Faults:

First my brother bought this Jeep in 2004, with 50000 miles on it. It lasted until 90000. It started overheating and had bad oil pressure problems. At 96000 he gave it to me for free (LOL free); the head was cracked, overheated, bad oil pump, pressure goes up and down.

So now I fixed it; new head (2005 year defected in 2001) (it was cracked), new water pump, new radiator, new thermostat and housing, serpentine belt, oil pump and screen.

It's running good now, and the pressure is still going up and down. 10 psi at idle, and 40 psi at 60 mpg. So far so good.

General Comments:

Jeep rides nice and handles well; very sturdy on the road.

Inside it's very tight, not a lot of room.

Faults:

While driving, the speedometer and tachometer needles drop and don't monitor the speed. Also, the air bag light comes on and stays on.

When the airbag light turns off, then the speedometer and tachometer began to work again. At the present time I have to pull over and turn the engine off. At times just starting the engine, everything begins to work properly.

Faults:

Rear window wiper quit (so I unhooked the wiring harness and left it)...

Original front brake rotors warped quickly even after resurfacing...

Had to fix the broken driver side speaker wire...

Had to replace a leaking oil pressure sensor and melted camshaft position sensor...

Had "major evap leak" code, causing check engine light to light up, but fixed with a new $12 gas cap (!!!)...

Driver's power window chatters badly when it closes, and has done that the last couple years.

General Comments:

I drove this Jeep every day for the last six years, and if the gas mileage wasn't so crappy (16 to 17mpg city), I'd still be driving it daily. I have a more fuel efficient daily driver now, but I just can't justify selling the Cherokee... it's too useful and dependable. So it sits in the garage until I need it.

Just got back from an 1850-mile round trip road trip with the Cherokee, no problems cruising at 75mph all over the interstates for 15 hours straight. Absolutely flawless, and the torque made the hills in Kentucky and Tennessee seem like flatland.

It would be nice if the driver's seat slid back another 2 or 3 inches... other than that, it's a surprisingly comfortable ride. I did hit heavy crosswinds for a few hours driving out of Michigan... this truck is as aerodynamic as a shoebox, so it was a handful keeping it in my lane in the really bad gusts.

When I first got my Cherokee, I started running synthetic engine oil, put synthetic gear oil in the rear end, dropped in a K & N air filter and replaced the muffler with a Flowmaster Super Turbo. It runs a little louder now, but throttle response is awesome, the engine's effective torque curve dropped to lower rpm and I went from 22mpg to 24mpg highway.

This is a fun vehicle to own and drive. It hauls everything without complaint and never fails me. Plus, there's a HUGE aftermarket of parts for these things. The rear springs are a bit soft and sag badly with a load, so I'll be installing rear air shocks before I tow another trailer.

I fully expect to get to 300,000 miles with this Cherokee.