Hey Jeep guys,
Help me out with a little advice.
Someone killed my KIA, so now I'm looking at a 2001 Cherokee.
At what point do they die?
This one is in good shape but has 115k on it.
Do they last 200k?
What kind of prevent mat. does it need?
Is 5K too much for it? What quirks do I look for.
I'm grateful for any advice.

Thanx, Rob

$5K seems a little high, but it might be in line for your area.

115K is no big deal, as long as it's meen maintained decently. Regarding Prev maint -- change oil/filter regularly, check fluids, lube fittings, etc.

At 115K, your shocks/struts are likely to need changing. Check your driveshaft u-joints for tightness. Jack up the front end and check your steering components for tightness. At this time, change engine oil, tranny fluid, t-case and differential lube. Flush cooling system and refill with proper mixture. Look at each quantity of fluid you remove to insure there's no metal shaving in them. Check those areas for leaks in 200-500 miles. Get front end aligned. Have tires balanced. Get brakes checked and service if necessary. Do tune-up on engine. Use pressure washer to clean off engine and drivetdrain so that you can easily spot leaks if they show up.

As soon as you determine that's it's not leaking like a sieve or anything, drive the hell out of it, and enjoy it off-road!

$5K can be an acceptable price based on condition, if it has the 6 cyl in it, I would walk away if itÆs the 4 cyl. I paid $5200 for my æ99 about 2 years ago with 93K miles on it. I am not sure what exactly you are looking at or looking for, but 115K miles in central Texas I would be pretty sure has no rust so from that stand point you would be fine, if the body looks clean, and it looks like it has spent most of its life on road, then you are even better off, if it does look a little rough, or like its spent a lot of time off road give the drive train a thorough inspection. Personally I would look for one with a 5 speed and part time 4wd (NP 231J) in it too, but thatÆs just because I like to keep things simple, and have fewer things to go wrong. I would also look for one with a Chrysler 8.25 rear end too, itÆs stronger than the Dana 35.

Like Bob said if you get it I would go through and change all the fluids just so you can baseline it and get an idea how things are doing. If the cooling system hasnÆt been touched yet I would take a close look at the hoses. On mine I had just flushed the cooling system after I got it (the coolant was a little brown) and then about a year later the upper radiator hose got a pin hole in it, so I replaced it, then about 2 months later, one of the radiator seals on the plastic tanks started leaking, so I replaced the radiator, and flushed the cooling system again. When doing this I looked a little closer at the rest of the hoses, and all of the hoses were still the originals. The lower was a little gummy, and since this was my daily driver, I decided it was prudent to just change everything in the cooling system, so now I know the cooling system wont let me down.

The front wheel bearings usually get noisy around 100K miles, these werenÆt tough to replace either, but you do have to replace the whole wheel hub.

All in all I have put about 30K miles on my Cherokee in the ~2 years I have had it, and I have probably spent ~$600.00 in maintenance, but the majority of that was for the cooling system and wheel bearings. And if I had it to do over again, I would. I love my Jeep. My biggest worry with it where I am (northeast) is rust, but I have been putting POR 15 on it bit by bit, and I plan to keep it until at least 200K miles.

Sean

I agree with Bob and Bird. And $5000 sounds about right down here.

Thanx for th info. I drove it and really like it. I looked underneath and seen no rust of rock dings. It dosnt have a lift (something I'll be askin you about next week if I buy it.) And the tires are factory size.
No major no no indicators.
thinkin I'll buy it.
And What is this "part time" 4wd, this one has it?
Thanx again.
Rob

Part time means that it should have a selectable transfer case. Full time 4WD vehicles don't have a selectable t-case. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Yup, thats right. Cherokees have the same NP231 t-case as wranglers, and the "part time" light is lit when it is engaged in 4wd. otherwise its in regular 2wd.

Not all Cherokees have the NP231. When I was looking for mine, I saw a lot of automatics that had the All Wheel Drive transfercase like the Grands.

This one has part time 4w, 4w high and 4w low.
I wouldn't be interested if it didn't have a low end xfer case.
Is this the best one you were talking about?

I am not sure "best" would be my way of saying it.. Seems that thing is always in 4 and not able to get into straight 2 wheel drive.
Big JIm <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />