What Jeep do I want?

[wirenut]

I've owned lots of SUV's and trucks but I think I'd like to have a Jeep now. I hope to sell my '69 Chevy C10 for around $4,000 and use that to buy one. I thought I wanted a Wrangler but a quick look on Autotrader showed I can buy lots of Grand Cherokees that are newer with less miles for the same money as the Wranglers. Why is that?
This will be a daily driver to work and back and used for rather mild trail riding and 4 wheeling with my family. I do know I want fuel injection. What year did the Wrangler get that or do they all have it? Is the 4 cylinder engine enough power or do I need the 6 cylinder? What years or models of Wranglers should I avoid? Most of the Jeeps in my price range have over 150,000 miles on them. How many miles could I expect to get from a Wrangler that was well cared for?

I know that's a lot of questions. Thanks for any answers. My current ride is a '05 Chevy crew cab dually with a Duramax so this will be a big change. I hope to park it for camping, working, and pulling the boat only.

 

[Jeep or Tacoma]

depends what you want to do with it. If you decide to start exploring unknown trails then a wrangler will get you where the others won't but for a daily driver the grand is fine and if you tow its better, Wrangler hold there value better than any other car out there. period its because they are widely popular almost cult like certainly there is camaraderie there that doesn't exist ti not the vehicles. For me having owned so many different trucks jeeps and all I am going to stick with my 08 wrangler the after market support is unbelievable and there is almost no end to what you can do for them they are noisier than the ifs jeep but the solid front axles are what gives you the ability to go where you want there are people out there with welder 200 k on theirs . each years have pluses an minuses, I would stay away form the yjs though they have the square head lights the tj are very nice and if you could find a lj basically a long wheelbase tj that would be a good deal otherwise for mild trails and the ability to modify your jeep you will get a newer jk. or jku evna base model 4 door is pretty sweet these days. read some of the other websites.

 

[mnewxcv]

$4k gets a really decent XJ.

 

[TripLeader]

I don't think you're going to get a Wrangler that'd be desirable for a daily driver for $4000. I think that much will get you a decent YJ or a very low-end TJ. Good vehicles, but not what you might want to commute in. The TJ would be more comfortable because of the coil suspension vs. the leaf spring suspension of the YJ.
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I think you could get a good XJ for that money, or even a nicer ZJ or WJ. But they are not as "desirable" as the Wrangler.
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I used to own a 2.5L 4 cylinder TJ. It was fine for what it was and what I used it for, but I would not want it to be my daily driver. Getting to highway speeds will be an issue. It just does not have enough power to make it good for drives over 15 minutes. On the trails, a 4 cylinder is fine and unless your really into bragging about horsepower and torque. But if you plan on spending money on a lot of mods, then I would recommend getting the 4.0L 6 cylinder.
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Another important thing to consider when buying a Wrangler is the rear axle. Most came with a Dana 35 in the rear. A Dana 44 is bigger and stronger. You should try to find the 44, especially if you're going to go with bigger tires. Also check what the gear ratio in the axles is. Some came with 3.07s. I would recommend trying to find 4:10s, or at least 3:73s.
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Since I'm a TJ fan, I would recommend waiting until you have a $7500 budget and then buy a TJ from a private party.

 

[zj egg]

A wj or zj with a cheap 2" budget boost and good 31" tires will take care of all you want. Go v8 either for either, the inline 6 doesn't cut it in these slightly heavier rigs. Cherokee, grand cherokee are unibodys, wranglers have frames. People always want a project wrangler, artificially inflates their resale value imho

 

[TheViking]

Go for a WJ

 

[ZMagic97]

Another vote on the WJ Grand Cherokee (1999-2004). I also recommend the 4.0 I6 as the V8's seem to have more issues, from what I've seen personally was in leaky seals and overheating. The 4.0 was used forever it seemed and had a great record: my 95 XJ had 201,000 miles when I sold it, had 110,000 when I got it. I changed the oil and a tire. That was it.

I recommend the WJ because when I had one it was so reliable, comfortable, and if work were to ever be needed, (again a I6 trait) there is a lot of room under the hood. It's one of the vehicles I truly see as a do-all for a DD, camping, family trips, going to the the store, taking off-road...etc.

 

[Silvanus]

First off, stay away from the rust belt and overly modified jeeps period! An unmolested Jeep should be in your plans.
With a stocker you can modify it to your liking, nothing more irritating than righting the wrongs by the pervious owner! (also less costly)

Most importantly, read up on Jeep through the " Interweb " plenty of data covering the plus & minuses of every model.
When you've decided on which Jeep suits you, go on a weekend jaunt covering interstate,route, two track/unimproved roads to get a feel for what the Jeep is lacking, and besides, it'll make for a enjoyable weekender!

My colleague at work just pick up an XJ (2001) for $1,700 w/95K on the ticker, so be patient, they're out there!

Buon Fortuna,
Carlo

 

[VistaCruiser]

XJ/ZJ/WJ are all within that price range in good condition. XJ's will have a closer drivetrain to the Wrangler, as in 231/242 T-Case, high pinion D30 w/u-joint shafts, smaller body for narrow trails, D44/8.25 rear ends that will withstand off road better. ZJ's are easily modified to remove the 249 T-case, HP D30 swaps, U-joint shaft upgrade, big body on the trail compared to Wrangler/XJ, etc. WJ's have the nicest interior, ride, but less parts to rob from older Jeeps. Mine have proven to be very reliable and dirt worthy with the Quadra-Drive "lockers" and 247 full time T-case with 4LO. Drive all of them to see what fits you best, YMMV.

Sam

 

[Coby65]

This will be a daily driver to work and back and used for rather mild trail riding and 4 wheeling with my family.

Based on this comment alone.........My advise would be take the $4000 dollars from the sale of the truck and use it as down payment on new Wrangler.
If you look a used Wrangler values your not going to loose a lot by buying new. Heck my 05 unlimited is still worth more than 50+% of its original purchase price 10 years later, and I think it has gone up over the last couple of years.
You have to weigh how much time and $$$ you want to spend working on a used $4000 Jeep or do you want solid reliable transportation for you and fun time spent with your family.
This is reason I got rid of my wife's 99 Cherokee and we got a new 15 Wrangler Rubicon. Seemed like every month I was spending more $$$ and time repairing the little things on her daily commuter(20 miles round trip) than I was spending on going on trips and getting out.
With the 15 we have a solid reliable vehicle that can do all daily chores of any other vehicle and we explore places without breaking out the highly modified 05LJ.
Look at it this way if you had purchased 00-01 Grand Cherokee, Cherokee, or Wrangler new back then. And let's say the all cost about $30k at the time. Current value of a Grand Cherokee would be $2500-$4500. Cherokee because of cult following would be $3500-&5500. And the Wrangler would be $10-$15k. Now these prices vary on miles and condition but for a long term daily driver you can not beat the resale value of a Wrangler

 

[kindred]

Be mindful of the towing capacity. Depending on the weight of your boat, a two door wrangler may be out of the question. A four door JKU will have a higher towing capacity, and a 4 door rubi maxes out at 3500lbs. Any of the Cherokee models will likely be fine for towing.

 

[wirenut]

Thanks for all the replies. I guess I was seeing things correctly. The Wranglers hold value like crazy. It's amazing all the other newer 4wd vehicles I could buy for the same money as a used Wrangler. Maybe the Cherokee is the way to go. I never thought about one of those much but it looks like it would work for a bit less money.
I'd heard that the Quadra-trac was complex and expensive to fix but if they're really reliable then I guess that won't matter much.
By the way, I won't be towing with the Jeep. That's what the diesel dually is for.

 

[jaxyaks]

First I will say that I am a fan of the Cherokees, very comfy and capable, now with that out of the way...

You said you have owned other SUVs and trucks and want a jeep. Depending on the SUV's you have had they will be pretty similar to a cherokee and you may not get the Jeep experience you are looking for. I would look for a wrangler for that. I'm pretty sure the fuel injection came along around 93ish. If you don't mind not having a ton of highway speed and you don't need to blast your way thru mud holes the 4 banger isn't bad, isn't ideal but not bad. You will most likely encounter a lot of those if you are looking at YJ's and early TJ's. After 99 or so it seems the number of 4 bangers dwindle at least the ones for sale in my area.

4-5k should get you a YJ in pretty decent shape. The wranglers can have a bunch of sensor/electrical gremlins, so look at this system first when you encounter problems, most can be solved there.

TJ's run the gambit on price, I have seen em from $3500-15k or more depending on which one.

I would look for a bone stock one for two reasons, one is that there is a good chance it wasn't offloaded etc, and two, it will probably be the one with the more reasonable price.

If you can handle a carb, the CJ is a fun, easy to work on and can be relatively inexpensive to buy parts for.

Again nothing wrong with the Jeep SUV's but if you want to experience something different, get the topless models...

I have had a slew of CJ's YJ's, TJ and LJ and even though the LJ was the newest (05 Rubi unlimited fresh off the lot) my favorites are the CJ's.

 

[SheepnJeep]

Well If I had $4,000 to spend on a jeep I would hold out for a 2001 two door Cherokee. Google the difference between a 2 and 4 door, you will see what I mean. They look 1000% cooler. I have a 2001 Cherokee with the 4.0 and it has been wonderful. Great offroader in stock form and it strikes a decent balance between size and storage capability. It has good torque, not the fastest car but I really enjoy the powerband and how it drives. I actually manage pretty good fuel economy if I drive like an old lady. My record high is 26.1 mpg between Copper Harbor MI and Antigo WI. My record low is 6 MPG during a 4x4 snowy horrible slogging hell week through the streets of Houghton. I have towed my willys jeep behind it a few times. It pulls it but that is probably the limit for long distance hauling.

 

[BIGdaddy]

I've owned lots of SUV's and trucks but I think I'd like to have a Jeep now. I hope to sell my '69 Chevy C10 for around $4,000 and use that to buy one. I thought I wanted a Wrangler but a quick look on Autotrader showed I can buy lots of Grand Cherokees that are newer with less miles for the same money as the Wranglers. Why is that?
This will be a daily driver to work and back and used for rather mild trail riding and 4 wheeling with my family. I do know I want fuel injection. What year did the Wrangler get that or do they all have it? Is the 4 cylinder engine enough power or do I need the 6 cylinder? What years or models of Wranglers should I avoid? Most of the Jeeps in my price range have over 150,000 miles on them. How many miles could I expect to get from a Wrangler that was well cared for?

I know that's a lot of questions. Thanks for any answers. My current ride is a '05 Chevy crew cab dually with a Duramax so this will be a big change. I hope to park it for camping, working, and pulling the boat only.

How many in your family?