My sons first car!

-
d55dave

d55dave

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 20, 2010
Messages
2,585
Reaction score
1,132
Location
Kelowna, British Columbia
Well, the time has come. My son is 16 and has his learners, another 6 months to go until he has a full fledged drivers licence.

He has been talking about a car for some time and has wanted an older Cherokee (not Grand Cherokee). A few days ago he found an add for a one owner 91 Cherokee Sport - 2 door, 4 liter inline 6 and 5 speed. It has high mileage - 360,000 km's and some surface body rust, but has always been well maintained and runs great. It had a recent clutch and new syncros.

I coached him along but he found the vehicle and cut the deal on his own, I am really proud of him. I don't think he can go wrong at $600. It needs a battery and tires (which I already have from the Dodge truck I just parted) and has a crack in the windshield, but I think it is a perfect first vehicle.

Plus, it is a mopar to boot!
 

Attachments

  • Cherokee.jpg
    74.1 KB · Views: 410
Like it lot. I love my Comanche!!
 

Attachments

  • Htc touch pro pictures 050.jpg
    35.3 KB · Views: 384
Nice, I'd like to find a deal like that.

On a side note, is he gonna have to carry those rocks around to put under the tires when parked? :D
 
LOL, no, the park brake does work but as it has been sitting for a couple of years the owner was scared to set it in case it froze on. I used it a couple times and other than needing some lube on the cables it seemed fine....
 
I'm on my 4th of that style Cherokee, all 4 doors though. 1987, 1990, and 2 1996's. The 87 was a 5-speed, a gasoline tank that blew up took care of that one! Pretty much always get 20 MPG accept the cold winter take a slight bit away.

Be carefull though, I have had the e-brake cables hang up and heat up the rear shoes. That was on an automatic trans. one where the brake didn't get used that often though. And warn him that the back end is a little light on snow if not in 4X4 and likes to come around if going too fast. .02
 
So, you say the lad found his own vehicle, made the deal and landed his prize on his own??? Kudos to him for putting it all together and scoring his first ride!! You're lucky, my son is looking forward to getting the GTX!! :-0
 
Verify the 4x4 works. Not sure about the 91, but my friends 88 was vacuum actuated and the line swelled from oil on them and wouldn't actuate the front end.
 
dano said:
Verify the 4x4 works. Not sure about the 91, but my friends 88 was vacuum actuated and the line swelled from oil on them and wouldn't actuate the front end.
Click to expand...

My 90 had the vacuum disconnect front axle as well and yes, oil from changing the engine oil filter would drain on the hoses and swell them up. Also the 90 degree oil filter adapter is prone to leaking over time from changing the filter, quick fix though.
 
Switched my actuator over to cable operated. Lot more dependable. I drive My Jeep through the woods to retrieve my Deer.
 
Great score for your son! Excellent first car especially since he nabbed it on his own!The inline 6 cyl in those jeeps is pretty strong. A lot of guys around here in Colorado and Moab Utah have rock crawler trucks and they use the inline 6's and they really do great!
 
MoparDaddy said:
How well do these tow?
Click to expand...

Not so well with the 4banger. The 4.0 litres engines do OK though, within reason of course, sI towed a 18 foot boat with mine, without issues. A little slow on the inclines but we got there.
 
Thanks for all the responses guys. we now have it home, have cleaned it up and crawled over it. We registered it and put a three day permit on it, once expired it will likely sit until June when Ryan turns 17 and graduates from his learners licence.

All in all it looks pretty good. yes, the four wheel drive works, and I haven't looked but I suspect it isn't vacuum operated. we have made a list of things to do over the next six months before he is set loose in it. It needs front brakes, front differential u joints, we need to fix the emergency brake, and change the windshield.

It runs like a top, shifts well, the clutch feels tight and it doesnt leak! negatives are the rust - mostly surface but it looks bad - we might have the lower parts and flares sprayed with boxliner, and the interior is a little dirty - nothing a good shampoo wont fix though.

Ryan has been practicing and is getting better at driving standard. What I love most is that he is enthusiastic about driving a rusty $600 dollar vehicle, and learning to fix it with me.

:)
 
Great rig, my daughter had one we bought for $200 because it overheated, but engine was not damaged. She was a senior in HS and in an auto mechanics class, so she was motivated!! She changed out the cooling system from a closed loop to an open loop, that fixed that. Then the only other trouble it gave us was loss of signal of the crank position sensor. That one's a pain because it's mounted on the backside of the straight 6, right up against the firewall...kinda hard to get to. We never changed the actual sensor, seemed that cleaning the corrosion off of the terminals was all she ever needed. Great truck for the money, she loved it. Congrats to you and good luck!
 
we,ve had two Cherokees a 96 bought brand new never let me down in 260,000 miles and had a 95 I bought from my sister in law for a grand it had some ignition problems and they bought a new vehicle instead of fixing it.it had a loose wire on the ignition relay I fixed it in their driveway and drove it home she was pissed at my brother for not fixing it I drove it for 2 years no major problems.and doubled my money when I sold it,and I kick myself in the butt all the time for selling either one them,your son is going to thoroughly enjoy it and there pretty easy to work on.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top