Another win for the Montero.

[SOFpirate]

So there we were, in every expedition driver/off road enthusiast's worst nightmare.


Traffic.


I was in my 1991 Renix special Jeep XJ, and everybody else was in the tried and true Gen III Monty. 100 degrees weather, on asphalt, with a bunch of other cars, moving about 1 vehicle length every 15 minutes. Recipe for disaster. So, at the most appropriate moment, which was at about 200m from normal driving at highway speeds, what happens? You guessed it, the jeep spews coolant everywhere and my hood cowling looks like the blow hole of a blue whale. But of course, the Monty is just fine, with the A/C blasting ice cold air on everybody in their leather seats. I'm sitting there in the Jeep ... sweating buckets to reduce load shedding on the Chrysler engine that is known to run ostensibly hot.

The verdict:

Jeep: Blown head gasket, cracked at least two heads, drug into a parking lot by the Montero.

I swear ... I could almost hear that Monty still laughing at me for driving a Jeep ...

 

[Applejack]

Blown head gasket, cracked at least two heads...

What engine did it have? If stock it should only have 1 head. But yes the overheating problems with Jeeps is well known. Though I never did have any of mine overheat.

 

[SOFpirate]

It's got the 4.0L I6. Incredible engine when it comes to power and torque. Pain in the @$$ when it comes to keeping it running. It's cool though, now is my chance to finish it out and buy another Montero. Haven't let me down yet.

 

[poriggity]

As much as I am a Jeep guy, I have been eyeballing my inlawas 94 montero to build lately.. I just have to convince them to sell it to me...

 

[SOFpirate]

Yeah ... I'm kicking myself for straying from the family. There's just so many things that a Montero has over any other affordable truck.

Example ... the Jeep needed me to stop ... N ... then 4Hi ... then drive. We basically had a flash storm come up ... super heavy rain and everything come up. Saw all the Jeeps pull over and stop to go into 4 ... and I just reached over ... threw it in ... and good to go.

The comfort. Is AWESOME! I feel like an Imperial Japanese Navy Admiral driving it around.

 

[off-roader]

The comfort. Is AWESOME! I feel like an Imperial Japanese Navy Admiral driving it around.

So long as you're not on a sinking ship in WWII LOL.

See my 96SR build thread to hopefully inspire you all...

 

[squint]

I can't say I agree. The I-6 is one of the most reliable engines out there. You probably didn't have the right coolant mix or your fan stopped working or thermostat broke or whatever else. That can happen with any other vehicle.
I warped/cracked two montero engines when I lived in teh cold mountains of Colorado and have owned four monteros (4 cylinders and 6 cylinder) and currently have two jeeps and a montero sport in our family. Both of the Jeeps have engines getting close to 100K and have not had any overheating problems and we live in Phoenix AZ, which is HOT. Don't get me wrong, I love(d) my monteros (especially the old ones from late eighties.early 90s), but I went through clutches like candy and two engines and that was only running 32's... I can't say I believe in them being really reliable (I did put them through some tests), but I really did love the styling and looks of them. We have not had any issues with out 2005 montero sport though.

 

[SOFpirate]

Mine had just over 206k on the clock. It did what it was supposed to do.

I think in the end it comes down to personal preference of vehicle. I grew up in a Montero, and subconsciously I think I was just trying to create an excuse to hate every other vehicle out there besides the great Mitsu. I will admit, I did like the solid front axle that the jeeps have, I was able to do a lot more stuff with less worry than I would with an IFS.

 

[Eaglefreek]

91 Jeeps don't have the Renix system. 90 was the last year for Renix. What do you mean you cracked at least 2 heads? I agree with squint, the 4.0 engine which comes from AMC lineage from the 60's typically don't have cooling problems unless a part of the system failed. What was your temperature gauge reading while sitting in traffic?

 

[SOFpirate]

I think half the issue was the fact that I DON'T KNOW what the engine was running temperature-wise. It had the idiot gauges ... so I didn't know the engine was going to overheat until the little red light came on at the same time as the engine blowing.

It's pretty much a dead issue now, because I'm definitely not straying from Montero's anymore. It was cool to own a Jeep and be a part of the crowd for a little bit, but I truly enjoy the Montero and the comfort they bring for the family to enjoy the hobby as well ...