Towing with Jeep Cherokee

I had the 4 litre Ltd SE and I loved driving it. No-one has mentioned the back springs which seem to take a bit of a dive when they get older.

Paul G says "Currently it needs new ABS sensors;"

Is the ABS like the older model with large rotors behind the discs that the sensors read off?
The rotors have a gear-tooth appearance and this gets rust building up in the gaps between the teeth. Half an hour chipping the rust off with a small cold chisel and hammer got them working again. It's just the rust confuses the sensor.
 
Lakesailor said:
I had the 4 litre Ltd SE and I loved driving it. No-one has mentioned the back springs which seem to take a bit of a dive when they get older.
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Ahh yes the Leaf Springs on the back. They do sag(as do all leafs in time) as they get older. Standard replacements are at worst about 160 quid.

Of course you can go crazy and decide on a lift-kit at this time but then you risk road drivability. Oh and definitely don't read 'High-Performance Jeep Cherokee XJ Builder's Guide 1984-2001' (which I have) or things (and your bank balance) will go very pearshaped. :D
 
davidpbo said:
Thank you for all the information. It may be that I have a clutch put in elderly Trooper and continue with it.
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Stick with it. The Trooper is a tough ol girl and I see a good number of them at Marinas and boatyards which says a fair bit in my book
 
davidpbo said:
Other contenders are an ML, Kia Sorento or maybe Nissan Navara or Pathfinder
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Why dont you consider a Nissan Patrol. I have had (specifically for towing) Patrols for over 15 years. They are ultra reliable and a bit rarer than Jeeps.
I originally had the 4.2 Diesel for 8 years which gave around 25 mpg, and for 8 years all I had to spend on it was a pair of rear brake pads and a new battery. And all this time I was towing at the maximum weight, ie 3500 kilos. Anyway I sold it to a friend (a diesel specialist) who ran it for 5 years who was persuaded to sell it which he regretted. He then bought a 2.8 Patrol which he regretted. Anyway in the meantime 5 years ago I bought a 2003/4. 3.0 SVE Diesel Patrol which tows even better than the old 4.2 Diesel.
I feel, like boats, if you want a good one you have to travel. I was living in France (where they LOVE Patrols) and (as an ex-Garage owner and ex-manager of a Car Auction) I looked on the Autotrader web site, found 6 for sale in the UK and set off. I bought one in Manchester after seeing 2 in London. Anyway 5 years later all I have had to buy is a new battery. Thats it. The Engine is 170bhp and driving reasonably on a motorway at 60 mph its doing 2000 revs and I get 30 mpg. So even if you have to buy a slightly older one for your budget you are buying quality.
 
Interesting topic, I am on my fifth jeep,always new,never less than 80,000 miles in three years towing a 14 foot trailer with plant, bin it then,never been let down but always service on due date and oil every 6000 miles, retired now so will run this one to the ground
 
Jim@sea said:
Why dont you consider a Nissan Patrol. I have had (specifically for towing) Patrols .
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I will, thank you for the information. When I bought the Trooper back in 2001 the other contender was 30K mile top of the range Nissan Patrol. I went with the Trooper because the Nissan was 6 cylinder and I thought would be too expensive on fuel and maintenance. I was probably wrong as I gather the engine was as tough as old boots.

Is the 3.0L you have 4 or 6 cylinders?
 
That's the impresssion I get of the Nissan. The Toyota stuff, whilst having a sound reputation, seems to always have "new engine" in the ads.
 
I have often thought a decent way to check reliability for these sort of things is to have a look at what is popular in the most remote parts of the world. My experience living in Oz for a couple of years was that in the outback Toyota seemed to outnumber all the other rivals by some considerable margin. Appears to be the same in Africa.

Just an opinion ........
 
that's often down to popularity, availability, and hence availability of spares and mechanics that know them when few spares available and bodging required with the spares available. Not point having a very good reliable vehicle if it does break down and no spares available for it
 
having the cars imported to the country is usually a good start. Jeeps weren't a worldwide brand for a long time for instance, and Toyota were exporting to Oz with a geographic advantage, in that they were closer, etc, etc.

Nothing wrong with the old Landcruisers, but they like Range Rover went too upmarket with their models for real outback or African usage.
 
OK Folks thank you for the information, I went to have a look at one, 07 low mileage Cherokee 2.7 diesel, liked the look of it. Dealer (who had two speedboats, modern one and a classic had doubts about it towing the boat although it was rated for the weight. Took it for a test drive, nice vehicle but did feel bobbly, there was a low pressure warning for one of the tyres. Which may have been the cause.

So,,, how about an 05 Grand Cherokee Limited 3.0 diesel? low mileage?
Anyone got one? Is it a Merc engine?

Can I expect 30 mpg on a run driven sensibly (without the boat).

Reliability issues?
 
davidpbo said:
So,,, how about an 05 Grand Cherokee Limited 3.0 diesel? low mileage?
Anyone got one? Is it a Merc engine?

Can I expect 30 mpg on a run driven sensibly (without the boat).

Reliability issues?
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Very nice car if you're talking about the 2005- onwards redesigned model. The 3.0 v6 diesel is from Mercedes and kicks out about 210bhp or so. Quick and powerful.

If you are gentle with the 'loud pedal' you should be able to squeeze 30mpg out of it.
 
davidpbo said:
It is a good thought. I would be moving from a pre-dinged Isuzu Trooper that I don't worry about too much in that department.
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It's a tough call, but I guess it's all down to how it's going to be used and how precious you are about a car. (which I am king-precious :D )

IMO a 5 year-old Grand Cherokee is certainly too nice just to bang around willy-nilly but to some with big budgets, even one of these is an old work-horse. Horses and courses I guess.
 
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