4.0 L Jeep Engines?

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ramcharger

ramcharger

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Since my daily driver Turdyota 4Runner got smashed a couple of weeks ago by a hit and run driver, I've been looking at early to mid 90's Jeep Cherokees. I had one once as a loaner while my 97 Dakota was in for repairs and was impressed by the power and mileage of the 4.0 L straight 6.

I know that they tend to have rear main leaks, but do they have any other major problems? What year had the most power? How do they respond to exhaust and intake mods? I checked and Crane has cams availible, do they respond well to mild cam upgrades?

Thanks in advance. :cheers:
 
OldVart said:
One of the toughest, most reliable vehicle / engine combinations you can get.
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Agreed - I have a 95 right hand drive Cherokee with 227,000 stop and go, hard on a vehicle mail delivery miles on it.
 
i have a retired for now, 89 Jeep Comanche 2wd pickup 4.0 5 speed that would fry the right rear tire at will. Kept moving up tire sizes until I got to 235-75-15 and then it wouldn't spin them as easy. Great for donuts and mileage!
Weak spot: 5 speed Peugeot trans.
125,000 hard miles, started to use oil.
 
Thanks Vart! I looked at some Dakotas in same year on craigslist then realized that I've got to have a safe place to put the dogs.

When I got the loaner Cherokee Sport I took it camping and beat the crap out of it in the mountains. Never got stuck and that engine never missed a beat. When I was coming up the trail to meet my friends they were all running around until they saw it was me. The Jeep was dark green and they thought I was a Ranger, lol! I brought that Jeep back covered in mud and dust from rockers to roof. I was impressed. Interior fit and finish was not so hot, a lot of thin plastic, etc. But that was the only downside.

Joe
 
65 Dartman said:
Agreed - I have a 95 right hand drive Cherokee with 227,000 stop and go, hard on a vehicle mail delivery miles on it.
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Yes! More good news!

3404speed said:
i have a retired for now, 89 Jeep Comanche 2wd pickup 4.0 5 speed that would fry the right rear tire at will. Kept moving up tire sizes until I got to 235-75-15 and then it wouldn't spin them as easy. Great for donuts and mileage!
Weak spot: 5 speed Peugeot trans.
125,000 hard miles, started to use oil.
Click to expand...

I want the select-trac transfer case so I'll be looking at a automatic. That's some impressive power for a 6!
 
I am on my 3rd one. All of them very reliable and required very little maintenance too. All of mine wer 96's. this one has been with me for 3 years now, 148,000 miles and runs very strong yet.
 
From about 90 on they don't have that Peugeot standard tranny.

My 99 is a 5 speed and I get excellent fuel mileage if I drive it......nicely. :) Both my 87 and my 93 are that dark green color, both automatic trannys. They are nice, but the fuel mileage is quite a bit better with the 5 speed.
The old 87 has 428,000 KM, or 261,000 miles on it, and my daughter started driving it ....nicely... when she was 16. Ran the snot out of that thing for 5 years, but it took the lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Takes a litre of oil between oil changes, the rear end has growled since the day I paid $1000.00 for it 9 years ago.

Testimonial over. :)
 
OldVart said:
From about 90 on they don't have that Peugeot standard tranny.

My 99 is a 5 speed and I get excellent fuel mileage if I drive it......nicely. :) Both my 87 and my 93 are that dark green color, both automatic trannys. They are nice, but the fuel mileage is quite a bit better with the 5 speed.
The old 87 has 428,000 KM, or 261,000 miles on it, and my daughter started driving it ....nicely... when she was 16. Ran the snot out of that thing for 5 years, but it took the lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Takes a litre of oil between oil changes, the rear end has growled since the day I paid $1000.00 for it 9 years ago.

Testimonial over. :)
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:cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers::cheers:
 
The jeep inline 6 is one tough engine, I have been driving wranglers since 92 and my current 2006 wrangler Rubicon I just had to replace the rear main seal (leaking since the day I drove it home) . The last one was a 97 and sold it after 10 years (148,000 hard miles)......still ran perfect, didnt burn or leak a drop of oil its whole life! The first was a 92 Wrangler Yj.
I off road extensively, not the mild stuff mind you.(love to rock crawl) ......I love the engine!

I will say clutch replacement is a bit tricky in that flywheels for them are cheap or made of poor stock. Once they warp you may as well buy a new one.....have it checked before install to be true. I went that round with the 97, was never satisfied with the clutch performance after that and I got them to pull it all apart once but twice wasnt going to happen! after the second go around it was close to right....but we know how we are when it comes to stuff like that!
UPDATE: I forgot about the exhaust manifolds cracking, I did replace 2 of them.
Joe
 
The only issues I know of is the leaks, and exh manifolds cracking. But, you can buy everything for a jeep. The only transmission I have never been able to successfully repair is that Peugot. It was such a running joke I have a plaque with pictures of my friends holding a funeral for the one I tried to do.. and tried.. and tried... MIserable junk that trans is...
 
Hey ramcharger, Ive been a cherokee guy for a while. Ive got a 96 with the 4.0 liter, and the 5 speed (AX-15) Both can take a beating. The one problem it seems is the engine goes on forever but all the accessories (fuel pump/waterpump..etc..) seem to die around 100-150,00 miles and yes the rear main seals leak, but that is pretty standard on most cars anyway... go for a cherokee.
 
My friend has a lifted big-tired '97 Wrangler that he ironically uses as a daily driver. For such a heavy vehicle with big tires that engine scoots along well. I believe the 2000-up ones had a better ram-tuned intake that you could swap onto an older engine. You could also get an overbore and swap in a crank from an older 4.2L engine and make a 4.6L stroker. :snakeman:
 
Rear main is easy to change. My Cherokee had an 8 inch lift with 35's, locked f/r, 4.88:1. My last run back from the Hammers had me at 19 mpg with all of my spares, heavy bumpers, skid plates, etc...that was with the cruise set to 80.

Like others have said, i recommend the HO motor (91 and newer) with the AW4 auto. Try to get one with the 231 transfer case, the 8.25 rear end (D44 is tough to find), and a high pinion Dana 30.

Feel free to ask any questions...sounds like a few of us know a lot about them.

Thank You!

OldMoparsRule!
 
When my son turned 16 last year, I needed a vehicle that he could thrash on and still be able to hold his drum kit out of the elements. This 91 Cherokee fit the bill perfectly. 150K on the odometer and still going strong. Hardly drips a drop of oil although the lifters tend to make a little noise. When the engine goes south, I'll just buy another and we'll spend the weekend swapping it out!

LiftKit2.jpg
 
WOW! I never expected such a response. It seems that whole heck of a lot of A-body owners/Mopar Freaks have Jeeps and 4.0L experience. Y'all have me convinced and apparently all of your exeperiences were very good, as was mine if even for only a week. At least with the exception of Moper and the French tranny, lol! You 'ought to post that pic. If my settlement is what it should be, I'll have a '91 or later Cherokee pretty soon. Hopefully by Christmas.

Thanks again everyone for all your suggestions, knowledge, first-hand experience and pictures as it is greatly appreciated and I'm sure I'll have tons of questions once I bring mine home.

Joe

Scampi, that was the color I was talking about. What did you get for it?

Brian T, you hit the nail right on the head with that pic! Exactly what I'm looking for but in Scampi's Wrangler's color.

Oldmopars, good to know that the seal isn't a major nightmare.

Mopekid, Stroker eh? I like that idea!

Renegade, a Cherokee it is my friend. Thanks for the accesory (waterpump, etc.) info.

Moper, lol!

Yooper, if you like rockcrawling Colorado has some trails that'll make you toes curl. I took a look at some that some friends got through and I said "F that", lol! Did I mention that they left some paint and sheet metal there? I took a peek around and found 3 or 4 companies that make stainless steel headers, a cracked manifold might be the perfect reason to upgrade.
 
I cant help it....I Love My Jeep! I was going to take it to MOAB Utah this spring nuts it looking like 2010 now! A wedding changed my plans! (Not Mine)
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Aside from the above-mentioned crack prone exhaust bits, my experience has been that it's hard to go wrong with the 4.0 in anything. I'm not sure what it takes to kill one. I suspect that Jeep was in league with the Prince of Darkness when the thing was designed. :evil1:

(cue a random selection from The Exorcist soundtrack)

The bad thing is that you may then spend vast amounts of money with places like http://www.4wd.com/ ;-)
 
I have to agree, its an addiction! I cannot finish it, everythime I take it out I find another mod I want or upgrade to make it better......and I'm still replacing worn / damaged bits from this years wheeling! It never ends........And I'm trying to build this cuda too.....good thing I'm single! ......BUT.....I think if I had the second income from a good woman, I could get it all done quicker LOL
Joe




doktor_x said:
Aside from the above-mentioned crack prone exhaust bits, my experience has been that it's hard to go wrong with the 4.0 in anything. I'm not sure what it takes to kill one. I suspect that Jeep was in league with the Prince of Darkness when the thing was designed. :evil1:

(cue a random selection from The Exorcist soundtrack)

The bad thing is that you may then spend vast amounts of money with places like http://www.4wd.com/ ;-)
Click to expand...
 
yooper822 said:
I cant help it....I Love My Jeep! I was going to take it to MOAB Utah this spring nuts it looking like 2010 now! A wedding changed my plans! (Not Mine)
Click to expand...

I'll try to get some pics or a video up of some Colorado trails. Nice Jeep. :cheers: Nothing better than some action pics too!

doktor_x said:
Aside from the above-mentioned crack prone exhaust bits, my experience has been that it's hard to go wrong with the 4.0 in anything. I'm not sure what it takes to kill one. I suspect that Jeep was in league with the Prince of Darkness when the thing was designed. :evil1:

(cue a random selection from The Exorcist soundtrack)

The bad thing is that you may then spend vast amounts of money with places like http://www.4wd.com/ ;-)
Click to expand...

Hey Doc, how the hell are ya? (pun intended) :-D
I'm going to keep the suspension stock and mod the engine over time. Maybe some tube bumpers, aux lighting, high lift jack..... AAAGGGHHH, I don't even have the truck yet! Those sites are hell on the pocketbook. :snakeman: Good to know about the reliability factor regardless of who had a hand in designing it. Let's see, five pointed star, rams head, Demon, Fury hmmmm....:read2:
 
For all your Cherokee/Comanche needs check out www.NAXJA.org There are some good guys there. Check out the Colorado section... There is a for sale section.
 
Reminds me of the $500 Traxxas T-Maxx nitro-powered radio control monster truck I saved up for and bought when I was 14. Damn, that thing was fun, but like all things automotive (even at 1/10 scale) it was a money pit. Some day I'll put a nice TRX 3.3cc engine and steel tranny gears and sealed high-strength driveshafts in that thing and go terrorize the neighbors dogs again...
 
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