I've joined the dark side (or perhaps seen the light?)

[BKCowGod]

I'm no longer an Isuzu owner...

'98 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited: 5.2l V8 mated to a NV242HD transfer case, 3.5" Old Man Emu lift (not shown), Yokohama Geolanders, GPS, drilled rotors, Memphis Audio speakers, and a mattress in the back...

I never thought I would own one jeep and now I find myself with two... what is happening to me? My poor BMW hasn't been driven in two months! That said, the ZJ is totally worth the drop from 19 to 15mpg. So smooth on the road, and way more capable off. The transfer case swap means I have 2wd, fulltime AWD, 4wd hi, and 4wd lo. And with my limited slip rear, I have enough traction to do any trail within my current skill and comfort level with ease. The 24 gallon gas tank is a breath of fresh air after the 12 in the 'zoo, and I never thought I'd love cruise control quite this much!

Oh yeah, and I got it for half of what it was worth...

 

[JChatary]

Nice! I just recently got my WJ a few weeks ago (I'm a former Dodge Ram owner) and I LOVE it!!!!

 

[shane4x4]

My wife had an identical ZJ. If it's a limited, it SHOULD have the 5.9L though. The gas mileage you quoted sounds right for the 5.9. We really liked ours, but at 130K, it was coming apart. We upgraded her to the '06 4-Runner.

Enjoy your ZJ!

 

[BKCowGod]

the one with the 5.9 would be the "5.9 Limited" which also requires premium gas and gets around 12mpg.

 

[datrupr]

Very nice Jeep. It looks very clean. Congrats on your purchase.

 

[ZooJunkie]

So what happened to your little Zoo? Zoo owners are dropping like flies these days.

 

[Taz]

5.9's have the vents in the hood

 

[4Rescue]

Let the repairs begin...

Looks clean tho, and OME on anything is just plain killer.

 

[Haggis]

Let the repairs begin...

Looks clean tho, and OME on anything is just plain killer.

Toyota Guys, geez. Must be something in the upholstery of those Toys.:shakin:

We had a '98 with the same set-up. It was my wifes daily driver and occasional trail runner and preformed admirably. Plus that 318 makes it quite a red light rocket. Wife sold it to buy a new car (wanted better gas mileage and had been driving jeeps for 10 years and was ready for something different) but now misses her ZJ. There's talk of a new JK Unlimited in our near future, because she doesn't like the new Grands.

 

[OverlandZJ]

BK...thats a beauty! Best of luck with it. My wife has a 5.2L Limited ZJ, i wouldnt mind outfitting one myself to replace the XJ. They are super comfy.

 

[CYi5]

Sweet, I like the 2wd option. The quadratrac system on those jeeps is my biggest complaint, they chew up tires pretty quickly.

 

[BKCowGod]

I've always had a healthy skepticism when people talk about repairs. Maybe it's because my fleet has included in the past:

1970 BMW 2002 - 850k and only one engine rebuild in that time.
1972 Jeep J2000 - never let me down, 180k
1978 Alfa Spider - I overheated it and blew a gasket, otherwise it was reliable at 160k
1987 Audi 4000CS quattro - no problems at 215k
1987 BMW 535iS - 427k and I regularly exceed 140mph (never rebuilt, engine or trans)
1995 Land Rover Discovery - ran it into a truck at 180k and never a problem before that
the ZJ is my newest and lowest mile vehicle by far.

Oh, and the Zoo went to a guy who plans to use it as a dump run vehicle

In retrospect, I should have sold it to someone on the board, but the Porsche seats and the Carputer live on.

 

[805gregg]

You could of had a diesel.

 

[BKCowGod]

I wish I could have had a Diesel - but other than the super-overpriced new one, which Diesel Jeep can be registered in California and made to sleep two?

Hell, I tried - by my calculations, the ONLY Diesel midsize SUV made for the US market in the last 30 years would be an IH Scout and a CUCV Blazer. The LR Discoveries weren't officially imported...

And no Diesel of any age (with the exception of the brand new GC) fit all of my criteria:
* Sleeps two
* 15+ mpg
* Real 4wd w/locker or LSD
* Capable of setting the cruise control at 90
* Drivable by my girl

I would looooove to be burning biofuel, but just couldn't justify the added hassles associated with modernizing a CUCV or Scout. And I didn't feel like spending almost half my yearly income on a car I didn't even drive with any regularity.

(sorry - you touched on a sore subject b/c I wish I could have had a diesel)

 

[highlandercj-7]

My wife had an identical ZJ. If it's a limited, it SHOULD have the 5.9L though. The gas mileage you quoted sounds right for the 5.9. We really liked ours, but at 130K, it was coming apart. We DOWN graded her to the '06 4-Runner.

Enjoy your ZJ!

There fixed that for you.... Shane4x4....

Congrats on the ZJ purchace, I love the slate color. Be even sweeter if it were the 5.9L but the 5.2L is dependable and runs nice.