dunnc1991 Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 So I can never make up my mind when it comes to vehicles. Long story short, I DD my 01 neon. Used to use it as my commuter, but have since eliminated the commute. Also, with it approaching 300k miles I figure it won't be too long before it dies. Been looking at various vehicles for a new DD ranging from WRX's to CTS-V's and now started looking into jeeps again. I'd love to find a clean 5.9 limited ZJ, but would be content with a 4.0. Just looking for some input/advice from people who own/owned them. What's good/bad? What did you like, what didn't you like? Any help is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiser54 Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 They're great. Personally, I don't trust the trannies. Except of course if you got an early 93 with the AW4..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunnc1991 Posted January 31, 2015 Author Share Posted January 31, 2015 They're great. Personally, I don't trust the trannies. Except of course if you got an early 93 with the AW4..... I know a fair amount about them, but I'm no expert. I always thought the ZJ's all had AW4's at least behing the 4.0's but I guess I thought wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comangi Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 had a 4.0. That jeep refused to fail me. I sunk it in a lake, motor shut off and we got it to puke mud from the spark plug holes. 2 hours of drying and she fired up. Smoked a lot, but it ran! Good luck with your gas mileage, that Neon gets probably twice what you'll get. Still love the ZJ, I'd daily one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gogmorgo Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 Buddy of mine says his dad has 1,400,000km and counting in a ZJ with the 4.0, and beyond regular maintenance only replaced the injectors. That's about 870,000 miles. I haven't seen the ZJ but have no reason to doubt he's telling the truth. And if his Dad's anything like this guy, he'd never spend that much time in a car he didn't like. His Dad was a crop insurance adjuster and most of the miles were on gravel... not an easy life for a car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrankTheDog Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 Look for a 93 built in 92 for an AW4 or a 93 or 94 with an AX15. If your looking at a 4.0 with the Chrysler tranny look for one that's been serviced regularly. I had a 94 4.0 and the tranny was replaced at 90,000 by the PO. I replaced it at 170,000 and 250,000. Other than that it was a great vehicle. Minor electrical trouble at the drivers door hinge was only non normal wear and tear. Delivering pizza I got 16 mpg and regular driving I got 18 mpg. If I could find one with a stick at the right price and condition I'd buy it. Otherwise I'll stick with XJ's and MJ's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorcharge Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 Had a 98, it's my cousins now but I still drive it sometimes. It's a pig compared to the XJ and MJ. Feels a lot more sluggish and it gets worse gas mileage, but it's very comfortable and rides great. Yeah, the trannys aren't as good and are more prone to issues, but nothing all that major and they're pretty easy to work on. It's not like they're piles of $#!&. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neohic Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 I had a '95 for a while but it belonged to my parents before me. It was their first Jeep and they got it in 2001... lots of memories with that Jeep. They drove it for a while, I replaced dana 35 number one, and over time it developed the typical electrical issues common to any "older" vehicle. They replaced it with a Liberty (that they now regret) in 2011 and since my wife and I were in need to a good vehicle they passed the title along to me for keeping up on the maintenance over the years... and because it needed more still. I went through and replaced just about every sensor under the hood, put a radiator in it, brakes, tires, another dana 35, then another radiator, and then traded it off in February of 2014. The thing is, my parents got it with just about 90k miles on it. By the time I got it, the Jeep had 170k on it. When I traded it away it had earned 215k miles and still felt just as strong as I remember it years ago. It pulled trailer loads of gravel and lumber, took us on road trips, hardly ever broke down (and when it did it was always a simple fix), and kept doing everything looking good with all those plastic panels even though every time I crawled under it I would cringe a little bit more at the sight of more and more rust. I wouldn't hesitate to get another first generation Grand if the need were to ever arise again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunnc1991 Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 I'm mainly looking at it for something bigger and more comfortable to travel back and forth to Jersey to see family. I would probably end up with 4.0 and would prefer a 242 because I have no need for AWD all the time. I guess I'll have to start looking/reasearching a little more. I don't plan on buying anything until the neon dies..... If it dies... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrankTheDog Posted February 3, 2015 Share Posted February 3, 2015 Some of the 93's and 94's came with a NP 231. That's what mine had. I liked mine enough to keep it from 2001 until 2014. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjy_26 Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 I have a 94 with a mild stroker, a 42RE, and an 8.8 in the back. When I wss DD'ing it, I wss getting 16mpg average. Mine is a 2wd on 32's that gets driven fast off road. I had the trannt rebuilt at around 100,000 miles (PO sucked). I installed a big cooler and follow the service schedule and everything has been fine with the tranny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benjy_26 Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 NP242 to 231 swap isn't difficult, btw, and neither is an AW4 swap on the earlier models. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellaheep Posted February 4, 2015 Share Posted February 4, 2015 I had a '98 5.9 for a couple years. Stupid-clean and straight. I did like driving it but I will say, they can be problematic. Despite it's being so nice and low mileage, I fought with: -Badly leaking rear main seal -Inoperable sun roof (replaced entire assembly requiring dropping the headliner - BIG job) -Leaky sun roof (replaced seals) -242 with a bad viscous coupler (replaced) -Bad D44A axle bearings -Electric radiator fan died (impossible to find used, expensive new if you can find 'em) -Fragile inner front header panel that the lights mount to (ordered a new one from Jeep and a huge pain to swap out) -Driver's door wire harness cracked and wires chaffing/shorting -Heated seat wiring breaking inside the seats -Rear hatch "hatch open" sensor always showing on the information center -Noisy clock spring when turning wheel -Heater blend door sticking making A/C warm -Auto Headlight sensor went bad causing headlights to flash on/off while driving during the day There's something to be said for the simplicity of the XJ over a ZJ. While the 5.9 is a nice perk, I think I still take a nice '98-'01 XJ Limited over another 5.9. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunnc1991 Posted February 6, 2015 Author Share Posted February 6, 2015 I've been looking into some XJs again as well. They seem to be fetching a premium now then the last time I bought one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimoshel Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 In the last couple years I've gone thru 5 ZJ's. I would buy non running ones from Craigs List, Get them running and flip them. Sell them, not roll 'em. I would drive them for a couple thou before selling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrawombat Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 I have only ever owned the '98 5.9L ZJ. I absolutely loved driving that vehicle....when it worked. As yellaheep already mentioned they come with a myriad of problems. I replaced the transmission, transfer case, front axles (swapped them from CV to U-joints) and front wheel bearings. When I sold it (had around 160K miles) the bearings in the infamous D44A were on their way out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Automan2164 Posted February 8, 2015 Share Posted February 8, 2015 I had a love/hate with my ZJ. I had a '98 4.0L Limited with a D30/35. I bought it off one of those shady used car lots because I liked the way it looked, and I beat the pants off it before buying... Didn't miss a step. The ride was fantastic, the mileage was good, and it was big enough to feel comfortable in. It had all options... Sunroof, steering wheel radio controls, climate control... Everything was great. I drive like an old man, and usually averaged about 20 MPG. The trans was constantly on my mind. It never did anything in the 50K that I had it (100-150). Heated seats never worked, the A/C evaporator had a hole in it and would lose charge into the interior. NP249 viscous coupler was junk. I replaced the expensive DC front drive shaft and returned it once I started having problems. I pulled the front shaft and sold it that way years later. Axles were the biggest problem. The front blew the pinion seal on a 2-3 hour road trip. I decided I would rebuild the axles myself. I had a supervisor help me out, and just replaced the bearings and seals. All shims were left where they were. The axles overheated, and I ended up doing a full JY swap from D30/D35 3.55 to D30/D44HD 3.73. The rear axle had a bearing howl, so I enlisted the help of a friend on CC who did that for a living. After taking the cover off, it looked like it has spun the races in the aluminum diff. Out that came for another JY sourced D35. It looked like all D44HD's in the JY had spun races. I lifted it while doing all this axle swapping with spacers. Never did the front lower arms, so it didn't have enough caster to hold itself straight... It would wander and follow the road imperfections. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunnc1991 Posted February 9, 2015 Author Share Posted February 9, 2015 Well I know it's only a small group, I think I'll look into something else other then a ZJ. Thanks for the input guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue XJ Posted February 9, 2015 Share Posted February 9, 2015 My buddy has a 5.9 ZJ that he just swapped an AX15 into. It's a pretty fun Jeep now, he has had it about a year now, only major issue so far is the viscous coupler is on its way out and once in a while everything on the dash goes dead for a few seconds. Other than that it's been problem free. It's hard to say if its worth getting one, even the newest on is 17 years old, it's hard to say what type of life any of them have had for that long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whowey Posted February 12, 2015 Share Posted February 12, 2015 We had a 94 with the 5.2. It had the least suspect of the Chrysler transmissions and the 249 transfer case. Overall I grew to hate the ZJ. We put 100k on it in the 8 years we had it. The viscous coupler failed after three or four years and I never bothered to fix it. $800 is a tough bill to swallow. My biggest complaint was just the overall cheapness of the entire build. Sway bar links, replaced the drivers door and repaired the wiring. Rewelded the passenger door hinge. Lots of stuff like that. I would admit, it did ride nice and was excellent in mixed snowy conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comanche County Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 I've had six 5.9s, love em. They're comfortable, fast (but not all of them are as fast as others), they're as good offroad as any other stock Jeep, can be had for $1,500 or so for a good runner, not the ideal tow rig but they'll tow all day long. Only rust or a ravished interior would scare me away from a running niner. But then again, I'm very familiar with their quirks and mechanical issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerry Posted February 13, 2015 Share Posted February 13, 2015 I have seven 5.9s now.They are excellent at almost everything except gas mileage (11.5 mpg city) and a they are a bargain today. They are generally in better shape and have lower miles than the average used ZJ. These were $40k when new so most weren't used as the family truckster. If you're looking more for comfort and ride a WJ is a better choice and use a lot less gas. Avoid the V8 WJs at all cost,Craigslist and the yards around here are littered with V8 WJs with engine problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvzj Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 I have a 98 with the 5.2, 138k. I have had it since it was new and have had zero problems with it. It has been Long armed with 35s and beat on since around 32,000 and loves it. I would personally get a 5.2 over a 4.0, mpg are roughly gonna be the same and 318 are pretty reliable imo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Had a 5.9 ZJ akin to some of the ones several others have talked about. Mine had none of the problems theirs seemed to have though, so I lucked out in that regard. IIRC, the truck only had 150k on the clock, and only had around 5k miles driven on it from the 12-15 years previously to me purchasing it. It was mostly a tow-behind on an RV that roamed all over the US apparently, and when I got it, it just needed the tow-along gear taken off and cleaned up. Interior was about as pristine as it got, with really no blemishes other than a tiny tear in the bottom of the driver's seat. Everything worked, had no real problems other than the headlight switch going out, a fog light broken, and the O/D switch refusing to engage. It was a steal for the $900 I payed the GMC dealership where I got it from; they were going to send it off to the scrapyard, but were surprised I offered to buy it. Gave the 5.9 a tune up, and a wax job, brought it in the next week and they were completely astounded by how different it looked from before when they took it in on a trade. I'd definitely offer my seal of approval on those trucks. If mine averaged better than 14 in the city when I bought it (gas was reaching $4+ at the time) I would have kept it around. Used it while the MJ was down to do much needed repairs and other such things. Sent it off to my sister in MN for a few grand and used that to go to tech school. I guess in hindsight, if I never bought that truck, I would never have gotten to go to tech school and gotten ASE certified, nor would I have a good job working for an independent mechanic shop right now. I owe that ZJ a lot of credit. If I ever got another one, it would have the 318 in it though. I love those Magnum series motors to death. They're tough as nails and fun to romp on if they're running right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash_AF Posted March 22, 2015 Share Posted March 22, 2015 I have been playing with ZJs lately and have found a few things that might be helpful to other people: A bad shifting 4.0 42RE may be a worn out TPS. If you crack the throttle and it tries to die, that's a good indication Same with a no-OD condition Flashing headlights, flashing Auto-lights, fog lights that won't stay on, and/or dash lights that stay dim or flash are probably bad solder joints in the headlight switch Heat them up with a good soldering iron and remelt the solder around the pins to fix Coolant temp sensor error on the VIC is the same problem, and same fix Sunroof control problem is also bad solder Rear hatch open sensor is probably a micro-switch in the rear latch assembly. Flipper glass not working is probably the microswitch on the handle. I personally like the cloth 96-98 Laredo seats better than the standard Limited seats of the same years. I feel like I'm sitting on top of the seat instead of in the seat in my Limited. And 5.9 Grands are like Thoroughbreds, they are high-strung and temperamental. Great trucks, but take lots of special parts and seem to like attention so they act up a lot. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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