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i beat the heat!(fixing xj 4.0 stumble and running hot issues)

stoneyva21

NAXJA Forum User
Location
fairfax va
so like most xj and wj owners i had a bad stumble and cel's on restarts on the trail and around town. first time it ever happened it was bad, all twisted up on a rock at rc and couldn't move. took 2-3 minutes to get back to normal. i had checked the elec. fan and mac. fan when i bought the xj and knew both worked. i read around on a few sites about hood vents. knew they wouldn't solve the whole problem and my stock radiator was already leaking so i picked up a 3 row alum. radiator. i put the hood vents on first. went on one short trail ride(1.5-2 hours) and didn't have a bad stumble like the first time but it was still there. i also noticed it didn't stumble as much on quick stops around town. finally got around to putting the radiator in yesterday. drove home from the shop (20 min.s)with the ac cranking and i didn't break 210. went on a long road trip and trail ride, nothing to hard core mostly greens but with long slow climbs. i had no issues at all! hell i ran up the mountain with the ac on in 4 low. no stumble, no cel's, didn't break 217 on the way up and down! i'm sure the combo of hood vents, over sized alum radiator, fresh coolant did the trick. the rig is running better and i'm not sure yet but the gas mileage seems to have increased(will test this over the next few weeks). i plan on sticking a dual elec. fan setup on there sometime just to cool even better at low speeds. in the end i thing i spent somewhere around $250(maybe less) on all the stuff i used. installed everything my self so there was no labor either. feels good to get one problem solved finally.

now if i could get parts to stop falling off!
 
under normal driving conditions my jeep seems to always stay at 210 is that normal or is that too hot? i also have hood vents
 
I know my XJ is older ('89), but overheating has never been a problem when running trails, especially in 4-low. Overheating is usually a problem trying to pull long hills on the highway, especially when towing with the AC on. Running in 4-low is "easy" on the engine...not too much strain. Heck, if I get hot, it cools best by idling, not by turning off!

I like the hood vents...one of the mods I plan on for the future. I've replaced my radiator with an all metal three-row when the stock one split a (plastic) end cap. Seems to be running nice and cool now...rarely exceeds 210.
 
best bet to cooling it off, is to let it sit and idle, and i usually squirt a few bottles of water on the radiator if its to that point. not cold though. scared what would happen if i threw cold water on hot radiator.
 
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