1987 Jeep Cherokee Pioneer XJ 4.0 inline six from North America

Summary:

A jeep is the best offroad truck that you can buy

Faults:

Slight valve tap, but then changed the oil and it went away. This is very common on a car with 277 thousand miles.

Headliner is sagging, but that is also common.

General Comments:

This is a perfect first car for a young boy.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th May, 2012

22nd Aug 2016, 06:19

What do you mean by "change the oil?" People usually "change the oil" every 3000 miles anyway. Are you saying the tapping increases toward the end of each 3000 mile interval? Or are you saying switch to a more viscous oil, or flush and use more viscous and synthetic?

22nd Aug 2016, 12:29

It was obvious to me that there was low oil level. When he changed the oil he restored the correct amount. Thus no more tapping.

1987 Jeep Cherokee 4.0L straight six from North America

Summary:

A joy for snowstorms

Faults:

Needed a valve job at about 130000 km.

Took a front U-joint at about 170000km.

It had a bad squeak from one of the front wheels for a long time, and was in the garage five times for that, and it eventually resolved itself.

Various parts were needed to repair the front end; can't remember exactly what.

The radiator needed replacing at about 195000K, and this proved to be the beginning of the slippery slope of a total of $2000 we spent on it during the last six months we had it, none of it on the engine. We decided to get rid of it after the summer, but at the beginning of the summer, the engine quit in the middle of town, and that was that.

Hard to get it into 4WD when we did get stuck in the mud.

Got rear-ended on the highway. After it was fixed, I wondered why we suddenly had much greater gas tank range. The crummy 45 litre tank was replaced with a 65 litre.

The gas mileage was much lower than on our subsequent higher, wider, and longer minivan. About 26 mpg.

Loud cranking to start.

General Comments:

I didn't have to call DAA anymore to tow my stuck car in winter when I got the Jeep! We get 300cm. of snow a year, and I truly enjoyed winter driving and snowstorms with this lovely vehicle.

It was truck-like, but comfy enough.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th August, 2010

1987 Jeep Cherokee 4.0 from North America

Summary:

Bad luck on my side!

Faults:

Wiring issues, headlights went out while driving home, no brake lights for 2 weeks, power wire to starter stopped working, caught fire on the way home from purchase due to wiring, and wouldn't restart.

Some simple stuff like pinion seal, 4wd actuator, etc I fixed. Definitely had its issues. Mostly just a lemon.

General Comments:

Jeeps are good vehicles; this one in my case just happened to be a lemon.

Electrical gremlins were horrible, combined with low funds and me buying this for a dependable daily vehicle, that I just couldn't afford to keep dumping money into every week, just to make it to and from work. It had a lot of issues, and needed money for my projects, not my POS daily.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 16th June, 2010

1987 Jeep Cherokee Straight six from North America

Faults:

Well not much has really gone wrong since I got it, at least with the motor. After the years we've had this Jeep, it's mostly just rust that's the problem.

The coolant system sucks though, there's no radiator cap, and the coolant reservoir bottle doesn't release pressure like it should. It eventually cracks.

General Comments:

This Jeep motor is amazing; a straight six is the way to go. It gets decent gas mileage, and has great power to pull things.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 13th November, 2008

1987 Jeep Cherokee Pioneer 4.0L Straight 6 from North America

Summary:

Jeeps are built like tanks, and just keep going and going and going

Faults:

The person who owned it before I purchased it this year was an idiot.

The short list:

- Tranny had NO oil in it (still offroaded it before I knew of the issue) and still didn't break the transmission.

- Been smoked in.

- Brakes were holding on by three pieces of ceramic inside of the 3 1/4 inch grooves like a record player. Quite frankly, I was amazed that I was able to drive it on the Interstate going 85 for about 400 miles and still have stopping power and shifting ability. I just thought the syncros were broke in 1st and 2nd gears, but just needed OIL!!!

- Headliner is sagging BAD (not uncommon)

- Dash was broken due to a break in before I acquired the vehicle.

- Rims didn't match, and were badly worn due to excessive offroading by the previous owner.

- Horn button was broken.

- Stained interior.

- Rear hatch doesn't close all the way unless you SLAM it shut.

- Front Speakers are SHOT!

- Front left joints are failing.

- No interior lighting.

- Windshield was broken in 3 places due to previous owners fist penetrating it (frustrated)

General Comments:

This Jeep after about 2 months of restoration has become a reliable transporting vehicle.

I still can't believe that the tranny has operated so well, and once I put in some royal purple gear oil, the tranny came back to life and is as smooth as my Focus manual transmission.

I LOVE my JEEP!!!

Even though it has 128k on it, it still drives like it has 25k on it.

The 4wd works wonderfully, and all electrical circuits are accounted for, and are functioning as well.

It is just amazing to see that when you purchase a TRASHED Jeep for $750 and put in about $600 (including new set of tools), you can come out with a better jeep and an AWESOME stock 4x4 vehicle that is a TANK!!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th December, 2007