Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Question(s) for you Jeep guys....

i wouuld take a TJ over a YJ too, as will anyone which is why they go for a premium.....

Lucky dogs.

A good friend of mine has a 97 or 98 2.5 5spd and he loves it, totally stock except for 31" tires. He never has any problems, said it only gets about 17 mpg city/hwy but starts every time. He takes it to CO quite often on his Mulie hunt.

The doors on Wranglers provide zero protection from a side impact crash.

been to more then a few wrecks where kids were killed in new vehicles with all the safety features.......when your time is up its up.....least thats how i feel.....ive walked away from stuff i shouldnt have and had friends and family killed in types of wrecks most people survive.....

Really low on power. Gotta get a pretty good run at any sort of hill. Let's just say you won't be setting any land speed records.

The 2.5 Liter timing chain has a cheap, crappy tensioner design that may need replacement before too long. Poor design.

I helped the 2.5 liter in my Cherokee with a 4.0 liter throttle body.
With a 5 speed, and 4.10s, it almost keeps up with traffic. Who am I kidding... no it doesn't.

Off road, it's ok. Doesn't lug down very well. After owning Jeeps with a 4 cylinder and a 6, I would hold out for a 6 cylinder.

Went back and took a good thorough look today, this time with much better light than the last. All looked real good until I took a look underneath. First, there appeared to be a lot of old thick oil type build-up at the end of the front axle and inside of the wheel. Then I noticed four separate fluid leaks - One just forward of the oil drain pan, one behind the pan, one about midway back (trans), and one at the back/center of the rear axle. Popped the hood and their was some old oil build-up on top of the head.

At its age and lack of miles I'm assuming all but one are related to bad seals/gaskets. I am definitely not a mechanic so I have no idea what all that crap is. What I do know now is that it needs to be looked at by a mechanic.

After all the reading, I'm thinking about trying to find a TJ with a V6. If for no other reason, I think I will be much happier when driving it myself.

a jeep leaking, even in that mid 90's era isnt odd and is usually easily dealt with and fixed right but it sounds like this one has gone a fair bit without it being addressed and that could be an issue if they didnt keep the oil level up.....ild pass and this one and find another jeep or other vehicle.....

Be leery of a Jeep that does not leak oil, the owner may have run it completely dry

There is a *huge* Jeep crowd and they will help you out, sign up to Jeepforum and start reading the threads in the TJ section.

Ya, Jeeps are notorious for leaks. Oil pan gasket or either the rear main seal are often the culprits. Where the OP describes, that is what it sounds like it might be. He said it only had 66K miles - that Jeep has a LOT of life left in it. TJ's are nice and with the coil spring suspension have a smoother ride, but if you modify the suspension to allow for bigger tires, it costs more to modify. Leaf suspensions like on a YJ are simpler by design.

My rear main is leaking. I lose about a quart about every 4K miles When I pull my transmission to get the syncros fixed, I will fix it then. Until then, I figure my Jeep is just marking its territory.

Well, that one didn't work out. If anyone knows of a nice V6 automatic TJ that can be had for $7k or less, +/- a little let me know. I think my daughter will dig it if I can find a decent unmolested one.....

TJ's are easy to lift. Ever heard of a puck lift? Can fit 33 with easy simple puck lift.

Your looking for a straight 6, not a V-6.

My sons first vehicle was a Rodeo 2door-short wheelbase like the Jeep. It took me one time driving it on the interstate to be rid of it before he ever received his license. You swerve once at speed and they keep swerving.

(quick reply, not directed to you Raeford)

want some real advise? dont wait till your kid is 15 or 16 or whatever before they get behind the wheel.....we started our girls out as soon as they could reach everything....they must had well over 15,000 miles under their belt before they stepped foot in drivers ed.....granted most of it was Jeep trails and backcounty roads.....

been to a few accidents, including a fatal one involving a good friend of my brothers with in a short time of the kid getting their license and they think it means they can drive like everyone else does even though they have no experience....my brothers friend had less than 300 miles under his belt when he flipped his car on a gravel road cause he had no clue how to drive on gravel.....

I agree 100% with rattler, I started driving around 8 but really put in some miles starting around 10, on city streets and the highway.

I had the option of parent taught drivers ed for my daughters and it was worth it even with some nuclear meltdowns with two you female drivers.

However, there were a few minor collisions in the first year that I expected.

Remfak, I bought my daughter a wrangler for her first vehicle when we lived in Conifer bsck in 1999. She had plenty of wheel experience as rattler refferences beforehand and living at 8500' it was a great vehicle for her. No issues.

yeah the minor happens, infact the oldest girl had an accident within an hour of getting her license though i will admit it wasnt her fault....an older lady pulled into her lane without looking and she couldnt get out of the way fast enough.....but it should go a long way in helping prevent the major stuff thats a result of inexperience....

I love Jeeps... but wouldn't give a Wrangler to a young driver. My kids all learned on a Cherokee (not that it's the most stable vehicle in the world, but it's better than a Wrangler).

Two of my kids have had classmates die in rollovers so far. Scary.

I would agree, Wranglers are not starter vehicles due to the short wheelbase and lack of occupant safety. I built a wrangler and used to wheel in a club, they all suck on slick pavement. Jeep Wrangler is going to be at the bottom of the list for safety.

At 16 odds are she will be in a accident in her first year. I started my son in a explorer with the advance track auto 4wheel drive and airbags for a reason . I told my son he had to make it a year accident free before we talked about getting something "cool". We ended up putting a mild lift on a 1/2 ton 4x4 for him, I was glad he didn't want a Wrangler.