Add one more Cherokee...

[Purple People Eater]

I drove out to Redlands California on Tuesday to pick up this 2001 Jeep Cherokee Classic.

70K miles, 4wd, Chrysler 8.25" rear axle, 16" wheels, skid plates, NP242 "Selec-Trac", full-time/part-time, 2.72:1 ratio with low range.









There will probably be a build thread started somewhat soon. Any questions?

[Fergie]

Nice find. I like the color, wheels, t-case and axle...29 spliner!

Have you checked the head casting number yet?

[ExpoMike]

Nice!!! Those are the same wheels I have and I love them. Had a buddy try to talk me into switching to 15" wheels and I was like, No way! Some of the few factory wheels I really like.

Good score. About the only "down side" is the 242 transfer case. SYE's are few and expensive. Enjoy and watch those stop lights.

[BC Explorer]

Nice and clean,
Wait till it turns out like this....

[Exrunner]

Have you checked the head casting number yet?

Just curious...what happens with the casting number? I have the same rear axle.

Also, nice jeep...just picked mine up as well. You know what...we need to start some kind of club for Cherokees...maybe a North American one since they have them all over the world. And just for XJs. That would be really cool

[articulate]

Any questions?

Can you say, "Night run?"

Let's go.

[Purple People Eater]

Have you checked the head casting number yet?

Umm... no. Educate me on why this matters?

Nice!!! Those are the same wheels I have and I love them. Had a buddy try to talk me into switching to 15" wheels and I was like, No way! Some of the few factory wheels I really like.

Good score. About the only "down side" is the 242 transfer case. SYE's are few and expensive. Enjoy and watch those stop lights.

Thanks, I really like the wheels as well. These ones are a lot more attractive than my old 15", in my opinion.

And Yeah, I'm looking at upwards of $800 for the Slip Yoke Eliminator for this transfer case, but I aware of this before the purchase, so it's not too big of a bummer. I just gotta pony up and do it. I have a lot on my plate, and I'm going to start with the small stuff first.

[Purple People Eater]

Can you say, "Night run?"

Let's go.

Let's do it.

[Fergie]

Just curious...what happens with the casting number? I have the same rear axle.

Also, nice jeep...just picked mine up as well. You know what...we need to start some kind of club for Cherokees...maybe a North American one since they have them all over the world. And just for XJs. That would be really cool

Tongue in cheek comment really...

There are a disproportionately high number of 2001 heads that tend to crack on the XJs, compared to other years. Batch # is 0331.

When you look at the total number of XJs produced that year, the number of heads from that casting lot is not a very high ratio.

The head cracking issue seems to be the result of several bad castings and I can only speculate that the cast iron used in one large batch made around the year 2000 must have been of poor quality.
The area between the no.3 and 4 exhaust ports is the hottest part of the head and is subjected to the largest temperature fluctuations, making that the area most prone to crack.
The first sign of a problem is unexplained loss of coolant. If there are no external coolant leaks, remove the oil filler cap and look between the valve springs of the no.3 and 4 cylinders. A crack is usually too small to be seen with the naked eye but you WILL see crusts of coolant in that area and that's a telltale sign.
If the crack is between an intake port and the water jacket (or between the combustion chamber and water jacket), the engine might run like it's on 5 cylinders. Check the plugs and if one of them has less carbon than the others with traces of coolant, you'll know which cylinder is affected.
If it's between an exhaust port and the water jacket, you'll have steam coming from the exhaust but the engine will run fine.
If the crack is only between the water jacket and the crankcase, you'll only have the mystery loss of coolant with the engine otherwise running well.
Left neglected, enough coolant can accumulate in the crankcase to contaminate the oil and result in accelerated main/rod/cam bearing wear, manifesting as low oil pressure.


Sadly, I just checked my WJ, and it looks as though I may have anew head in my future...bummer.

[goodtimes]

Can you say, "Night run?"

Let's go.

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