Alright I haven't been able to find a small truck in decent shape for under $3000, which is about what I what to spend on something that will be my winter beater / ATV hauler. I came across this 1990 5-speed Wrangler 4x4. They are asking $2000 for it. It has 102,000 miles on the clock, the body looks great, it looks to have pretty good tires, has an aftermarket bumper, tow hitch, CD player already installed, and it's a hard top. The interior looks a little rough, but I don't really care about that since it would be my beater.
Are there things to look out for on these? Any water pump or timing belt issues? I ask because a broken timing belt is mainly was toasted my last beater car. What about problems with using a lot of oil? Just tell me anything you can possibly think of that may be wrong with this, as I don't want to have another car that is going to turn into a paper weight.
Here is a pic:
Thanks guys,
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
What engine does it have in it? the inline 6 is rock solid should be good for another 70-80k at the least. I don't know much about the four-cylinders. You can do a lot w/ Wranglers but if you plan on taking it off road a lot find out what kind of axles it has. www.jeepforums.com has some good info for you. I drive an XJ (cherokee body) but I hang out w/ some guys who have wranglers.
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It has the 2.5L 4-cylinder.. I wouldn't really plan on taking it offroading much.. maybe just mess around in the snow.. I mostly just want it for a beater and to tow my quad.
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
Hmmm the Ax-15 tranny would not be good for towing a lot of guys have problems with those just driving the jeep by itself, otherwise it would probably do well as a beater
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Hit the post button, too soon. I meant to say that a towing a 4wheeler would probably be ok just not anything heavier
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ROBZ IL CAV wrote:It has the 2.5L 4-cylinder.. I wouldn't really plan on taking it offroading much.. maybe just mess around in the snow.. I mostly just want it for a beater and to tow my quad.
Rob
Same engine that was in the 1st get S-10s. That motor will run forever!
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I think you will be fine with that Wrangler if you just want to use it for what you stated above. Just warning ya, the Jeep bug might hit you once you start seeing others drive pass you with a little more lift and some bigger meats under their rigs
If you ever get bored with the power of the 2.5, you can always stuff a 350 or LT1 under the hood. Post an update on what you decide to do.
Good luck if you decide to pick it up, I love mine.
Have a good one,
Justin
for $2000, it's a steal.
the 2.5 is a good motor. it's slow as hell, but it comes with 4.11 gears, so there's lots of torque
Yeah I actually saw a guy on Sunday with a lifted monster when I was out riding my ATV. That's what made me decide to look at Jeeps. His was orange on some huge tires, and I think he said it had a straight 6 in it. It was an older one. He was selling it, but wanted 8 grand, which is too far out of my budget considering my GTO payments each month
So you guys think it would be good to pick this up? It would last me longer than 6 months like my last beater, lol? My dad is kind of leary, and he said it's going to be another piece of $hit just like my Civic that died, and I don't want him to be right again, because he told me that Civic wasn't going to last long, but I didn't listen to him, and bought it anyway.
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
I think it will be fine, just make sure to keep up the routine maintenance on it and it should run like a champ.
Have a good one,
Justin
Alright so nobody has said anything bad about this thing, other than that it would be slow... but that's expected when it only has a 4 banger... and if you want the definition of slow, look at my last beater that had 70hp lol. So there are no known problems with this engine... no "achilles heal", so to say? You guys are making me want this more and more... Also, when I looked up retail price on KBB, it said around $4000, and this Jeep is at a dealer, and they only want $2000. What do you think is up with that?
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
I suggest taking a test drive in it to make sure everything is running properly. Start her on up and let it sit for a while and warm up and just listen to hear anything unusual or just feel how it drives.
My buddy has a '92 YJ 2.5L that he beats the piss out of all the time (on and off the trails) and that thing is still running strong, the only thing that he got was a hole in the muffler, but that is a whole other story
Have a good one,
Justin
OK so that Wrangler sold before I could get to it, and I can't find any others in that same price range. That was a really good price on that.. almost too good. Anyways, so now I am looking at early 90s Ford Explorers and Jeep Cherokees, both of which are bigger than Wranglers, yet cheaper to buy used. I am looking at ones that are right around $2500, and have 6 cylinders with the 5-speed tranny and 4 wheel drive. Most have 100,000 miles or above.
What I want to know is which one would be better to get? I'm talking mostly engine-related here. I can make my own judgement as to which one is cooler. I am leaning towards the Cherokee, because I've just never really like Fords, and Jeeps are usually known to be durable.
Any advice you could give me? Oh and thanks to all that posted about the Wrangler.. I don't think I've ever seen a car get only praised on here before, lol. They must be good trucks. Too bad most of them are out of my price range...
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
Get the XJ (cherokee) I just got one that's been treated like crap and the engine is still running strong after 198k. Those years of Explorers are notorious for having bad trannies. There's a reason Jeep has been making the 4.0 for more than 20 years, its simply one of the best engines out there, excellent torque and amazing durability. Note: 91 and later Cherokees have the HO 4.0 which will give you some more power compared to earlier models. I bought one last summer and I've fallen in love with it. You can take these puppies anywhere. Like Justin said you'll catch the Jeep bug. They're easy to modify too lots of junkyard projects you can do. www.naxja.org is a very good forum for cherokee questions
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Should I try to get a manual Cherokee if I can, or does it not matter. Which tranny is stronger.
Rob
Sold 2/2/05
I am not sure if it matters, my buddy is running a manual in is '88 Cherokee and my girlfriend is running an auto in her '91. As a recall both of them have little to no problems at all. I would suggest getting a manual...just in case you do decide to run some trails with it, I have always believed having a manual on a trail is better (you could always get a hand throttle for it so it will act like a third leg if you get hung up). that and you can leave it in a low gear and creep down hills without using the brakes much.
Anyways, Cherokees are nice. Fudd pretty much explained it above so I'll just say buy one.
The aftermarket for them is insane as well and also a little bit cheaper compared to the Wranglers.
Have a good one,
Justin
The auto AW4 does have a higher torque rating but you should be fine with the Puegoet 5spd unless you're doing heavy towing (which a cherokee isn't good for anyway) I'm actually swapping in a 5spd in mine for the off road use
Plus Explorers suck off road:
That's my buddy hung up on a log lol (more driver error than truck but ya know)
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Fudd wrote:Plus Explorers suck off road:
But their rear axles are oh so great. Ford 8.8 of goodness.
I agree with Explorers sucking wang, my mom had a 98 and in the end of it's life, it was overheating like anything and the tranny was have some really bad slipping problems. They also scared me a little, taking turns too sharp gave you that "I want to roll over" feeling.
Just my experience with those vehicles.
Have a good one,
Justin
Yeah i'll give them the axles. Why not get the best of both worlds and swap in a Ford 9 rear into the Jeep
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Defintely true, but I got a great deal on a 8.8 w/ disks in my garage now to replace the D35 that I have in there now, I tell myself sometimes that I should of waited out for a good deal on a 9 but the 8.8 will do what I plan on off-roading.
My one buddy in his YJ is running a 9 in the rear with an ARB locker and loves it.
Have a good one,
Justin
Supernoma wrote:ROBZ IL CAV wrote:It has the 2.5L 4-cylinder.. I wouldn't really plan on taking it offroading much.. maybe just mess around in the snow.. I mostly just want it for a beater and to tow my quad.
Rob
Same engine that was in the 1st get S-10s. That motor will run forever!
Your saying that Jeep used a GM 4 cylinder? WTF lol
i have a 89 yj with the 4.2 and it will handle almost anything you throw at it offroad, and mines barely lifted with 31's. my dad says the 2.5 is a very strong motor and the only thing i remember looking for when we bought mine is oil leaks, because older jeeps areknown to leak some oil, and rust on the frame, also maybe go over the body with a magnet and make sure there is no bondo. heres a pic of mine
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