1997 Jeep Wrangler Sahara from North America - Comments

I got my Jeep Wrangler in 97. I had no problems with it till 2000 - at the 12,000 mile mark my jeep began to have an electrical problem. The radio would sputter on and off. There after the dash began to be afflicted with the same problem. For example, sometimes the dash meter reading for oil would read zero then normal then zero.

My battery then was drained of current. Recharging the battery, I could not get my interior light to go off using the control switch. I took my Jeep to the dealer and I don't know how long it will take them to fix it, but as I can see here there are other postings with regard to the Jeep Wrangler electrical system. I wonder if there is a general recall on this problem?

It is not a V6, it is an inline 6. The very same inline 6 that has ran trouble free for 5 decades. As for the electrical system, I had a 91 wrangler for 10 years, and used it as a partial submarine and never had an electrical problem.

Yep, who told you about the Jeep Fairy? To think, I thought I was incognito all of this time...

Seriously, my comment regarding your post was not meant as an attack. I was merely trying to point out that your Jeep's electrical problem is the exception to the rule. I left the top off of my '91 Jeep Wrangler for six of the ten years I had it. The Jeep sat outside through 2 hurricanes, 1 tropical storm, and 6 years of rain showers.

There was so much water in the dash after the hurricanes I could have put goldfish in the speedometer. It started right up every time, and everything electrical always worked. I would also drive it to my favorite fishing spots on the tidal flats of North Carolina. Water would typically climb up to the headlights when I forded the inlets.

I should also mention that after 10 years of it going through saltwater and sitting out in the sun every day, that it had not a single mark of rust on the frame, or the body. I protected the axles and leaf springs with vaseline, and I would rinse the body, undercarriage, and interior off by parking over a lawn sprinkler. That was the greatest extent that I pampered it.

As far as being paid by Chrysler is concerned. I will be glad to give you my IP address and my real name. You will soon see that I am in the Air Force, and in no way affiliated with Chrysler personally, or by family members. My strong sentiment regarding Jeep's can be attributed to a lifetime of being in a "Jeep" family. It is the only thing I have ever owned, or want to own. Well, that and my last Jeep Wrangler was stolen, and I miss it greatly. However, I bought a 2000 model Wrangler a few months ago, and if you're wondering how that is going then please read my review titled "The Truth about Jeeps".

Thanks.

My Jeep Wrangler has had the same problem with the dash not working at times as soon as it hit the 13,000 miles. Fortunately when I took it to the dealer they had seen the problem so many times that they knew right then and there that it was sensors or something. As we speak the car is at the dealership and the warranty will cover the expenses. However I'm having some problems with the front suspension and that they don't know what it is.

I own a '98 wrangler... also with an electrical problem. It began at about 50,000 miles with the indicators on the dash gauges periodically going dead and would soon there after function normally again. None of the mechanics (even at the dealership) had any idea. So the problem went unnattended. I am now at 70,000 and the gauges have taken on a life of thier own, switching on and off in quick succession with the speedometer spasmodically shooting to way past 100, even if I'm going 20. This is more of an annoyance than anything else, as it does not interfere with the mechanical functioning of the vehicle.

I have a 1999 Jeep Sport and have had on and off problems with my gauges beginning around it's one year anniversary of leaving the showroom floor. The same type of problem (the gauges go dead and the check engine light goes on) that I'm reading in other comments. The guages all go back to normal if I wiggle the airbag shutoff switch. The Jeep mechanic and three hours of labor costs searching found nothing. So, as long as the Jeep's running okay, I've been ignoring the problem. It seems to have stopped over the past few months.

Now, however, my windshield wipers won't work. I was happy to note that the fuse was blown, but any new fuses I put in blow immediately.

If someone has an idea of the problem, it may save several hours of mechanic's labor costs.

These people who have all these problems must be doing something to their Jeeps. We have had 2 wranglers since 1995. The first wrangler was a 95 wrangler and I never had a problem with it. I drive the other wangler today and the only thing that I have done is replace the oxygen sensor. That's it, I bought a 97 wrangler SE. I have put that jeep in a lot of junk and it never has any problems. I use street slicks and that engine gets up pretty high, but the engine never gets hot, and the 4X4 is the most reliable thing I have ever used. only time the 4 wheel drive wouldn't work was because I had so much junk in the skid plate that the transfer case couldn't get into 4 low. That's the only thing bad about my 97 Jeep wrangler.

I have a 1999 Jeep Wrangler, and I have been experiencing electrical problems, too. The airbag light goes on intermittently, while the tachometer and speedometer go to zero. Strangely enough, sometimes I can bring the dashboard back to life by snapping the turn signal to indicate a left and/or right turn. What this has to do with the dashboard is beyond me. This intermittent electrical problem doesn't affect the operation of the vehicle. Mechanics don't seem to have a clue. Does anybody here have an idea what's causing this problem?

I have a 1997 Jeep Wrangler SE. I too have had similar electrical system problems, most likely related to the 2-3 times I forgot to put the top up while it was parked in the rain. The turn signals would flash at either very high speeds or would remain on, the air bag light would occasionally go on and off, and intermittently the entire dash would go off. These problems most often coincided with days when the humidity was high. All of these things have peculiarly stopped recently, except now my oil gauge shows 0 constantly and the "check engine" light is always on. I just recently had it looked at and the mechanic had no clue. It's running great, but I'm worried that if something should happen that the "check engine" light would really be trying to tell me something, I won't know. Anybody out there know of any tricks or should I go on ignoring the electrical error in hopes that a real problem doesn't pop up???

I have had the exact same electrical problems in my 1997 wrangler. the dash lights go out constatly and my check gauges light is always on and off. the air bag light was on for about a year, then my horn went out. I finally took it in for service and I was told that I need a clock spring (which was under warranty from jeep due to a recall). check it out.

I recently bought a 2003 Jeep Wrangler (which I love) but with less than 7000 miles on it started to have an electrical problem. The interior lights would not shut off and after almost 3 weeks with the mechanics still scratching there heads, still no word on the problem. It is almost unbelievable that what seems to be a simple problem has taken so long to fix.

Concerning the Jeep TJ electrical problems...

The problem is that the pins on the back of the instrument cluster ONLY ON THE TJ MODELS don't fit snug enough into the connector...

Simply take the cluster off and put a gentle curve in each pin and the problem will be gone...

...someone does/did have a detailed (with pictures) web page dedicated to fixing the problem... search the web..

..if you're mechanically inclined at all...you'll have the problem fixed in about 45 minutes tops...

We own a 1997 Wrangler which has serious electrical issues. When using the turn signal the windshield wipers go on and do not turn off. We have taken it in and the best they can do is disconnect wipers and we have to reconnect if need to use them. Whats weird about this is the blinker and wipers (from what we were told) are separate and don't have anything to do with each other electrically. The interior lights blink on and off... when Jeep isn't even running. And the real frustration now has become 5 times out of 10, it won't even start. It has been in to the mechanic (several different mechanics) for numerous weeks and still has the same unreliability of starting and weird electrical behavior. This vehicle is not abused and very well taken care of. Any clues...anyone?

My turn signals just stopped working. Any idea what this is? Good thing I know my hand signals.

A good amount of these problems are due to that faulty connectors. The rain is also a big culprit- and as for the fella up top talking about how great his YJ was-- ya- great buddy-- the YJ doesn't have these parts- that's why you don't have a problem. I had a YJ- some guy decided to smash it for me- now I have a TJ-- YJs were much more durable than TJs-- but TJs are much more able- their only downside is the electrical stuff.

Most of your problems may be with a shorted clock spring, or a wet Throttle sensor-- which is what I'm going through now- anyone know where I can get a new one?

Well...I've joined the list of TJ owners having electrical problems. I have a 99 Sahara I bought from a local dealer 10 months ago, and started having problems with my radio and blinkers not working at times shortly after I got the vehicle. I can turn off the ignition switch and restart the vehicle, and the problem goes away for awhile. Now, in addition to that, my gages will all stop working and the airbag light will come on. I can hit a hard bump in the road, and the gages will start working again. I just dropped it off at the dealer as I have an extended warranty, and told them I don't want the vehicle back til its fixed. No sense in driving it like that! The radiator is leaking around the top, and they will have to repair/replace that also. I'll post the fix on this website as soon as they figure it out and fix it.