Hi. My name is Tim and I have an addiction.

[terrawombat]

Like many of you, I'm addicted to Jeeps - especially really, really cheap ones. I guess it all started with both of my MJs being handed down to me from family members after they bought new vehicles. Neither of my MJs were in road-worthy condition, at least not in my opinion. So, to remedy that, I went out and got myself a donor '01 XJ Sport. The body was straight and the interior was decent, but the 157K mile engine developed a nasty rod knock.

 

About a week after I purchased this vehicle (for the laughable price of $300 plus towing costs, although I probably could have driven it home...), my current vehicle at the time started having some overheating problems. I made a decision to hold off on transferring the parts from the '01XJ to my '88MJ and went ahead and threw a junkyard engine into the XJ, instead. The junkyard transaction was a brutal mess, but I won't go into the details right now. Once I got the '01XJ up and running, it became my main mode of transportation.

 

I still wanted to bring my older MJ back to life with newer XJ parts, but I was now driving the donor...what to do, what to do? Well, a friend of mine just recently crashed her '99XJ Classic and she opted to buy a new car instead of fixing it. The poor XJ just sat in her backyard for a couple of months before I put up and offer to buy it. It was in pretty nice shape with 130K miles on a 4.0L and a very solid AW4, 8.25 drivetrain - no slop. My offer was accepted and the NEW donor XJ was delivered to my shop. So, then I receive word that my girlfriends family was going through a bit of a car crisis. Two vehicles in their fleet of four went down with some major issues and what was once my gf's car (a very nice '06 Jeep Wrangler Golden Eagle Edition) was taken by her eldest sister so that she could get to and from school. Since I have an abundance of vehicles just lying around, I decided to get the frame pulled back straight on my '99XJ donor and lend it to my gf until her family can get the car situation straightened out.

 

I wasn't giving up yet. Now that I put some serious cash into fixing the '99XJ, I no longer want to scavenge it for parts. I may wind up selling it when I get it back, or I may keep it for a backup - I'll cross that bridge when I get there. So, on Sunday...just minutes before I had to leave for a business trip in NH, I picked up a '98XJ Sport with 71K miles on a 4.0L, AW4, and 8.25 in the rear (4x4, but don't know what's up front, probably a D30). This little number was a theft recovery and has been branded with a salvage title. I got it because I will HAVE to make this the donor as I've looked at the process of getting the title recertified in my state and it is NOT something I want to do - or even have the right paperwork for. Unfortunately, the truck does not yet run as it's throwing an unusual P1694 code and none of the troubleshooting tips I have found for that error code have helped one bit. It's likely the computer or the CPS sensor, so I've purchased those to try and fix the problem, however, I'm in NH for the week and won't return to NJ until the end of the week. Hopefully I can get it up and running this weekend so I can start the donation process to my '88MJ.

 

So, thanks for reading. I bet some of you have a similar addiction ;)

[Pete M]

You are not alone Tim. :D

[-600JeepMJ]

:agree:

[terrawombat]

I had a feeling I wouldn't be alone on this message board ;)

 

'88MJ SporTruck - the one getting the XJ facelift

 

 

 

'89MJ Pioneer - currently a worktruck for the farm. Not registered for road use...yet

 

 

'01XJ Sport - Currently my DD...I have been piling on the mileage...10K in five months

 

 

'99XJ Classic - Before and after photos of the front end damage

 

 

 

 

'98XJ Sport - Newest addition to the fleet (sellers pic - didn't have time to take my own)

 

[87Warrior]

I think you have come to the wrong place for help with that addiction... We will only make it worse!

Welcome to the club, you will fit in quite nicely :wavey:

[shelbyluvv]

I feel your pain Tim!

 

I am on my 4th MJ, had probably 20+ XJs, and I DD a 04 WJ.

[freakjeep93]

huh this travells fast I'm the same way ive got 2 mjs and niether are working yet.......

[terrawombat]

I feel your pain Tim!

 

I am on my 4th MJ, had probably 20+ XJs, and I DD a 04 WJ.

 

What is it about XJs that make them so damn addicting. Maybe it's their incredible practicality, reliability, durability, and ease of maintenance. Not to mention they get good gas mileage, relatively speaking. I've owned and driven a few SUVs in my lifetime and the XJ just seems to be the best all around performer.

[terrawombat]

So I got the '98XJ running today. Needed a new ECM and fuel pump - about $200 in parts. Runs real solid, as it should - it's just a baby with 71K on a 4.0L engine.