No problem; I just have to brag on something.

[sjx40250]

This is the best thing I've seen on the various model designations:
http://www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/misc/models.html.

The link at the bottom to the jeep.com "Heritage" pages is really good. Original ads, timeline, etc.

I gather that while some of the acronyms have an actual meaning (Military, Civilian, Dispatcher, Forward Controls, the rest (esp. later ones) seem to be purely arbitrary. I'm sure there were factory "insiders' " reasons for all of them that we'll never know, but reasonable guesses could be made for some of them. SJ was probably "Station" Jeep ("Soccer Mom" Jeep, in current lingo), VJ (soon after WWII) was probably "Victory Jeep", & XJ could indeed mean "Experimental" since (1) the X had been used in that sense by other makers, (2) it was the first (?) unibody Jeep.

Great info! But credibiltiy is in question because they said that a Cherokee was offered with a V8 with 2WD only! Has anyone seen one?

 

[sjx40250]

BTW: A time line for the drive train would be great too!

 

[Eagle]

BTW: A time line for the drive train would be great too!

For the XJ, or for all Jeeps?

 

[Z22_Z33]

Great info! But credibiltiy is in question because they said that a Cherokee was offered with a V8 with 2WD only! Has anyone seen one?

yeah go to the jeep homepage, they got a timeline there someplace. I could try and find it but right now i'm lazy. It says the cherokee was offered with a v8 and yes it was only in 2 wheel drive.

anyone know why jeep did this. were they all wasted and stoned out of there mind when they made it only 2wd??

wait i know why, jeep is no longer in the business of making good offroad vehicles but rather are in the market to make money(didnt want ppl to buy the lower priced cherokee but instead buy the more expensive grand cherokee), or wait should i say chrysler is. seems every company thats owned jeep has gone under cause all they wanted to do was make money off the jeep name rather then make great offroaders. (dont know if this is true but makes sense) chrysler being bought by mercedes (yeah its suppose to be a merger, sure) kinda like not offering the 4.0 in the cherokees replecment, not a good replecment i'd say! and they've kept the 4.0 basiclly the same sense the lates 80's sure there have been some improvments but nothing much in the power and grunt department, escpially with all the aftermarket mods there are out there.

wait where did you see that the cherokee was offered with a v8 and 2wd?? on that site it wasn't at the bottom where it says jeep heritage, cause if it is that is the jeep website. are you sure you own a jeep??

 

[Yucca-Man]

wait where did you see that the cherokee was offered with a v8 and 2wd?? on that site it wasn't at the bottom where it says jeep heritage, cause if it is that is the jeep website. are you sure you own a jeep??

SJ Cherokee might be the one in question. That's the fullsize beastie - http://www.yuccaman.com/jeep/sj.html

 

[Churchlady]

Yes, the first Jeep to carry the name Cherokee was the SJ, 1974-83. It was just a variation/pkg. of the Wagoneer. Somewhat like my XJ: in '96 it was the Sport with "Classic pkg.", then in '97 they made "Classic" an actual model between the Sport & the Country.

 

[Churchlady]

This is a great history of the Cherokee, incl. drivetrain changes.

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/generations/articles/46011/article.html

 

[Churchlady]

... in '96 it was the Sport with "Classic pkg.", then in '97 they made "Classic" an actual model between the Sport & the Country.

I'm off a year; "Classic" didn't become a named model til '98.

 

[sjx40250]

So there were two images on the time line for the XJ. The V8 w/2WD listing was on the last one.

Yes I own a XJ, actually 2. Have for 14 years. Ch

The drive line timeline I am looking for would be more technical than a marketing time line would give. For instance, changes in manifold, cams, injectors, ECU's, axle configurations. Some of this stuff did not change significantly, like to the HO version of the head. But such a time line would be very helpful to a lot of people on this forum.

Churchlady, thanks for the edmunds site. Very helpful in marketing options and some significant drivetrain changes.

As an example, if I had a 96, I might assume that just because it has a fiberglass hatch, the engine management system is the same as 95. Not true, it is more like the 97 with a steel hatch. Some of us have learned this through intimate, long term relationship with our other half (the XJ, of course)! Others just started the relationship and don't know what they are in for!

 

[Churchlady]

I doubt there's such a thing as a dependable timeline for the finer details of the XJ drivetrain. Everytime anyone on this forum tries to specify what years had this or that, a dozen or so exceptions are immediately posted. The consensus is that they tended to use whatever was at hand.

My son's construction company--looking to bid on a job--went through the Toledo plant about 6 years ago. He said it was THE most antiquated, Third World-looking, operation he ever saw; that he couldn't imagine how they ever got a functioning car out of there in one piece.

But they did, didn't they? Inspiration can apparently trump efficiency & organization.

 

[Hawaiian Style]

I doubt there's such a thing as a dependable timeline for the finer details of the XJ drivetrain. Everytime anyone on this forum tries to specify what years had this or that, a dozen or so exceptions are immediately posted. The consensus is that they tended to use whatever was at hand.

My son's construction company--looking to bid on a job--went through the Toledo plant about 6 years ago. He said it was THE most antiquated, Third World-looking, operation he ever saw; that he couldn't imagine how they ever got a functioning car out of there in one piece.

But they did, didn't they? Inspiration can apparently trump efficiency & organization.

Maybe that's the kind of operation required to build a decent 4x4. The newer tech doen't seem to be helping.... sigh.... the Liberty.... :smoker:

 

[Yucca-Man]

Actually, the XJ line is pretty straightforward. Components were used up to a point, although that wasn't always the end of the model year. That's why the Peugeot tranny was used until mid-89 at which point the AX-15 was used. That's why the NP231 got a remodel in 95 and showed up in 96 model year with the revised tailshaft that is commonly attributed to the 97+ Cherokee.

V8s were never included in the XJ Cherokee in the US, although the SJ Cherokee that was produced prior to that was available with a V8. Check with the folks at ifsja.org for clarification, but I believe Cherokee might have been the name for the 2WD SJ while Wagoneer was the 4WD name.

I don't remember where I read it, but I recently ran across a report that the Toledo plant was shutting down after ages in operation, although I believe the replacement plant was right next door.