Faults:
Instrument cluster has it moments. It'll stop working while driving, then I tap on it to work again.
Exhaust header had a leak, it was cracked at the collector. This is very common with these types of headers. A aftermarket header with flex points fixes the problem from happening again.
The temperature cable has seized. I cannot move all the way towards the hot side. There may be a knot somewhere or it has rusted in its sleeve.
Difficult to downshift into 3rd gear. There's a sweet spot and RPM that will allow me to do so, pretty much impossible outside that sweet spot.
General Comments:
From all the seven cars I've owned, this is BY FAR my favorite. I've always been a Jeep-a-holic since my Dad restored a CJ5 when I was 10 years old. My Dad and I then restored a CJ7 for me when I was in high school. I loved that CJ7 too. But I decided to sell the CJ7 so we could get a Hummer H1. Since then, I've missed driving around with no doors and no top. Last summer I decided to sell my 2000 Chevy Malibu and buy a 1998 Jeep TJ with the works (lift, bigger tires, aftermarket everything). Needless to say, it was love at first drive.
The Jeep TJ drove surprisingly well for the lift and bigger tires. Cruising down the back roads at 55mph, there is no fighting or wondering with the steering (unlike the CJ). On the freeway, it drives straight and smooth. The top can get a little annoying, but Jeep came out with a "Sailcloth" soft top that is much thicker than the denim style and much quieter. The Jeep starts up every time, no leaks, every button works, and it turns heads every where. Not to mention it has the capability to go any where at any time. Last winter we had a big snow storm (15 inches), and I was the only one in the parking lot who could get out with no problem. I was parking on top of snow piles and driving around every where just trying to get stuck, no luck.
The gas mileage does suck, but the feeling of having no top or doors on a beautiful day, turning heads and getting the Jeep wave, and the fact knowing that tomorrows snow storm will never stop you from going to work, over compensates the 14mpg. Although when gas did hit $4/gallon and I'm in college, I bought a cheap metro to get me around from work and school. I now use the jeep as a weekend warrior and a campus cruiser.
If you buy a Jeep and realize that every car has it problems, you will not be disappointed!
29th Sep 2008, 15:15
Kudos on going back to your Jeep roots!
It is amazing how reliable these little 4x4's are, especially when equipped with the 4.0 liter straight six.
If you have over-sized tires on your Jeep, you probably are getting better mileage than you think, as unless you changed the speedo gear to compensate - your odometer is probably registering lower than actual miles traveled. I'm running 31's on mine and have calculated that the odometer is registering about 9/10ths of a mile for every mile traveled - therefore if the trip odometer says I've gone 180 miles between fill-ups, I've actually gone about 200 miles - if I put in 10 gallons of gas, I've actually gotten 20 mpg, rather than 18. Also remember that with oversize tires your speedo is registering lower mph than your actual speed. Again, you can change the speedometer gear to compensate for the larger tires.
Another way to increase your fuel mileage is to run full synthetic oil. It's better for your engine & cheaper in the long-run too.
My actual miles per gallon with my YJ is about 15-17 around town & 18-20 highway. Given the type of vehicle it is - I can't complain about that.
Anyway, thanks for a good review and Happy Jeeping!