Member II
Looking at a 2000 Jeep Cherokee. It has a 4.5 rough country lift. Looks to be in good shape. Has a winch bumper. Has never been off road. I was wondering if anyone has a X J and how they like them.
Jeep XJ
- Thread starter Jeepmedic46
- Start date
I do. Well, three of them to be precise. Love them.
Did you check it over really well for rust? Rust is the biggest killer (well, since Cash for Clunkers) of them. Check under the footwells. That seems to be where rust first gets its foothold.
The 4.0L engine is a very reliable motor. It has seven main caps, and on a 2000 it will also run a stud girdle for the mains. Things don't much more robust on the bottom end. The 2000 and 2001s had an issue with the head. I believe it is the 0331 head. What you want is a TUPY replacement to have been done already. Do some research on that topic and then take a good look at the one on the vehicle you are looking into. I think you can remove the oil filler and check with a flashlight to see if it is marked TUPY (not owning one of those I am not totally certain on that--do some research).
Is that 4.5" lift short arms or long arms? Once you get past 3" it starts to affect the arm geometry and long arms start to be necessary for ride quality. Also note that with large tires you start to get into the limitations of the unibody construction. The steering box mount is usually the first thing to have issues, though the track bar mount is a close second. There are frame reinforcement kits for the steering box, and aftermarket track bar mounts with braces to the opposite side of the frame. Both of these are good investments. Frame plating is another good step to take. However, if you are in the rust belt you will want to make sure that things are done with an eye to keeping the tin worm at bay.
You would prefer for it to not have ABS. ABS would come with a Dana 35 rear, and that is a fairly weak rear end. If you don't have ABS then you should have the Chrysler 8.25, and a 2000 should then have the 29 spline axle shafts. That is a good rear end.
If it truly has never been off road and is in solid condition underneath then you are looking at a vehicle that is getting harder and harder to find. At this point most XJs have been abused in one form or another. A well cared for example is getting to be a unicorn.
You can find lots of good tech advice on NAXJA.
Bring pics and questions and you should be able to get good answers.
Did you check it over really well for rust? Rust is the biggest killer (well, since Cash for Clunkers) of them. Check under the footwells. That seems to be where rust first gets its foothold.
The 4.0L engine is a very reliable motor. It has seven main caps, and on a 2000 it will also run a stud girdle for the mains. Things don't much more robust on the bottom end. The 2000 and 2001s had an issue with the head. I believe it is the 0331 head. What you want is a TUPY replacement to have been done already. Do some research on that topic and then take a good look at the one on the vehicle you are looking into. I think you can remove the oil filler and check with a flashlight to see if it is marked TUPY (not owning one of those I am not totally certain on that--do some research).
Is that 4.5" lift short arms or long arms? Once you get past 3" it starts to affect the arm geometry and long arms start to be necessary for ride quality. Also note that with large tires you start to get into the limitations of the unibody construction. The steering box mount is usually the first thing to have issues, though the track bar mount is a close second. There are frame reinforcement kits for the steering box, and aftermarket track bar mounts with braces to the opposite side of the frame. Both of these are good investments. Frame plating is another good step to take. However, if you are in the rust belt you will want to make sure that things are done with an eye to keeping the tin worm at bay.
You would prefer for it to not have ABS. ABS would come with a Dana 35 rear, and that is a fairly weak rear end. If you don't have ABS then you should have the Chrysler 8.25, and a 2000 should then have the 29 spline axle shafts. That is a good rear end.
If it truly has never been off road and is in solid condition underneath then you are looking at a vehicle that is getting harder and harder to find. At this point most XJs have been abused in one form or another. A well cared for example is getting to be a unicorn.
You can find lots of good tech advice on NAXJA.
Bring pics and questions and you should be able to get good answers.
Member III
- 2,827
- First Name
- Joshua
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- Downs
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20468
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- KK6RBI / WQYH678
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- USMC 03-16, FIRE/EMS
Good advice above. I'll mention rust again because it's such a big deal. A little rust you can deal with but a rusted rotted out frame or large body panels can be the death kneel for a XJ. Someone on the Cherokee Forums just posted pictures of their broken in half on one side frame rail and totally missing floor pans. FLoor pans are easy to do, having a unibody frame crack repaired like he posted is cost and labor prohibitive.
I've had 4 XJs. 94, 00, 97 and now a 95. Love'em. But they are getting harder to find in good condition and many times they are going to need plenty of replacement parts to get them 100 percent. Even the newest one is 18 years old at this point. I kept records of everything I've done to my 95 and wound up doing a full rebuild of the suspension front and rear and resealing nearly the whole engine except for the headgasket along with a laundry list of other items. I basically spent almost as much rebuilding many aspects of the 95 that I could have went without doing for a while but really needed to do to bring it up to daily driver status.
Keep an eye on WJ Grand Cherokees. They comfy and generally speaking were better taken care of than XJs due to their target market. Less likely to be abused as an XJ as well. Like some of the Lexus luxury SUVs out there they're kind of under the radar (not as much anymore) capable off roaders.
I've had 4 XJs. 94, 00, 97 and now a 95. Love'em. But they are getting harder to find in good condition and many times they are going to need plenty of replacement parts to get them 100 percent. Even the newest one is 18 years old at this point. I kept records of everything I've done to my 95 and wound up doing a full rebuild of the suspension front and rear and resealing nearly the whole engine except for the headgasket along with a laundry list of other items. I basically spent almost as much rebuilding many aspects of the 95 that I could have went without doing for a while but really needed to do to bring it up to daily driver status.
Keep an eye on WJ Grand Cherokees. They comfy and generally speaking were better taken care of than XJs due to their target market. Less likely to be abused as an XJ as well. Like some of the Lexus luxury SUVs out there they're kind of under the radar (not as much anymore) capable off roaders.
Member II
Thank you, Going back this morning with a friend who is more mechanically inclined then me. I’ll check to see if it is a short arm or long arm lift. The only visible bubbles I could see where rust is starting is the passenger rear fender.
Member II
Member II
Member III
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- First Name
- Joshua
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Try to send it through fb messenger. You can add me. Joshua Downs. Should be able to find me by seaeching "blkredlinedrvr"
Member II
Member III
- 2,827
- First Name
- Joshua
- Last Name
- Downs
- Member #
-
20468
- Ham/GMRS Callsign
- KK6RBI / WQYH678
- Service Branch
- USMC 03-16, FIRE/EMS
That whole panel is probably done for. Not the end of the world. But will take some. Body work skills to fix. I bet if that part is that bad the front floorboards are pretty bad too.
See if you can pull the carpet back enough to are bare floor on the driver and passenger side.
Crawl under and start beating on the floorboards like they owe you money. And look VERY closely at the frame rails and leaf spring mounting points.
If yiu buy it be prepared for lots of broken suspension bolts when you start replacing items. If it has an aftermarket lift a lot of this stuff has probably been handled already.
See if you can pull the carpet back enough to are bare floor on the driver and passenger side.
Crawl under and start beating on the floorboards like they owe you money. And look VERY closely at the frame rails and leaf spring mounting points.
If yiu buy it be prepared for lots of broken suspension bolts when you start replacing items. If it has an aftermarket lift a lot of this stuff has probably been handled already.
Member II
I tried finding you on Facebook without success. Meeting my friend there later so he can look at the Jeep. Did talk to the boyfriend. Jeep has the rough country lift with the short arms. Is that a good lift? Unfortunately does have a Dana 35 with 3:55 gears. Will that axle hold up or will it break?
Off-Road Ranger II
We love ours! It's slowly transforming into our overlanding rig. All previous advice is spot on! We are on 7.5 inchs of lift, 35's and a 3 link. It's honestly a touch too tall!
Off-Road Ranger II
A few pics, I'd be happy to answer any questions! I've had a wrench on just about every square inch of her!
Member III
- 2,827
- First Name
- Joshua
- Last Name
- Downs
- Member #
-
20468
- Ham/GMRS Callsign
- KK6RBI / WQYH678
- Service Branch
- USMC 03-16, FIRE/EMS
Short arms isnt ideal but they'll work. Dana 35 is servicable but id keep an eye out online for a 97+ Chrysler 8.25. Typically they go for pretty cheap and if you find one in an XJ itll drop right in.
What size are the tires? 3.55 is the stock gearing for automatic transmission XJs so you may need a regear if the tires are much larger than stock. I wouldn't waste the money on regearing a D35. Does it have ABS?
Tire size is important.
With 4.5" of lift I am guessing it has at least 33s if not 35s. That is more tire than is good for 3.55 gears, and more than is good for a D35.
If the short arm lift was done with drop brackets then the ride will probably still be fine, but drop brackets do cost you some ground clearance. Some folks have no problem with the drop brackets, but they are less than ideal.
Depending on tire size you may want to think about regearing to 4.10 or even 4.56. That would be the time to ditch the D35. In doing so you will also ditch the ABS (which I assume it has, given the D35 rear). That will require some conversion of the brake lines at the master cylinder. Not having jumped off that particular bridge before I am not certain what all is involved, but I expect someone has a good write-up or video on it. It is not an uncommon modification.
The other direction to consider is to try to swap out the lift for a 3" lift and 31" tires. That is a proven formula that works well. No need to regear. The D35 will be much happier there. The ride should be fine.
By the way, with that 4.5" lift, did the transfer case get a slip yoke eliminator? There is another issue that comes into play with that much lift. Without an SYE conversion the angles on the driveshaft u-joints are pushed too far and you can expect driveline vibrations and shortened lifespans on your U-joints. If no SYE that would be another solid reason to reduce the lift.
This is one of those issues where the next step (in this case from 3" to 4.5") opens up a can of worms worth of additional changes that need to come along for the ride.
With 4.5" of lift I am guessing it has at least 33s if not 35s. That is more tire than is good for 3.55 gears, and more than is good for a D35.
If the short arm lift was done with drop brackets then the ride will probably still be fine, but drop brackets do cost you some ground clearance. Some folks have no problem with the drop brackets, but they are less than ideal.
Depending on tire size you may want to think about regearing to 4.10 or even 4.56. That would be the time to ditch the D35. In doing so you will also ditch the ABS (which I assume it has, given the D35 rear). That will require some conversion of the brake lines at the master cylinder. Not having jumped off that particular bridge before I am not certain what all is involved, but I expect someone has a good write-up or video on it. It is not an uncommon modification.
The other direction to consider is to try to swap out the lift for a 3" lift and 31" tires. That is a proven formula that works well. No need to regear. The D35 will be much happier there. The ride should be fine.
By the way, with that 4.5" lift, did the transfer case get a slip yoke eliminator? There is another issue that comes into play with that much lift. Without an SYE conversion the angles on the driveshaft u-joints are pushed too far and you can expect driveline vibrations and shortened lifespans on your U-joints. If no SYE that would be another solid reason to reduce the lift.
This is one of those issues where the next step (in this case from 3" to 4.5") opens up a can of worms worth of additional changes that need to come along for the ride.
Member II
Tires that are on it don’t look much bigger then the stock. When I drove it there was no lag. If I put bigger tires on I’ll change the gears. Hopefully I’ll get the new axle.
Member II
Off-Road Ranger II
1999, Stock axles D30/8.25. both regeared to 4.56, Chromally Shafts, 1 ton over the knuckle steering and soon to have welded C's and trusses . Would love to go full width one tons though!
Member II
Made a offer, since there is some rot on the passenger quarter panel I offered her 1800 for it. She was asking 2000. Still waiting to hear from her.
Off-Road Ranger II
Member II
