I'm looking at a '89 or '90 YJ (Islander Model). I haven't actually seen it in person. Here is what I know about it as of today:

6 cyl (Don't know if it's a 4.2L or 4.0L)
Carburated, not injected.
Rebuilt engine, essentially ZERO miles on it, fuel lines replaced. Total mileage unknown.
Burned out starter, possible bad cell in battery. Current owner burned it up this past weekend!
5 sp Trans (AX-15?)
aftermarket Radio Stolen, supposedly no dash damage.
Seats torn.
comes with soft top (with small tear) and Bikini top.
transfer case apparently works in all ranges.

what else should I be looking at?
Might this be a Computer controlled carb? <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/barf.gif" alt="" />

This Jeep will be used just to run around in the desert, and sometimes as a daily driver to work (a couple days a week?) so I don't tear up my new pickup. I already have 15,500+ miles on a pickup that's less than a year old! No real rock crawling or mud bogging. The sagebrush grows so thick here, we call the resulting scratches on the sides "Owens Valley Pinstipes"!

What would be a resonable price range for such a vehicle?
Any help would be appreciated as I'm a first time Jeep buyer.

I've learned so much from you already!
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

The engine is a 4.2. Yes it has the computer carb. For a first time wrangler most here would be looking for a 91 or newer with the 4.0..Them is the fuel injected ones.
From the factory that jeep prolly had a 3.07 rear gear. If you are serious about it check out the tranny shift and stay in gear.. also check for smoke out the tail pipe and ALWAYS crawl under her and check all the insides of the tires and the entire underbody for leaks..
She should idle good for 5 minutes and come off idle real good.. and always run her in gear a few times at four grand to see how rpms sound and feel..
Then drive her at constant speeds in each gear and LISTEN for abnormalitys..
Big Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

Oh yeah..what she worth? Around here all shiney, cleaned up and running good.. prolly $4,000. or a bit more.
Big Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

Thanks BigJim for the reply. you're right... I would rather have a '91+, but this one is available....
I spoke with the owners son this morning and have a little more information:

It was originally purchaed by them, used, to be used for deer hunting. As far as he knows, it has mostly highway miles on it.

Total mileage is about 60,000 he thought and mileage on the rebuilt motor is about 100. He apparently ran it out of gas trying to start it this past weekend and it hasn't run since. He only had a few hours to work on it though. Would this have done anything bad to the computer controlled carb?

He says he sprayed some "prestart" (ether, I assume) in it and it ran for a few minutes 'till it ran out of fuel. Then he burned out the starter and perhaps the battery before he realized it was out of gas. By then it was time for him to make the 300 mile trip home.

I'll probably go to see it next weekend. It's in Southern California (Riverside, CA) and I'm about 350 miles north (Bishop, CA).

Another stupid question...... with the trans and transfer case in neutral, can I tow this vehicle 350 miles with all four wheels on the ground? The owner mentioned that you needed to leave the ignition on when doing this.... I thought you only needed to do this if you had an automatic trans? I can probably borrow my neighbors car trailer to get it home if necessary.

He wants $3,500 for it, but the more I speak with him about it, the worse condition it sounds. I'm thinking about offering $3,000 for it, since he has about that much in the rebuilt motor and the paint is so-so.

Thanks again for letting me tap into your knowledge!

The reason you need to turn the key on when you're flat-towing the Jeep is to unlock the steering wheel! That's so the Jeep will track properly behind the tow vehicle. Nothing to do with the tranny or transfer case.

Regarding gear selection when towing: Since you have a manual transmission, the choices are a lot easier.

First put the transmission in Neutral.

I would not put the transfer case in Neutral, I would leave it in 2WD. The reason is because the rear wheels rolling down the road will cause the rear driveshaft to turn, which in turn will lcause the rear output driven gears of the transfer case to turn. In many transfer cases, those rear output gears are not down in the oil sump area -- they depend on the "splash lubrication" caused by the input shaft gears rotating and splashing up gear lube from the oil sump area. By keeping the transfer case in 2WD, that will keep the inout gears spinning, which will splash lube the output gears.

This choice will work fine. However, if your transmission should happen to bounce into gear while it's being towed, your Jeep will quickly be in a world of hurt. If you're absolutely certain that the transmission won't jump into gear, then go ahead and tow it in 2WD, tranny in Neutral.

But if it were me, and if I was flat-towing an unknown Jeep, I'd disconnect the rear driveshaft, which only takes a few minutes. You don't have to remove the rear driveshaft. Just disconnect it from the rear differential and tie it up to the frame somehow so it doesn't drag.If you do that, it doesn't matter what gear the tranny is in, as long as the transfer case is in Neutral or 2WD.

RobRowe:

Thank you for that explaination. It makes perfect sense! I think to solve all those problems, I'll just borrow my neighbors car trailer and not worry about it!

I may just offer him $2,500 as is. Even if it's a complete basketcase, I can probably get my moneys worth parting it out.

Please keep the ideas coming.... I really appreciate it!

Ed

Like my father used to say.... The more you know, the more you know there is to know!

And I do another flat tow.. I have towed over two dozen different Jeeps many thousands of miles.. ALL were towed the same with out any problem EVER!
I place the tranny in 1st gear..then I place the transfercase in NEUTRAL.. then I'll start the engine and let the clutch out..this verifys the neutral transfer case..
and I tow it just like that! In these later model Jeeps the key must be in the on position to allow the front wheels to turn.. Older ones didn't need this.
In the daytime I unhook the battery. At night I hook it back up and turn the PARK lights on if I don't have the Jeeps tail lights hooked to the tow vehicle.
As most tow bars clamp or otherwise hook to the front bumper of the Jeep I check closely for all the bumper bolts to be in place and tight..If I attach a permant tow bar to a Jeep I always WELD the bumper to the frame).
Big Jim

Ps.. As you are in California and they have very strict smog laws I'd be certain to insist the Jeep passed and is current in inspections before purchasing a carbed Jeep in that state..In that state I wouldn't purchase a Jeep that didn't have fuel injection! Period!

dont you love how people always sell cars with rebuilt motor with zero miles on it, it might not run because it was built wrong. if I was buying a rebuilt motor, i would want at least 10 k miles on it, make sure it doesnt fall apart

Jim:
You bring up a great point about having it smogged...If I remember correctly, if the vehicle is older than a certain year, it doesn't need to be smogged. There used to be a dollar limit also, I think. I've bought only new cars for so long, I don't know these things anymore. I'll check with Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) just to be sure though.

Ed

Just checked with DMV.
If a vehicle is older than 1975 model year, it does not need to be smogged.
In typical California fashion, the requirements for 1976 and newer vehicles vary by county. Some counties require smog checks every two years, while others are "once when you buy it, once when you sell it". Transfering a vehicle between counties just adds another layer of complexity.
Oh, the cost for the check is about $66 and another $8.25 for the "license" for a total of about $75-80.

Right now I'm so confused!

Ed