Water/antifreeze bottle

[Old man with MJ]

My original 1988 model cracked and is leaking, is that available new from Mopar? Also leaking out front of radiator,haven't pinpointed it yet though!

Thanks

[MJRemi]

Try ebay or teamcherokee. You may want to upgrade to the open system installed in the latter year cherokees. There's plenty of project how-to's in CC and NAXJA.

[91Pioneer]

You can buy the Mopar one but the Dorman one is better IMHO, see http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E300OY/

 

One of the reviews (not mine): "The OEM tank has been a pain for as long as I've owned this Cherokee. I think I've replaced it four times prior to this one. So far, no splits, cracks or leaks. It's nice to find third party parts that are as good or better than OEM."

 

If I was you, I'd replace the parts rather than do the open swap. A properly functioning closed system is just fine, I never had a problem other than the leaking bottle on my 88. The replacement bottle is $22.53 on Amazon, cheap.

 

Also, Stant 10244 cap is an upgrade http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C7YQ2O/

[velco]

The original french surge bottle (Lyon, France) lasted 20 years, then I replaced it with a Dorman bottle copy of the original; it only lasted 5 years...chinese junk but cheap.  Finally broke down and bought a Mac's Radiator aluminum surge tank... pricey but probably the best thing out there.  This tank will probably outlast the jeep and me. http://macsradiatorshop.com/surge-overflow-tanks/replacment-jeep-radiator-fill-tanks-366.html

[cruiser54]

Napa and the rest have the bottles.

 

Ditch the cap that comes with it and get a 703-1396 cap from Napa. 

[willi2ds]

I've had great luck with the Dodge Intrepid bottles that I've put in a few Cherokees and going on 5 years in my Comanche. You stay with the same style system but now with a metal cap and all for under $20. Quite a few write ups out there.

[danbyrambler]

site: comancheclub.com Dodge Intrepid

 

With pics:  http://comancheclub.com/topic/37314-1987-coolant-reservoir-tank-question/

:wrench:

[hollywood2311]

I think I need to do the Intrepid bottle swap. My 89 MJ blew the coolant bottle up on the way home yesterday. I tried to put the cap back on, but when I screwed it tight, it would release and I never could get it to stay on. I had to drive half a mile at a time on the way home, and let it sit for 10 minutes at each stop. Thank God it was only 25*F out yesterday. Almost flipped it on its side trying to get off of the road once.

 

Only problem is: I checked the dipstick once I got home, and it looked kinda crappy on the end, and I just did an oil change less than 200 miles ago. Time to check the head gasket methinks. I might just put a bunch of new parts on it while I've got the damn thing apart. Might splurge for a new thermostat, water pump and hoses.

[tugalo]

The Dodge Intrepid swap is cheap, easy, and will last forever.  Pretty sure there are other Mopar bottles that will fit, just have to remove the original bottle mounting bracket and install the Intrepid bottle with 2 screws into the firewall shelf at the original location.

[hollywood2311]

I bought the Intrepid bottle last week from OReilly's, they actually had one in stock. I looked at getting a used one, but prices were crazy high for used parts.

 

I put a bunch of water/coolant into the existing bottle today, and let the engine idle for a bit. Started it several times to get the water to leave the reservoir and actually go into the system. No water came out of the system at idle. I thought it might have been something loose that allowed the coolant out, but it appears it was only the bottle that failed. I might replace the thermostat too to eliminate that as a failure point.

[A-man930]

I've had poor luck with aftermarket surge tanks in general. I got an OEM tank, cap, and thermostat and the cooling system works like, well, OEM! Lol

[hollywood2311]

OK, I just filled the existing bottle and let the truck idle for a bit. No leakage, but I have white smoke out the exhaust, and a small amount of smoke coming from the valve cover during idle. Head gasket?

[A-man930]

OK, I just filled the existing bottle and let the truck idle for a bit. No leakage, but I have white smoke out the exhaust, and a small amount of smoke coming from the valve cover during idle. Head gasket?

Or a cracked head or both.

[hollywood2311]

The Dodge Intrepid swap is cheap, easy, and will last forever.  Pretty sure there are other Mopar bottles that will fit, just have to remove the original bottle mounting bracket and install the Intrepid bottle with 2 screws into the firewall shelf at the original location.

 

I finally got around to doing this yesterday. Pretty easy swap. The hardest part was getting the old hoses off of everything. They were stuck, even when I took the hose clamps off. I bought some new lower hose, and got a coupling for the upper hose. Do I need to do anything with that small upper barb? It's got a tiny copper insert in it, and it might be an opening of 1/16 of an inch on the inner diameter. 

[tugalo]

i believe thats an overflow to relieve the pressure if you overfill the bottle, just put on a short piece of hose to take the water out of the engine bay.