who mentioned it. The hubs are always engaged (front driveline is always spinning, even in 2wd, just without power applied).
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Yeah. 68K is pretty good for a Chrysler automatic of that era, though. Gotta give credit where credit is due!
Heh. My similar era 46RE would love to disagree. Just shy of 196k miles and still going strong. I threw a shift kit in at 120k shorty after I cammed the motor. After another 75k of more than stock power and being worked decently hard at times, it's still solid (no slipping, shifts as well as it ever has, doesn't feel tired at all).
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Yeah. 68K is pretty good for a Chrysler automatic of that era, though. Gotta give credit where credit is due!
Heh. My similar era 46RE would love to disagree. Just shy of 196k miles and still going strong. I threw a shift kit in at 120k shorty after I cammed the motor. After another 75k of more than stock power and being worked decently hard at times, it's still solid (no slipping, shifts as well as it ever has, doesn't feel tired at all).
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Originally Posted By: Miller88
Ugh. 3 speed auto.
Supertech 80w-90. That 2.5 isn't going to be putting out enough power to warrant anything thicker.
+1 I wouldn't go nuts with it. good old ST will do just fine
Ugh. 3 speed auto.
Supertech 80w-90. That 2.5 isn't going to be putting out enough power to warrant anything thicker.
+1 I wouldn't go nuts with it. good old ST will do just fine
Originally Posted By: stchman
My question is, why would someone buy a Wrangler and never offroad it. I thought the whole purpose in getting a vehicle like that was to take it offroad.
And also why would Jeep put open front and rear diffs on something that is intended to be offroaded?
you have to drive one to understand. Even on road, they are rough, rowdy, feel connected in a sloppy sort of way...fun! And if folks are concerned about "fashion objects", they get arguably better gas mileage than plenty of full size trucks out there, especially after other larger vehicles have been lifted, etc..
Open diffs? Someone may have already mentioned it.... even with open diffs, jeep+rain+curve=bad. especially on/off ramps. A wrangler with a LSD ... I would not let my kids or wife drive. It's too short of a vehicle with a light rear end. And still, with open diffs, they remain quite capable off road unless you are just into some insane terrain.
My question is, why would someone buy a Wrangler and never offroad it. I thought the whole purpose in getting a vehicle like that was to take it offroad.
And also why would Jeep put open front and rear diffs on something that is intended to be offroaded?
you have to drive one to understand. Even on road, they are rough, rowdy, feel connected in a sloppy sort of way...fun! And if folks are concerned about "fashion objects", they get arguably better gas mileage than plenty of full size trucks out there, especially after other larger vehicles have been lifted, etc..
Open diffs? Someone may have already mentioned it.... even with open diffs, jeep+rain+curve=bad. especially on/off ramps. A wrangler with a LSD ... I would not let my kids or wife drive. It's too short of a vehicle with a light rear end. And still, with open diffs, they remain quite capable off road unless you are just into some insane terrain.
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While I can't speak for the current generation of Wrangler, that generation of wrangler (TJ) is actually tail heavy. The 4 link front and rear on those make them steer pretty good ... kind of a 4 wheel steering type of deal.
Wranglers certainly have no problem swapping ends in the snow. That's for sure.
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
Wranglers certainly have no problem swapping ends in the snow. That's for sure.
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
Originally Posted By: Miller88
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
Nothing about the wheelbase or weight-distribution stand out relative any comparable SUV of the day:
http://media.caranddriver.com/files/ford...11-dwarfs-4.pdf
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
Nothing about the wheelbase or weight-distribution stand out relative any comparable SUV of the day:
http://media.caranddriver.com/files/ford...11-dwarfs-4.pdf
Mine has a few hundred pounds of extra stuff hanging off the front end ... pretty far ahead of the axle. Forget about that haha.
Originally Posted By: Miller88
While I can't speak for the current generation of Wrangler, that generation of wrangler (TJ) is actually tail heavy. The 4 link front and rear on those make them steer pretty good ... kind of a 4 wheel steering type of deal.
Wranglers certainly have no problem swapping ends in the snow. That's for sure.
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
The 4 link definitely has some rear steer (it's noticeable in the ZJ), especially at anything above stock ride height. Not being set up for too much understeer combined with the short wheelbase on a TJ definitely makes end-swapping pretty easy.
While I can't speak for the current generation of Wrangler, that generation of wrangler (TJ) is actually tail heavy. The 4 link front and rear on those make them steer pretty good ... kind of a 4 wheel steering type of deal.
Wranglers certainly have no problem swapping ends in the snow. That's for sure.
The Cherokees were pretty front heavy though. And light in the rear. But the longer wheel base helps with that a bit.
The 4 link definitely has some rear steer (it's noticeable in the ZJ), especially at anything above stock ride height. Not being set up for too much understeer combined with the short wheelbase on a TJ definitely makes end-swapping pretty easy.
JTK
$100 Site Donor 2025
Not my choice in paint color, but MAN is that TJ clean!! I owned a 1997 2.5L, 5spd from 1998-2000. Very fun, but not a great highway cruiser as you could imagine.
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Mine was reliable aside from snapping exhaust manifold bolts off a few times. Local Jeep dealer fixed it for free.
Those 3spd autos seemed to suffer from overheating.
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Mine was reliable aside from snapping exhaust manifold bolts off a few times. Local Jeep dealer fixed it for free.
Those 3spd autos seemed to suffer from overheating.
Originally Posted By: JTK
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Yep, as long as it's not a 98 (none of the 98 Jeeps do it for some reason, even though 97s and 99s do).
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Yep, as long as it's not a 98 (none of the 98 Jeeps do it for some reason, even though 97s and 99s do).
Random feature. 2000 and 2001 don't do it.
Originally Posted By: JTK
Not my choice in paint color, but MAN is that TJ clean!! I owned a 1997 2.5L, 5spd from 1998-2000. Very fun, but not a great highway cruiser as you could imagine.
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Mine was reliable aside from snapping exhaust manifold bolts off a few times. Local Jeep dealer fixed it for free.
Those 3spd autos seemed to suffer from overheating.
Thank you for the compliment.
I think what gets the transmission hot is the torque converter is quick to attempt lock up. It drops your RPM far down in the powerband. Often it unlocks again because you can't maintain speed without too much throttle input. I drive around this issue, my girlfriend does not. It needs the next step up gear ratio, 3.55 from 3.07
I'll check out how to read the codes that way, I have a scanner but it sounds interesting. I have a code right now for PS Pressure Sensor failure (just replaced it, but haven't driven anywhere). I wouldn't call this Jeep reliable, seems to always need something. I also have to do a clock spring this weekend.
On the highway is kind of rough. We considered doing a hard top to quiet it down but I didn't want to stick the extra weight on it. I topped it out once, 95 mph, scary. If it goes a few months without needing repaired I'd to do an electric fan conversion to free up some horsepower.
Not my choice in paint color, but MAN is that TJ clean!! I owned a 1997 2.5L, 5spd from 1998-2000. Very fun, but not a great highway cruiser as you could imagine.
If I remember correctly, you could see OBDII codes right on the digital odometer screen on that vintage.
Mine was reliable aside from snapping exhaust manifold bolts off a few times. Local Jeep dealer fixed it for free.
Those 3spd autos seemed to suffer from overheating.
Thank you for the compliment.
I think what gets the transmission hot is the torque converter is quick to attempt lock up. It drops your RPM far down in the powerband. Often it unlocks again because you can't maintain speed without too much throttle input. I drive around this issue, my girlfriend does not. It needs the next step up gear ratio, 3.55 from 3.07
I'll check out how to read the codes that way, I have a scanner but it sounds interesting. I have a code right now for PS Pressure Sensor failure (just replaced it, but haven't driven anywhere). I wouldn't call this Jeep reliable, seems to always need something. I also have to do a clock spring this weekend.
On the highway is kind of rough. We considered doing a hard top to quiet it down but I didn't want to stick the extra weight on it. I topped it out once, 95 mph, scary. If it goes a few months without needing repaired I'd to do an electric fan conversion to free up some horsepower.
The 5 speed manual 4 cylinders had 4.10 gears. That's pretty tolerable. But without overdrive, that wouldn't be fun.
I still don't understand why the Wranglers never got the AW-4 transmission. A huge upgrade over the 3 speed auto and an upgrade in reliability over the 42RH and 42RE in reliability.
The 2.5 will bolt to one with the GM bellhousing ... it was offered with the 2.5 in the Cherokee. 4.10 AW4/2.5 and 4.56 gears AW4/2.5 towing package.
The fastest I have ever had one of those Wranglers was 85. That was more than enough for me!
I still don't understand why the Wranglers never got the AW-4 transmission. A huge upgrade over the 3 speed auto and an upgrade in reliability over the 42RH and 42RE in reliability.
The 2.5 will bolt to one with the GM bellhousing ... it was offered with the 2.5 in the Cherokee. 4.10 AW4/2.5 and 4.56 gears AW4/2.5 towing package.
The fastest I have ever had one of those Wranglers was 85. That was more than enough for me!
JTK
$100 Site Donor 2025
Yeah, It was basically constant foot to the floor to maintain highway speeds with my 1997 5spd 2.5 TJ. The ride was great with coils all the way around, but you had to be on your A-game at speeds in excess of ~65mph to keep it pointed where it should be. Mine was equipped with full steel doors, A/C and a hard-top. It was like throwing an anchor out the back when the A/C kicked on. Luckily fuel was cheap then and I never tracked MPGs at the time.
Changed all the fluids tonight. Front diff was thin, fairly clear, dark grey, almost no smell and luckily almost no grey on the magnetic plug. Rear was brown, normal smell. I used 75w90 Super Tech semi synthetic. Also flushed the power steering fluid and replaced with Prestone. This was easier than expected. I disconnected the return line, drained the reservoir and plugged it, filled with new. Pulled the wire off the coil, had someone crank it over while I caught the old fluid/watched the level in reservoir. After almost 1 quart I was getting fresh fluid pumping out.
Did you check / change the transfer case fluid? Those often get ignored until it's too late (they go boom on the highway)
Originally Posted By: JTK
Yeah, It was basically constant foot to the floor to maintain highway speeds with my 1997 5spd 2.5 TJ.
I've got a great memory of this from a couple years ago. Went down to PA with a couple friends in YJs on 33s. Coming back, it's me in the 5.9 ZJ, one guy in a 4.0 YJ and one guy in a 2.5 YJ (he was at the back of the line). Going up one of the hills on 81, we get a call over the CB asking us to slow down (we were doing 70-ish). Turns out the guy with the 2.5 was doing 65-ish in 3rd gear at 4000+ rpm and WOT and just couldn't go any faster up the hill.
Yeah, It was basically constant foot to the floor to maintain highway speeds with my 1997 5spd 2.5 TJ.
I've got a great memory of this from a couple years ago. Went down to PA with a couple friends in YJs on 33s. Coming back, it's me in the 5.9 ZJ, one guy in a 4.0 YJ and one guy in a 2.5 YJ (he was at the back of the line). Going up one of the hills on 81, we get a call over the CB asking us to slow down (we were doing 70-ish). Turns out the guy with the 2.5 was doing 65-ish in 3rd gear at 4000+ rpm and WOT and just couldn't go any faster up the hill.
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