Had a '95 sport 2 door model. Never any trouble with it. The only thing that bothered me about it was the thin doors/sheet metal. I'd love to have another that isn't all rusted out.
Jeep Cherokee Love?
- Thread starter Ramblejam
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AW4s do run a tad bit hot, but unlike other autos they still seem to last 200-300k despite the heat. I've seen them run low on fluid, submerged in water, etc, and they still work fine. Can't really say the same for the 42RE in the Grand Cherokee.
The back seat is mainly for kids, as it was marketed as a family SUV. I don't sit in the back so I don't care how big the doors are.
The XJ body style was made from 1984-2001. The 4.0L inline six became an option in 1987. Obviously it had to be popular to stick around that long. I love mine for a variety of reasons. It has gobs of low end torque. Punch the gas at a stop light and it will light up the rear tires effortlessly. Mine has thicker sway bars and handles great for an SUV. I can tow a trailer, carry a bunch of camping gear (can't do that in a Wrangler), drive through snow up to the bumper, and still get 19 mpg on the highway. I've had mine for 6 years, and it is just a fun vehicle to drive. They aren't for everyone, but once you've driven one up a steep trail or through 2 feet of snow they grow on you.
The back seat is mainly for kids, as it was marketed as a family SUV. I don't sit in the back so I don't care how big the doors are.
The XJ body style was made from 1984-2001. The 4.0L inline six became an option in 1987. Obviously it had to be popular to stick around that long. I love mine for a variety of reasons. It has gobs of low end torque. Punch the gas at a stop light and it will light up the rear tires effortlessly. Mine has thicker sway bars and handles great for an SUV. I can tow a trailer, carry a bunch of camping gear (can't do that in a Wrangler), drive through snow up to the bumper, and still get 19 mpg on the highway. I've had mine for 6 years, and it is just a fun vehicle to drive. They aren't for everyone, but once you've driven one up a steep trail or through 2 feet of snow they grow on you.
Originally Posted By: eljefino
No love for the Iron Duke 2.5? Chevy 2.8 V6? Renault (?) 2.1 diesel? Rennix EFI system without diagnosic port?
All anyone remembers is the mighty 4.0.
The Cherokees didn't have the Iron Duke
They had the AMC150 4 cylinder (258 missing 2 cylinders and a higher flowing head). Then AMC made the 4.0L 6 off of the AMC150. Friend of mine has a 2 door 4 cylinder 5 speed 4x2 Cherokee. Definitely a rare bird. Gets decent gas mileage but WOW is the 2.5 slow on the highway
When the Renix works, I do like it a bit better. It has more low end torque than the 4.0 HO and doesn't have piston problems like the "newer" 4.0s have. I just don't like lack of diagnostics and the fact that they have to crank for 45 seconds to start.
I'd buy the turbodiesel if there was one available!
No love for the Iron Duke 2.5? Chevy 2.8 V6? Renault (?) 2.1 diesel? Rennix EFI system without diagnosic port?
All anyone remembers is the mighty 4.0.
The Cherokees didn't have the Iron Duke
They had the AMC150 4 cylinder (258 missing 2 cylinders and a higher flowing head). Then AMC made the 4.0L 6 off of the AMC150. Friend of mine has a 2 door 4 cylinder 5 speed 4x2 Cherokee. Definitely a rare bird. Gets decent gas mileage but WOW is the 2.5 slow on the highwayWhen the Renix works, I do like it a bit better. It has more low end torque than the 4.0 HO and doesn't have piston problems like the "newer" 4.0s have. I just don't like lack of diagnostics and the fact that they have to crank for 45 seconds to start.
I'd buy the turbodiesel if there was one available!
My parents bought a 1985 4-door 4x4 new with the 2.5L and a 5-speed manual. Bare bones, blue on blue vinyl. It did have A/C, but even the radio was deleted (they added an AMC accessory radio a short time later). That one was not quite the epitome of Jeep Cherokee reliability, though it was never in the shop for anything major. Just lots and lots of minor repairs. For whatever reason, it went through a lot of water pumps. After about 8 years and a little over 150K miles, it got traded in. A couple months after that, it was totalled in a wreck and went to the salvage yard. It was crushed before it hit 10 years, but at the time 150K with no major repairs was considered decent and nickel and dime stuff was considered pretty normal. Probably a majority of vehicles still had 5 digit odometers then.
My dad says he wanted a 6 cylinder, but absolutely refused to own anything with the GM 2.8L V6 because he hated the S-10 his employer had as a run around truck. He didn't want to wait for the I6, though I think he knew it was on the horizon when he bought the 2.5L. The Bronco II and 4 Runner were 2-doors only, and the Pathfinder wasn't out yet, so for a small 4-door 4x4, that left Jeep and I guess Subaru at the time.
The 4.0L really did make the Cherokee "complete." That engine in that vehicle is what gave it a cult following.
My dad says he wanted a 6 cylinder, but absolutely refused to own anything with the GM 2.8L V6 because he hated the S-10 his employer had as a run around truck. He didn't want to wait for the I6, though I think he knew it was on the horizon when he bought the 2.5L. The Bronco II and 4 Runner were 2-doors only, and the Pathfinder wasn't out yet, so for a small 4-door 4x4, that left Jeep and I guess Subaru at the time.
The 4.0L really did make the Cherokee "complete." That engine in that vehicle is what gave it a cult following.
there is no love for the 2.8 cause its a pos
Renix 4.0's were fine. Mine was an '88, and we sold it off when it was 23+ years old.
Renix was fine, if you knew how to use a multi-meter, and didn't need codes to figure out what was wrong...
The real issue with the renix era 4.0's was the cooling system - that stupid pressurized bottle with bad caps that always cracked. I ended up converting mine to the non-pressure bottle system found in the 91 and up Cherokees...
Renix was fine, if you knew how to use a multi-meter, and didn't need codes to figure out what was wrong...
The real issue with the renix era 4.0's was the cooling system - that stupid pressurized bottle with bad caps that always cracked. I ended up converting mine to the non-pressure bottle system found in the 91 and up Cherokees...
Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
My parents bought a 1985 4-door 4x4 new with the 2.5L and a 5-speed manual. Bare bones, blue on blue vinyl. It did have A/C, but even the radio was deleted (they added an AMC accessory radio a short time later). That one was not quite the epitome of Jeep Cherokee reliability, though it was never in the shop for anything major. Just lots and lots of minor repairs. For whatever reason, it went through a lot of water pumps. After about 8 years and a little over 150K miles, it got traded in. A couple months after that, it was totalled in a wreck and went to the salvage yard. It was crushed before it hit 10 years, but at the time 150K with no major repairs was considered decent and nickel and dime stuff was considered pretty normal. Probably a majority of vehicles still had 5 digit odometers then.
My dad says he wanted a 6 cylinder, but absolutely refused to own anything with the GM 2.8L V6 because he hated the S-10 his employer had as a run around truck. He didn't want to wait for the I6, though I think he knew it was on the horizon when he bought the 2.5L. The Bronco II and 4 Runner were 2-doors only, and the Pathfinder wasn't out yet, so for a small 4-door 4x4, that left Jeep and I guess Subaru at the time.
The 4.0L really did make the Cherokee "complete." That engine in that vehicle is what gave it a cult following.
The AMC I4 made more torque than the V6, didn't it?
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
Renix 4.0's were fine. Mine was an '88, and we sold it off when it was 23+ years old.
Renix was fine, if you knew how to use a multi-meter, and didn't need codes to figure out what was wrong...
The real issue with the renix era 4.0's was the cooling system - that stupid pressurized bottle with bad caps that always cracked. I ended up converting mine to the non-pressure bottle system found in the 91 and up Cherokees...
Just did that on a friend's 90. Converted to the newer style cooling. Works well!
My parents bought a 1985 4-door 4x4 new with the 2.5L and a 5-speed manual. Bare bones, blue on blue vinyl. It did have A/C, but even the radio was deleted (they added an AMC accessory radio a short time later). That one was not quite the epitome of Jeep Cherokee reliability, though it was never in the shop for anything major. Just lots and lots of minor repairs. For whatever reason, it went through a lot of water pumps. After about 8 years and a little over 150K miles, it got traded in. A couple months after that, it was totalled in a wreck and went to the salvage yard. It was crushed before it hit 10 years, but at the time 150K with no major repairs was considered decent and nickel and dime stuff was considered pretty normal. Probably a majority of vehicles still had 5 digit odometers then.
My dad says he wanted a 6 cylinder, but absolutely refused to own anything with the GM 2.8L V6 because he hated the S-10 his employer had as a run around truck. He didn't want to wait for the I6, though I think he knew it was on the horizon when he bought the 2.5L. The Bronco II and 4 Runner were 2-doors only, and the Pathfinder wasn't out yet, so for a small 4-door 4x4, that left Jeep and I guess Subaru at the time.
The 4.0L really did make the Cherokee "complete." That engine in that vehicle is what gave it a cult following.
The AMC I4 made more torque than the V6, didn't it?
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
Renix 4.0's were fine. Mine was an '88, and we sold it off when it was 23+ years old.
Renix was fine, if you knew how to use a multi-meter, and didn't need codes to figure out what was wrong...
The real issue with the renix era 4.0's was the cooling system - that stupid pressurized bottle with bad caps that always cracked. I ended up converting mine to the non-pressure bottle system found in the 91 and up Cherokees...
Just did that on a friend's 90. Converted to the newer style cooling. Works well!
Bar none, that cooling system mod was the best thing I ever did to our Cherokee. All drop in parts from another year Cherokee with the exception of the fan switch. Used some odd temperature switch from a Corvette I believe that did the job through the temp sensor port on the newer Cherokee thermostat housing. Skipped the heater control valve, and still had ice cold R12 AC at its age
After that, no more cracked bottles or bad caps. No more pain in the rear burping the cooling system. That and a fan clutch from Autozone that stayed more engaged than a Hayden unit did, and life was good...
After that, no more cracked bottles or bad caps. No more pain in the rear burping the cooling system. That and a fan clutch from Autozone that stayed more engaged than a Hayden unit did, and life was good...
Did it need the fan switch or was that just so you could override it?
This was basically something that was pulled out of a farm field and should have gone to the junkyard. When we were getting ready to build it we went to the junkyard and found a 2000 that someone put a lot of new parts in. Grabbed the lift and the cooling system out of it. We just swapped in radiator, hoses, bypassed heater control valve, cap fan clutch. The E-Fan comes on when it gets to around 230 or so
This was basically something that was pulled out of a farm field and should have gone to the junkyard. When we were getting ready to build it we went to the junkyard and found a 2000 that someone put a lot of new parts in. Grabbed the lift and the cooling system out of it. We just swapped in radiator, hoses, bypassed heater control valve, cap fan clutch. The E-Fan comes on when it gets to around 230 or so
The Renix version used a fan switch in the radiator, with the bung located over the lower radiator hose. Non-renix radiators used a sensor off the thermostat housing, but the switching was done by the ECU to tell the fan to turn on or off. The bung may or may not be present on the radiator. If it is, use it and proceed. If not, then you had to work around it.
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