Jeep WJ questions

[mustangwarrior]

how does the sunroof take away space? the guy at the dealer said the same thing but i didn't understand why

[toymaster]

^^^^^^^^ Normal roof is sheet metal and headliner. The sunroof mechanisms are thicker than that. The distance between the metal roof and the headliner is increased thereby reducing inside cabin space.

[mustangwarrior]

makes sense, but i really wanted a sunroof haha but i don't think it would make much difference because i was still looking at the visor, i'm gonna have to go try another one and see how i feel again

[Black_ZJ]

Sunroof can also limit the size/type of roof rack you will use as well. I may be going to look at a few WJ's soon for kicks, might be time to upgrade one of my ZJ's.

[tizzdizz]

Getting a limited, you should end up with a full set of good stock Mopar skid plates, which I don't think are always included with Laredos. The Overland includes rock sliders, which are pretty slick, too.

I bought my '03 WJ Limited last January after having a '99 XJ. I lifted it 4" and put 32s on it, and it's great. I did a fair amount of research before buying, and would have gotten an Overland if I could find one that wasn't beat up. Still love my Limited though, and having gone from a peppy 4.0 I6 in the smaller XJ to a powerful 4.7 V8 (non-High Output) I am very glad I got the V8. I just can't imagine the 6 having enough grunt to give you a lot of confidence offroad. The torque is real nice to have.

On my old Cherokee, I went from 28" tires to 31" tires on stock gearing, and it was quite a lot slower. On my Grand Cherokee, I went an inch bigger with my tires, and the V8 has enough grunt that I don't feel the need to regear. If anything, I may get a chip, cold air intake, and exhaust down the road, but I still get a grin when I put my boot in it. Really, there's no downside to the v8.

I will say that mine came with a detailed carfax which says it was in the dealer a lot for the HVAC system, and when I bought it at 125k, it was still not operating right. It works well enough for me (it's a weekend warrior), but it does suck that it's not how it could be. I would prefer a simple HVAC system, but that's really my ONLY complaint. I love my WJ. It's very comfortable, very affordable when compared to other similar SUVs (4runner), and the solid front axle is awesome when you need articulation.

Whichever engine you get, I STRONGLY recommend replacing the rear sway bar as one of the first things you do. The front is pretty stout, but the rear is so puny it may as well not even be there. It leads to some unsettling tail wag, which I felt I was always overcorrecting for on the freeway. I installed an Addco 1" rear swaybar and greasable mounts/bushings, and the difference is night and day. Even with the lift, it feels very stable and planted.

Note the difference in stock vs. Addco swaybar:


Here it is stock:


4" lift and 32" tires:

[mustangwarrior]

i'm going to look at a few more tonight, there are 3 within a few miles of each other, all are laredos, all I6 engines, 2 w/ select trac one with quadra drive

the main one i'm going to look at doesn't have a sunroof, is an '03 w/ 96k miles and they are asking $8995, which isn't a bad price compared to some but is over blue book and the one right around the corner is an '04 with 109k miles and they only want $6995, so i'm gonna have to do some negotiating and get the price knocked down

as far as which package i get, there isn't much choice around here, it's gonna come down to the one with the drive train i want and the condition its in then i'll just deal with whatever package it has, i'm not gonna rock crawl it (there are no rocks here), there are barely any "legal" places to wheel, so its mainly gonna see forest roads and expedition type stuff, then after two years when i finish up school then it may become a toy

[Dr.Grand]

I have a 2003 Laredo with the I6, 42RE, and Selec-trac. It has been nothing but good to me. It is bare-bones and I like it that way.

[mustangwarrior]

just got back from lookin at those two, one was gone the other one for $8995 was really nice overall but was priced to high, the rear diff leaked and the valve cover leaked so that it was smoking when we stopped, both easy fixes but good reasons to drop the price, we low balled with $7500 he came back at $8500, so we played tough and walked out, if he wants the sale he'll call me back with a new price

good news is, now i know that with no sunroof and the power seat adjusted down i have more than enough head room which makes me extremely happy after test driving that other one

[mustangwarrior]

anybody have any thoughts on a 2000 WJ with I6 and select trac?

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...19797622&Log=0

[Black_ZJ]

anybody have any thoughts on a 2000 WJ with I6 and select trac?

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...19797622&Log=0

It will run forever and have fewer drive train issues.