ftpiercecracker1 Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 http://treasure.craigslist.org/pts/5452011276.html I spied this on Craigslist and wanted to know what you guys thought about buying it to fix it and resell. If it had the 4.0 I would have already bought it, but I'm hesitant because I know nothing about the 4.7 Anybody know anything about the 4.7 v8 that came in Grand Cherokees (WJ)? Owner says it is a 4X4 w/ 218k, and everything works perfect. Save, of course, for the blown head gasket. What do you think? FPC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gogmorgo Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 Fwiw I see quite a few 4.7 WJ's up here for cheap with blown head gaskets and/or warped heads. But none that cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Megadan Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 I think it would depend on what's needed. The repair bill potential has a lot of range to it. If it has a cracked head, then new heads will add a lot more to the cost than some simple machining and cleaning would. For $400 though, I think I would be tempted... Although I am known to make bad decisions with my money sometimes lol. Definitely consider the total condition of the vehicle as well. If the rest of it is in pretty good clean shape, that will give it a better value on the other end when it's fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ftpiercecracker1 Posted March 5, 2016 Author Share Posted March 5, 2016 Fwiw I see quite a few 4.7 WJ's up here for cheap with blown head gaskets and/or warped heads. But none that cheap. That's what I was afraid of. . . I will be going to check it out tomorrow, so we shall see. Impulserocket: I plan on doing all the work myself, so parts is going to be my biggest expense. Most of the time I just find what I need at the JY. Worse case scenario I can part it/scrap it and probably make most of my money back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Megadan Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 I've done the "mechanics special" car flip a few times. I do my own work as well. Most of the time I end up on top, but I did end up boned on one vehicle that ended up being a cascade of fail as I started digging in more and more. Ended up losing a couple hundred in the end on that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 This one is a 2000, but be careful. I had a 1999 WJ with the then-new 4.7L engine, plus the then-new Quadra-Drive system. I owned it about nine months before Jeep bought it back from me to stop me from going lemon law with it. Out of the nine months I had it, I think it spent two (or maybe more) in the shop, and they never got the transmission or the axles straightened out. The final straw came after the buy-back had been set up. I was driving it to the supermarket, with is 4 miles from home. Got about halfway there and it died in the middle of the road. I coasted off to the side, called a wrecker, and had it towed to the dealership. They announced that they had identified the problem -- and that replacement parts to fix it were no yet in the system. Literally while we were discussing this, a transporter rolled in with the 2000 XJ Classic that I had ordered to replace the WJ, so I just handed them the keys and drove home in my new Jeep. The WJ rode and drove well if it was running, but it had more problems than any new vehicle should ever have. The problem is, if the engine isn't running you can't check the axles for noise, you can't check the drive rain for vibrations, and you can't check the transmission for various problems. It's probably worth the $400 asking price, but be prepared to part it out rather than fix it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ftpiercecracker1 Posted March 5, 2016 Author Share Posted March 5, 2016 Really appreciate the heads up Eagle. Ok, so it looks pretty good overall even though the details are a little foggy. Dip stick and oil cap showed absolutely no signs of coolant contamination, although the oil has probably not been changed in 20k+ miles. It is NOT a 4x4 unfortunately. The a/c works, but the heat does not. . . according to the girlfriend. The body has one dent in the rear passenger fender. Approximately the size of a football, other than that the body is in excellent shape, the undercarriage is spotless as well. Starter just clicks when you turn the key. One strange aspect is none of the power windows, locks, or mirrors work at the moment. Could this be because the battery is low? It's strange because the wipers/blinkers/dash/radio all work. The boyfriend/girlfriend say everything worked good before it was parked. Boyfriend says the radiator was replaced prior to the HG issue. "Both" computers were replaced some time ago as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keyav8r Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 Put a good battery in it and see if the windows, locks, mirrors and whatever else works. If nothing works, say goodbye (after you get your good battery out). 20K miles without an oil change - what other routine maintenance was skipped? New radiator, no heat? Computer replacement raises a red flag also. Everything always worked good before it was parked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Megadan Posted March 6, 2016 Share Posted March 6, 2016 I kind of wish I was close enough to tow this home. It just screams to me that it's the perfect candidate for my adventure camper trailer lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted March 6, 2016 Share Posted March 6, 2016 It is NOT a 4x4 unfortunately. I didn't know the WJ was available as a 2WD. I paid extra to get the QuadraDrive option, but I thought with the 4.7L engine the base setup was a 4WD with the 247 transfer case. Starter just clicks when you turn the key. One strange aspect is none of the power windows, locks, or mirrors work at the moment. Could this be because the battery is low? It's strange because the wipers/blinkers/dash/radio all work. The boyfriend/girlfriend say everything worked good before it was parked. I forgot to mention that on my '99 WJ electrical gremlins were heavily represented on the list of issues. I didn't have problems with the door locks or windows, but the cruise control would disengage at random. When that happened, it couldn't be re-engaged until I had stopped and shut off the engine. The WJ came standard with a security system -- no separate siren, but it honked the horn if the alarm was triggered. Mine would do that whenever it felt like it. Dealer couldn't figure it out. One day at the shop I had just gone for a ride with the shop foreman driving. We were pulled up in front of one of the service bays, having a 3-way conversation with the shop foreman, the service manager and myself. The horn started honking, and I told them that's what I was talking about. They accused me of pushing the panic button on the remote -- until I pointed out that the shop foreman was holding they keys. They never fixed that problem, either. "Both" computers were replaced some time ago as well. Yes, there are two computers. The main one, of course, is the PCM (power train control module). That controls both the engine and the transmission. There's a secondary computer that controls the various functions of the overhead console. It used to drive me nuts that the elapsed mileage on the odometer didn't match the elapsed mileage on the overhead console. The dealership just attributed it to the fact they were controlled by different computers. Yeah, fine, but I only had one set of wheels on the ground. Mine was a '99, and an early one at that. 1999 was the first year for the WJ, the first year for the 4.7L engine, and the first year for whatever they called that transmission. I should have known better than to buy a prototype. I thought they had cleared up the problems by the time the 2000 models came out, but maybe not. I have a friend in Greece who had an '01 WJ Overland, and he had a bunch of problems, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasbulliwagen Posted March 7, 2016 Share Posted March 7, 2016 The windows, mirrors, and locks not working is a common problem. The wires in the harness that runs between the driver door and the lower A pillar like to break, especially the black one and the blue one. The black one I think is the ground for all those things. Pull the rubber boot back and start pulling on the wires and I'm sure youll fine one or two broken. Ive fixed many of those at the dealership and its the first place we look when one comes in like that. Ive seen passenger side wires break too, but its much less common. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ftpiercecracker1 Posted March 8, 2016 Author Share Posted March 8, 2016 I appreciate all the advice guys. I've decided to save my $400. Probably for the better. Ah well the hunt continues. FPC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrankTheDog Posted March 9, 2016 Share Posted March 9, 2016 Smart move. I loved how my daughters 03 drove but the minor issues it kept having were tiresome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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