CaptTrev
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Long Island
8Mud said:
a quirk in an XJ??
noooooooooooo..............
:laugh3:
CaptTrev
Making your XJ happier vs. being a sucker for advertisement.
- Thread starter Jeepsqueak
- Start date
a quirk in an XJ??
noooooooooooo..............
:laugh3:
CaptTrev
XJFREK
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Left of center...
My 2 cents-I bought my 94 used in 98 with about 51,000 mi. Lost a rod bearing at 83,000 mi and got a re-man Marshall engine, just turned 101,000 with no probs from it yet. Just some additional info for additional consideration.
Fuel additives: I started using the valvoline fuel treatment last fall as recommend. Every oil change for the injector cleaner, twice a year for the whole system treatment. Too soon to tell any real difference yet, but no ill effects either.
Aftermarket Header: After losing and replacing my engine, about 5 months later my exhaust manifold cracked and began leaking badly. Faced with a $300 welding repair I instead purchased the cheapest header I could from Summit and had a local shop install it. Worked great for about 2 months before the cheap gasked blew out. Since the labor cost would be far more than that header was worth I then went to 4 wheel parts and had them install a stainless Gibson header. Cost was almost equal to the dealership replacing the factory manifold but it's been holding for almost a year now without problems.
Less Restrictive Exhaust: I had a 3 chamber flowmaster with rusty's pipe on after my stock cat when I got my new header. No noticable increase in performance with the stock cat and downpipe. After my Cat went south I had a performance shop fab a new 2.5 in downpipe and install a new high flo cat. I immediately noticed an increase in accleration, so the change to 2.5 in pipe throughout was worth it in my opinion.
High performance cap/rotor/plug/wires: I originally changed my stock setup to Jacobs wires and overgapped the plugs a little. Noticed an improvement in off the line performance but it diminished over time and my idle immediately after starting became rough. Went away after changing plugs but returned eventually. Changed to Magnecor wires and Bosch +2 plugs and the rough idle never returned, although performance was somewhat diminished. Still better than stock though. Overgapping didin't seem to agree with regular plugs, but in the short term was fun to drive. I am running a Napa cap&rotor, and a coil from them as well. Have heard that the stock coil is hi-performance, don't know but noticed no difference with the aftermarket items.
Computer Mods: I have the Jet stage 1 chip, all I noticed was that it delayed the shift points some, like holding a manual transmission a little longer before shifting. This helps accleration and towing some, but not sure if it was worth the money.
Synthetics and Good Mojo: I started running valvoline synthetic oil after purchasing my xj, and about 30,000 mi later I lost a rod bearing. After running regular oil in my re-man engine for the break-in I now run Wal-Mart 10w-30 syn. Figure it's better than regular but not willing to spend the $$ on name brand anymore. No issues yet. I also run a foam element intake, ran the K&N stock replacement for awhile but got a great performance boost with the new intake, header, and 2.5in exhaust and hi-flo cat. I also have the 3-core GDI radiator, and a flex-a-lite fan in place of my stock clutch fan. If I had it to do over, I'd keep the stock fan and get the modine radiator. The foam intake is probably not as good at filtering as a paper filter, but the performance is good enough that I'm keeping it for the moment. I get my chassis lubed twice a year and the coolant flushed every 18 months or so. Same with the tranny, about 18 months. Diff lube changed every couple years, I don't do alot of water fording or extreme off-roading, this is my daily driver so I can't afford to beat it too hard. Hope this epic posting helps you make a informed choice. Good luck with your project and be sure to report your experiences so we can all get your opinion on whatever you do.
Fuel additives: I started using the valvoline fuel treatment last fall as recommend. Every oil change for the injector cleaner, twice a year for the whole system treatment. Too soon to tell any real difference yet, but no ill effects either.
Aftermarket Header: After losing and replacing my engine, about 5 months later my exhaust manifold cracked and began leaking badly. Faced with a $300 welding repair I instead purchased the cheapest header I could from Summit and had a local shop install it. Worked great for about 2 months before the cheap gasked blew out. Since the labor cost would be far more than that header was worth I then went to 4 wheel parts and had them install a stainless Gibson header. Cost was almost equal to the dealership replacing the factory manifold but it's been holding for almost a year now without problems.
Less Restrictive Exhaust: I had a 3 chamber flowmaster with rusty's pipe on after my stock cat when I got my new header. No noticable increase in performance with the stock cat and downpipe. After my Cat went south I had a performance shop fab a new 2.5 in downpipe and install a new high flo cat. I immediately noticed an increase in accleration, so the change to 2.5 in pipe throughout was worth it in my opinion.
High performance cap/rotor/plug/wires: I originally changed my stock setup to Jacobs wires and overgapped the plugs a little. Noticed an improvement in off the line performance but it diminished over time and my idle immediately after starting became rough. Went away after changing plugs but returned eventually. Changed to Magnecor wires and Bosch +2 plugs and the rough idle never returned, although performance was somewhat diminished. Still better than stock though. Overgapping didin't seem to agree with regular plugs, but in the short term was fun to drive. I am running a Napa cap&rotor, and a coil from them as well. Have heard that the stock coil is hi-performance, don't know but noticed no difference with the aftermarket items.
Computer Mods: I have the Jet stage 1 chip, all I noticed was that it delayed the shift points some, like holding a manual transmission a little longer before shifting. This helps accleration and towing some, but not sure if it was worth the money.
Synthetics and Good Mojo: I started running valvoline synthetic oil after purchasing my xj, and about 30,000 mi later I lost a rod bearing. After running regular oil in my re-man engine for the break-in I now run Wal-Mart 10w-30 syn. Figure it's better than regular but not willing to spend the $$ on name brand anymore. No issues yet. I also run a foam element intake, ran the K&N stock replacement for awhile but got a great performance boost with the new intake, header, and 2.5in exhaust and hi-flo cat. I also have the 3-core GDI radiator, and a flex-a-lite fan in place of my stock clutch fan. If I had it to do over, I'd keep the stock fan and get the modine radiator. The foam intake is probably not as good at filtering as a paper filter, but the performance is good enough that I'm keeping it for the moment. I get my chassis lubed twice a year and the coolant flushed every 18 months or so. Same with the tranny, about 18 months. Diff lube changed every couple years, I don't do alot of water fording or extreme off-roading, this is my daily driver so I can't afford to beat it too hard. Hope this epic posting helps you make a informed choice. Good luck with your project and be sure to report your experiences so we can all get your opinion on whatever you do.
- Location
- New Jersey
Might as well throw in my experience thus far.
What I have: 96 XJ, 108K miles, AW4, 242, 30/44 (3.55), 31"s.
I've used both Chevron Techron and Marval Mystery Oil added to my gas, both have worked very good in other vehicles, but I never saw any noticable improvements. As for cleaning out the top of the engine, I use GM Top Engine Cleaner. That gave me a slight MPG improvement. Depending on how dirty your combustion chamber and valves are will dictate how much difference you'll see.
Fluids: Mobil 1 10-30 and a Mobil 1 301 filter, switched to synthetic at 60K. Amsoil ATF in the AW4 and the 242, yes I run synthetic ATF in my AW4, since 60K miles. The diffs get Amsoil 75w90. Grease: Mobil 1 or Valvoline SynPower; Brake fluid: Valvoline SynPower; Power steering: Valvoline SynPower.
Stock air box with a Wix filter. I had a K&N for awhile. Yes there is slightly better throttle response and a cool sound when you give in the boot, but I'm looking at longevity. A Flowmaster will give you a little more throttle response too, I have a Series 40.
Ignition: Bosch Platinum (not the plus series), Accel cap, rotor, and wires. Noticed a big difference when I switched from OE copper plugs and OE wires. Smoother idle and smoother at the high RPMs.
What does all this add up to? My XJ gets the same gas milage and is just as quick as a friends 96 XJ that is stock. I do most of the maintainence of his XJ so I know its in good running order.
--Matt
What I have: 96 XJ, 108K miles, AW4, 242, 30/44 (3.55), 31"s.
I've used both Chevron Techron and Marval Mystery Oil added to my gas, both have worked very good in other vehicles, but I never saw any noticable improvements. As for cleaning out the top of the engine, I use GM Top Engine Cleaner. That gave me a slight MPG improvement. Depending on how dirty your combustion chamber and valves are will dictate how much difference you'll see.
Fluids: Mobil 1 10-30 and a Mobil 1 301 filter, switched to synthetic at 60K. Amsoil ATF in the AW4 and the 242, yes I run synthetic ATF in my AW4, since 60K miles. The diffs get Amsoil 75w90. Grease: Mobil 1 or Valvoline SynPower; Brake fluid: Valvoline SynPower; Power steering: Valvoline SynPower.
Stock air box with a Wix filter. I had a K&N for awhile. Yes there is slightly better throttle response and a cool sound when you give in the boot, but I'm looking at longevity. A Flowmaster will give you a little more throttle response too, I have a Series 40.
Ignition: Bosch Platinum (not the plus series), Accel cap, rotor, and wires. Noticed a big difference when I switched from OE copper plugs and OE wires. Smoother idle and smoother at the high RPMs.
What does all this add up to? My XJ gets the same gas milage and is just as quick as a friends 96 XJ that is stock. I do most of the maintainence of his XJ so I know its in good running order.
--Matt
Last edited:
LBEXJ
NAXJA Member #721
- Location
- Parke County, Indiana
I currently have two vehicles ... a '94 XJ and a '94 Eagle Vision. I use 5W-30W Valvoline oil substituting in a quart of Slick 50 at oil changes every 5000 miles. I'm not sure the Slick 50 helps, but I'm using it to (hopefully) take advantage of the "improved" residual lubrication (the cars "sits" for long periods of time). I've got 240,000 miles on the Jeep and 175,000 miles on the Eagle and they both start well and run very smooth.
I use standard ignition components, filters, and lubes ... always have and see no reason to change at this point. Every vehicle I've ever owned died from rust ... guess I should pay more attention to sheet metal protection ... but then I kept the last two vehicles, prior to these, over ten years.
I have always been told the key is regular maintenance. It works for me ...
Les
I use standard ignition components, filters, and lubes ... always have and see no reason to change at this point. Every vehicle I've ever owned died from rust ... guess I should pay more attention to sheet metal protection ... but then I kept the last two vehicles, prior to these, over ten years.
I have always been told the key is regular maintenance. It works for me ...
Les
XJ Saga
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Ol'Virginy
My experience:
Fuel additives: Chevron techron Fuel System cleaner works very well for me. I use it about 3 times annually.
Exhaust: I've got a 50 series delta flow, Carsound hiflow, and a Banks header and I've got loads of power across the entire rpm band and no perceiveable loss of torque down low.
Ignition: I've got the Coil On Plug ignition (2001) along with Champion Truck plugs and I could not improve upon that no matter how much I spent. (coil on plug fires twice vice a standard distributor set-up during one intake/exhaust stroke)
Chips/Modules: I love my Jet Stage II, the stage II as been dynoed at 8-10hp gain on a Jeep 4.0L and that is exactly what I feel sotp. Some dont care for Jet but I do. (note: for the chip to work as advertised you have to have everything else in the exhaust/intake stream to flow very well or it will not work correctly.)
Synthetics: I swear by Mobil 1. I've got it running in my Diffs/Transfer case/Tranny/Engine and along with the oversized Mobil 1 filter (M1-301) I could'nt ask for better mileage or protection.
HTH party1:
Fuel additives: Chevron techron Fuel System cleaner works very well for me. I use it about 3 times annually.
Exhaust: I've got a 50 series delta flow, Carsound hiflow, and a Banks header and I've got loads of power across the entire rpm band and no perceiveable loss of torque down low.
Ignition: I've got the Coil On Plug ignition (2001) along with Champion Truck plugs and I could not improve upon that no matter how much I spent. (coil on plug fires twice vice a standard distributor set-up during one intake/exhaust stroke)
Chips/Modules: I love my Jet Stage II, the stage II as been dynoed at 8-10hp gain on a Jeep 4.0L and that is exactly what I feel sotp. Some dont care for Jet but I do. (note: for the chip to work as advertised you have to have everything else in the exhaust/intake stream to flow very well or it will not work correctly.)
Synthetics: I swear by Mobil 1. I've got it running in my Diffs/Transfer case/Tranny/Engine and along with the oversized Mobil 1 filter (M1-301) I could'nt ask for better mileage or protection.
HTH party1:
Less restrictive exhaust systems
I went with the k&n air filter and the flowmaster exhaust on my 1990 laredo and have been happy with the results. you can definatly notice an increase in available power. jumping on a freeway where you need it is the most noticeable. worth it? YES.
the noise level is also increased and can be aggravating as you can tell that you are setting off other peoples car alarms, but they are probaly set to sensitive anyway.
I went with the k&n air filter and the flowmaster exhaust on my 1990 laredo and have been happy with the results. you can definatly notice an increase in available power. jumping on a freeway where you need it is the most noticeable. worth it? YES.
the noise level is also increased and can be aggravating as you can tell that you are setting off other peoples car alarms, but they are probaly set to sensitive anyway.
rumblebelly
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- FT COLLINS, CO
I'm curioius about plugs too. A mechanic told me that using platinum plugs is asking for trouble because the system wasn't designed for them. He said platinum plugs could create problems with my ignition system down the road.
The best thing I've ever done for my jeep was put synthetic oil in my manual tranny. When it was cold that sucker would get so stiff. Putting synthetic oil in solved that problem, shifts just as smoothly at 0 deg F as it does at 100 deg F.
The best thing I've ever done for my jeep was put synthetic oil in my manual tranny. When it was cold that sucker would get so stiff. Putting synthetic oil in solved that problem, shifts just as smoothly at 0 deg F as it does at 100 deg F.
RichP
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Effort, Pa
The single biggest thing you can do is regular maintenance. My 98XJ has over 194,000mi on it. Lubricants I run Mobil-1 10w30 in the engine, Mobil-1 in the Transfer case, Mobil-1 in the 5 speed and Mobil-1 in the diffs. At regular intervals I dump a large bottle of Chevron Techron in the tank and on a yearly basis I borrow my neighbors 3M Injector cleaner kit, go buy a fuel/cleaner refill and hook that up to clean them. Filters I use Mobil, K&N for the oil and Mopar & K&N for the air, when the K&N gets pulled for cleaning I put a Mopar paper filter in and run that till the next change and the K&N goes back in after cleaning.Tune up Plugs, cap, rotor, wires I use Mopar OEM and I buy them from the dealer, the Champion plugs from the parts stores are different then the ones the dealers carry. Jet chip, No thanks. Exhaust system is still original, maybe when it goes I'll 'upgrade'.
I need to do my O2 sensors, they are still original, ordered a bunch of parts the other day and will be taking a free weekend to do the cooling system hoses, cap, tstat, flywheel clutch and maybe the raditor.
Keeping it up to snuff is the single biggest thing you can do, no amount of bolt on muscle parts are going to compensate for dirty injectors, a filthy throttle body and low tire air pressure.
I need to do my O2 sensors, they are still original, ordered a bunch of parts the other day and will be taking a free weekend to do the cooling system hoses, cap, tstat, flywheel clutch and maybe the raditor.
Keeping it up to snuff is the single biggest thing you can do, no amount of bolt on muscle parts are going to compensate for dirty injectors, a filthy throttle body and low tire air pressure.
BrettM
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- michifornia
can someone elaborate on being against synthetic in the AW4? I just swapped one in (replacing the Peugoet) and I was under the impression that Mobile 1 synthetic was the lube of choice, so that's what i filled it with. what's wrong with synthetic, and should i change it now, or just wait until next time it needs to be changed?
4WDXPRT
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Spokane, WA
If you remember only one thing..."There is no substitute for cubic inches." With that said I've owned four XJs currently two 89s and the best of all years a 1999 and I find the above statement to hold true time and time again.
Until you stroke the 4.0 out to 4.7 Liters you will never see a noticable increase in power for the money you've spent. You can SuperCharge it and add 50+ horsepower but that cost $3000...so for that I'd start looking into the following.
The other option is to throw a Vortec Chevy engine LS1, LT1, 5.3L-6.0L out of a Silverado, etc but again this holds true to the cubic inches quote.
I wathced a Hot Rod TV spot once where they changed pulleys to fuel injectors on a LT1 V8 Camero and maybe got about 15hp out of over $1000 in upgrades that were quite extensive and time consuming. A RamJet 502 would be a better way to cure the extra powerbug IMHO.
Just my 2 cents.
Until you stroke the 4.0 out to 4.7 Liters you will never see a noticable increase in power for the money you've spent. You can SuperCharge it and add 50+ horsepower but that cost $3000...so for that I'd start looking into the following.
The other option is to throw a Vortec Chevy engine LS1, LT1, 5.3L-6.0L out of a Silverado, etc but again this holds true to the cubic inches quote.
I wathced a Hot Rod TV spot once where they changed pulleys to fuel injectors on a LT1 V8 Camero and maybe got about 15hp out of over $1000 in upgrades that were quite extensive and time consuming. A RamJet 502 would be a better way to cure the extra powerbug IMHO.
Just my 2 cents.
JeepinAudiophile
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Northborough, Massachusetts
4WDXPRT said:
tugalo
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- easley, sc
changing the primary wiring to a larger size and adding an extra ground wire sure helped my 90 xj.
The lights were brighter, and the powered accessories ran much better, not to mention that my alternator gauge show a much higher rate of charge.
The lights were brighter, and the powered accessories ran much better, not to mention that my alternator gauge show a much higher rate of charge.
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