Jason Walker Well there you go, the idiot didn't kill the engine, he left the radiator cap off. There are engines that won't quit if you give them what they need, but there are no idiot proof engines.
+deloreanman14 I have a 96 Grand Cherokee with the 5.2, 145,000 miles and STILL running like new, not worth paying 50 grand to replace and pay 50 bucks a quart for transmission fluid change
+schmoab yeah, the 4.0 is a terrific engine. They don't make them like that anymore. I was joking with my friend who has a new suv about how with all the technology, my 99 gets the same mpg as his and puts out more power... and will probably be on the road after his is crushed and in a landfill lol.. another thing about these cherokees is that people will restore them. look at the cars on the road today and consider how many will be worth restoring in 20, 30, or 40 years. People will always appreciate the simplicity of the cherokee.
+Steven Manning Highly doubtful. What you are seeing is 90s versions which look almost the same. Usually 98 or 97 Cherokee are still on the road, just barely
+Y10Q Mine's a 96 with the 4.0 and over half a million miles. It's NOT "just barely" on the road, while it's not my daily driver any more I still drive it quite often, took it on a 2000 mile road trip last year and am planning on a 3000 mile trip (from North Carolina around Lake Michigan) next year.
+Y10Q I don't know where you are, but I see plenty of 4.0 Cherokees on the road, and even a 4-cylinder on occasion. But that 4.0 six is a huge reason why so many are still around, it just won't quit.
lol just barely? I live in long island, and i pass at least a dozen of them every time i go out. I live in front of a supermarket and when I go there I always see at least one in the lot. because i own one, i guess i'm more likely to spot them, but they're literally everywhere. theres not many places i go where i don't see at least one to be honest. some are lifted, some are stock, some are rotted, some aren't, some don't even have paint anymore.. but they're still moving. i've got a 99, arguably the last one worth owning, and i plan on just barely keeping it on the road for the next decade easy.
All about that 4.0 straight-six!.. We had a '98 Cherokee in the family for several years named Amanda. 220,000 miles and had an unfortunate front end collision with her, taking out the radiator and had to sell her. But fortunately we found a buyer who also loves Cherokees. He saved Amanda, and we see her tooling around on the road to this day, still going strong like 4.0 XJ Cherokees do!
My parents had an 86 with the 2.8L. Worst engine AMC could have picked to put in the jeep. That motor threw belts all the time. They traded it in for an 89 with the 4.0L. It still runs strong at almost 300k miles.
My wife and I test drove an '86 Cherokee with the V6. It was so slow you wanted to get out and push. We bought one of the first 87's and drove it for 22 years and 240,000 miles. Both our children learned to drive in it (going off roading on Rollins pass makes even driving paved mountain roads seem easy.) I finally traded it in for $4500 in 2009 during the "cash for clunkers" program. A few years later I bought an '89 with only 160,000 miles and am still driving it. The biggest problem is the cap on the radiator reservoir (which is firewall mounted.) Stay away from Stant caps (they are junk) and get one from the dealer if you need a replacement (and you will, eventually.) The 4 speed Asian automatic is almost a bulletproof as the engine, but the neutral safety switch is quite expensive if it fails. The dealers charged over $250 for this part, but now they are available after market for about $80. That is still pricey for a switch, but not outrageous.
and that was a Chevy engine , I think that was a mistake.2.8 l is a piece of shirt. AMC is the best. but that's the choice they went with cause had no other engine at the time.
If you still have it, keep it. Treasure it. Treat it well and upkeep maintenance. They're already gems, and in a few decades, they'll be classics worth thousands.
My parents had a 1984 with the most unfortunate 2.8 V6. They had to replace a head gasket at 80,000 miles. My caught before it did too much damage. Ever after that it burned oil at the rate of 1000 miles per quart. We nursed the car until 2002 and 202,800 miles. At which point it began taking oil through the seals. We asked our trusted mechanic if anything could be done. He smiled and said, “No you got more than 200,000 miles out of an 80,000 mile engine! You are done!”
I love the XJ My mom had a 92 cherokee with the 4.0 when I was a kid and loved riding in it. I own a 2000 grand cherokee with the 4.7 but still have a soft spot for the old XJ Im going to buy one some day
+Nathan McDonald The Mazda Miata wasn't doing much better than that well into the 90's. That was a 17.0 second car for years, and that's with a stick shift.
I just got a 1987 Jeep Cherokee Laredo 4.0 (beige) today and I love it. It needs some work done but this has always been my dream vehicle. 206,000 miles, still going strong and it's sturdy.
where these trucks are still valuable is their simplicity. you can fix just about anything on it with a tool kit from walmart and a trip to the local pepboys. they don't make them like this anymore. so if you have one, take care of it. take it to the car wash sometimes lol
Since it is usually the little things that drive you to distraction, get one without power windows and locks to avoid expensive nuisance repairs. You will still have to replace the outside mirrors when they corrode to the point of non-adjustability. Body corrosion seems to be a serious problem back East, but not here in Colorado.
Found one the other day with no power locks or windows. A little surface rust and a little rust hole in the back floorpan. 156k miles and it runs perfect. Best purchase I've made.
I don't think I'll ever want to be without a good XJ or 3 in my stable. When I was younger I didn't care for them allot. I wanted a CJ or Wrangler, but got an XJ for a fraction of the cost, fell in love, and have owned one ever since.
I chuckled pretty hard at this. I've had '92, '99, and 2000 XJs . My '92 was stock, went through some deep mud, once. My '99 I lifted and totaled before off-roading, but it went through DEEP snow when it was stock and again after the 3" lift. My 2000, though, is and always was bone stock and has gone all the same places that I only saw lifted Wranglers, like trails in Moab and Sedona...to be fair, MotorWeek wasn't really testing the off-road capability at all. I've taken rear-drive coupes and front drive sedans over the kind of terrain they drove that Cherokee on. And today, I think the XJ is perhaps the most sought-out SUV for four-wheeling, if not only the most sought-out of its kind.
Many owners did take these off-road, certainly more than Explorer owners. But John Davis was right. Most owners didn't take these rock crawling and mudding when these were bought new off the dealer lot. This Laredo cost $43,000 in 2020 dollars. Many were suburban mall crawlers just like today's SUV's. It's when the the Cherokee hit the used car market when they truly became off-road/rock crawling machines. It's not any different than with cars. How many brand new BMW 3-series did you see on the track in the 80's and 90's even though they were the pinnacle of performance in their class? Many E30's and E36's are now track cars.
just got an 88 with 126,000 6cl automatic the original floor-mats still in it i could restore it or i can make it my custom design and keep it forever .the little 4x4 parts are so cute, I coming from the full size 3/4 and one ton world ..I can actually push this down the street that's how I got it home .I am so in love with that little thing ..needs some wire mods, cooling mods ,trans cooler, delete the air ,lock the spiders,bumpers,armor up,sliders,braces, trusses ,leafs,over-coils,fuel injectors,gauges wheels tires,stereo , seals ,sensors and a newer computer and vacuum lines .rear disks, delete that shift on the fly crap. there done!!!!???
I owned four of these. My first vehicle ever was a 1989 Cherokee with the 4.0 and the select track. Loved it. Fantastic vehicle. Second was a 1990 Limited. Hated the gold wheels, but it was a good Jeep. Then a 1992 4.0, was a complete beater vehicle, but worked well, till the 4.0 threw a rod through the block. Then had a 2000 Sport. Another great one.
1990 Laredo was my first car and 1999 Sport was among one my favorites I owned. Unfortunately long commute to work and high gas prices eliminated it from my stable.
I actually got a 87 cherokee Laredo with the 4.0 with 2wd for 200$. It ran and drove. Right now im getting the old AW4 tranmission redone as the seals finally wore out at 450k. Its quite clean now with just a rusty floorboard I took care of lol. Can't kill it. I love it, even if its missing the front doors. Gonna tube door it.
Found an xj 4x4 with a 5 speed manual transmission, for my Dad and have been fixing it up and making it nice these past few weeks. Wish I had one too now. 4.0 high output in it is great, smooth on the highway and yeah its no speed demon but it'll do 75mph with ease.
I love my xj I've been driving it for years it's now got 185,000 miles doesn't burn any oil and runs smooth and strong if you take care of those things they will run forever
Great truck!!! All American and tough, still looks good I’ll never forget driving my girlfriends 6 cylinder to the outer banks and tackling the beach lots of fun and these never get stuck
Thank you for the wonderful retro reviews. Many of us still maintain some of these older vehicles. I'm a BMW L7 owner 1987 and would love to see the review on this model as noted at the start of this review. Thanks.
Man did Iacocca score when he got Jeep! The Cherokee and the already designed Grand Cherokee (Chrysler just refined the grand and adapted it for the magnum V8) paid for the purchase of AMC alone by the 95 model year.
Jeep always had problems with their cam shaft and crank shaft sensors, though. That was/is a very common problem with the 4 liter. I became good at replacing them, and it's always a good idea to keep extra with you, especially if on a remote trail somewhere.
This car was sold in Thailand in 1996. It made the SUV's market boom because it was cheaper than Japanese SUV and Land Rover. The IL6 4.0 190hp is powerful and the leather seats are excellent quality. The next gen came with fabric seat. People didn't like it.
Those front seats are definitely comfortable, I've been using one as an in home chair for a few years now and I'll easily spend hours in it. The whole seat tilt thing (4:39) is a nice feature too, can recline while still sitting properly
People forget something about the 4.0-liter. If you just put aside the bulletproof reliability, easy serviceability, and torque output, it’s an engine with character. It sounds like something unique and has an interesting powerband. Nothing has or ever will be like it
Always been a big fan. Worked at a rural Jeep dealership from 1996-late 2000. Fell in love enough to scoop up my father in law's 1989. Even took in a Jeep Jamboree weekend. All around built tough, with a bulletproof engine and transmission. Always wanted another, but cannot justify, living in the sunshine state.
loving my 88 xj with the 4.0 i6, got just over 100k on her. Picked her up for $750 about a year ago now, and she's just getting better with every little thing I do to it :) wouldn't sell it or trade it for anything... except maybe one with less miles and a unibody in better shape ;) still, for $750 mine was a steal
I had a 1988 cherokee pioneer with 4.0 for my first vehicle if I knew then what I know now it would still be in my driveway. Super comfortable as well rugged and reliable. Puts any modern suv to shame I think
bought an 89 as my first vehicle, 260k and still going strong,only thing I couldn't stand was the rubber trim under the front bumper, so I took all the flares off. eventually gonna throw some flat flares on it
I just picked one of these up, 235k miles 5sp manual, only had it half a day and I love this thing you can tell it’s one of those vehicles you know if you take care of it, it will take care of you
I got my 1993 TWO DOOR Jeep Cherokee Sport a few years ago as my first car. It has the 4.0 HO engine with a 5 speed transmission and 4wd. And to think it cost around 12k when it was new, and we snagged it for $2300. That was back when Jeeps were Jeeps.
I will lament the day that the XJ becomes a hard-to-find relic of the past. With the last one being made in 2001, when I hit my later years their going to be like trying to find a decent CJ today.
My '87 Pioneer 4.0 has just over 164,000 miles on July 2023. What hasn't been seen in year is the vent window, but my favorite part is that the headlights are glass and not plastic that yellows/fogs. 😛
The 4.0 Liter six is definitely one of the best engines ever built, wish they hadn't discontinued that engine after the discontinuation of the old Jeep Cherokee.
The problem with these jeeps was the underbody. As they were in fact unibody construction rust was usually late in showing up and warned you the vehicle was likely structurally compromised when it did. The one I had had the rockers rotted out and the rear floor was rotted out as well. It was easy to repair mechanically but body wise up north they were a considerable effort to keep from dissolving. The Suzuki sidekick/ GEO tracker was actually the better vehicle owing to it having a full steel frame and being just as simple to fix
This xj looks so new. I’ve got an 85 with 400+k miles on it. But with a 5.2 dodge v8 atlas crawler box d60/d44 Detroit’s etc. Would like to get a nice clean 2000 4 dr and swap my drivetrain in before I get too old.
john robert I have a MJ 88 Eliminator package. but i converted it to 4x4. Loved it so much now also Own/restoring a 89 Longbed MJ.(was the basic Laredo trim) I have a few 4.0L in my stock ranging from 88-06. I cant say they are cheap or as efficient as the new Jeeps. But reliability and comfort with out computerizing ability. I wish the MJ was allowed to live longer then its short production run. Fiat sadly would never allow such a expensive car into the wild. Fear it may dirty its good name in such classics like the Panda....
I owned this exact year, make, model, color, and trim while in college. Great vehicle, and put 210k on it with very few issues. Wish I still had it. I now drive a 19 Cherokee V6. It's more comfortable and fuel efficient, but I'd rather have the old one, as it was honestly a better vehicle in many respects, and had a lot more character. You also can't beat the durability of the I6 and great off-road capability. The new one is a joke by comparison,, and I purchased it knowing it's basically just an AWD vehicle. If the old one and new one were both available, brand new, side-by-side, I'd pick the old one
One of the best designs ever to come out of Jeep. Chrysler rode the AMC wave for as long as they could then when they started doing their own designs (the Cherokee and Grand Cherokee were AMC designs) everything but the Wrangler took a nose dive.
