Thinking of getting WJ

wheelinscott

wheelinscott

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Ogden
So my wife and I are looking for a DD/light trail vehicle, and she likes the WJ and Land Rover Discovery. Im still keeping my xj of course.

We are looking at a WJ on Wed. and I was wondering what to look out for, and the good and bad of both vehicles. The WJ we are looking at is a 99 limited with the V8.

Thanks. (sorry if this is in the wrong spot)
 
I <3 the WJ.

My dad's has 32's, however it has more power than my xj, more towing capacity, better ride, and it gets 20+ mpg on the freeway. Only a 3 inch lift, and stock gears. (My xj gets 15mpg at 65 mph) Its an 04, v8, special edition.

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Does your dad tow anything heavy with his WJ? Like boats or campers or vehicles?

Just wondering cause I plan to tow my XJ on a tow dolly behind my 04Wj w/ v8.

I also plan to lift mine with OME coils and pucks. Trying to think at what height I might be sacrificing towing comfort for the altitude adjustment. Im thinking 3" would be as high as I want to go.
 
We planned on towing my xj with the wj, flat tow.

It's just a bad idea, they weigh the same, and my xj is taller.

If you had brakes on the dolly, that'd be fine. (I suppose)

The wj can pull an xj, it's the stopping I'd worry about.
 
WJ's are pretty good Jeeps. Few things I can think of off the top of my head:

If it's got dual automatic climate control, you're going to be replacing the blend doors inside the dash, unless it's been done already. Yup, the whole dash has to come off. Not overly complicated (no more than tearing apart a late model XJ dash).

99 was the first year for the WJ, don't recall there really being any "first year bugs" as opposed to problems through out all of them (i.e. the blend door), but it still something to keep in the back of your mind when you're looking.

The V8 in a 99 should be the Quadra-Drive 4x4 system, which is an All Wheel Drive set up.

The 4.7's a pretty easy motor to work on from my experiences. Not sure if they had the 4.7 HO out in 99, which would be the one i'd get if there was a choice.
 
I'm gonna give it a try here in a week or so. Just a short 100mile round trip experiment. I'll report back with the positives and negatives of the trip in a separate thread. I don't wanna clutter this one up.

So to the OP, is this gonna be Her vehicle?
 
I'm lukewarm on the WJ. It's a nice Jeep, and does what we ask of it, but....

The background I have is having owned 3 XJs, 2 ZJs, and 1 WJ.

So, rambling:

I do prefer my ZJ over my wife's WJ. Our WJ is a 2004 base model 4x4 Laredo. It has the same I-6 in it. I've had that engine in 4 of my 6 Jeeps and performance wise, it didn't significatly outperform my '96 ZJ when the ZJ was in it's prime.

If you had the ability, I would definatly go with the V8. My 94 ZJ had the 5.2 in it and it flat out smoked any other Jeep I owned with accelaration. I've never driven a WJ with the 8 cyl. From a fuel consumptin rate in the WJ we are getting about 15 or so on average for MPG. My ZJ is getting at least a full mile to mile and a half better per gallon.

At 135,000 miles on the WJ I have replaced the t-stat twice, the valve cover seal, the transmission seal and it still needs an oil pan seal and a rear main seal. I have also had it in 2x to repair cut wires in the driver's side door crease and the driver's side power door latch is inoperable. As well, the fuel pump is failing which requires a tank drop to replace it.

From an ergonomic standpoint, I think the ZJ seats are a little more comfortable. I'm not a huge fan of the center stack lay out on the WJ. It is not as comfortable to reach to the radio for changing stations. Perhaps that would be a mute point if I had the steering wheel controls.

Regarding towing, I would advise against it. I believe that the I-6 vehicles are rated for about 5,000 lbs. Assuming an XJ for the trail is dressed at 4,000 (at least mine is) and the trailer is another 1,000 you are right on top of, or over, that tow rating. If you do want to trailer, find one with a factory hitch set up. If you go aftermarket you either need to notch or buy a brand new bumper cover or mount the hitch below the cover which will decrease your rear clearance.

Final think I don't like about the WJs is that the only place you can open the car with a key is the driver's door. Not lock on the tailgate or the passenger's door. I don't have room to carry 3 fobs, so I unlock all my Jeeps with the key. Not having 3 options to unlock is a pain in the ass.

My wife would like to trade up to a vehicle with a 3rd row, and she wants to turn in the ZJ and keep the WJ. I'm against that.

All that said, I would consider another WJ, but it would have to be significantly upgraded from base model.
 
My 2004 is a Limited with the Non-Ho 4.7L. It did not come with a hitch when I bought it so I added a Mopar hitch. Got me a wiring harness from the local trailer shop that is a 4-flat.

The V8, either version, is rated for 6500lb from the factory using a W.D. hitch. Either factory or aftermarket.

After owning a V8 in this truck, I wouldn't even consider a 6cyl.
 
Don't even consider a I6 wj.

Our 4.7 gets excellent mpg, for what it is. And the power!

Recently, I drove from Humboldt county to San Jose CA, 330 miles or so. Filled up in Humboldt, drove all the way to San Jose, then back to San Mateo. (Another 30 miles)

360 miles, give or take, and the fuel light finally came on. (That's about 18 gallons or so.)

This jeep is also on 32 inch mud tires, and I was cruising comfortably at 65-72mph the whole way.

My xj no longer reaches the bay in one tank. 300 miles to San Mateo takes 21 gallons.
 
philagony94xj said:
So to the OP, is this gonna be Her vehicle?
Click to expand...

Yeah it will be her vehicle. We are still looking for one. Thanks for everyones input, keep it coming if there is more. It will be modified, for at least light trail duty (for now). I would rather get a V8 (the HO would be sweet, but probably out of budget) as well and fully loaded if we are going the WJ route. My jeep is the sole vehicle between us and with 225XXX miles and wheeling once or twice a month, we thought it would be good to get another vehicle. :rolleyes:

Ill definatly keep my eyes open, and post up what we end up getting.
 
So went and test drove a 98 Disco and a 99 WJ with V8 last night.

I actually liked the Disco, but it had a bunch of small/stupid electrical problems and high milage (175xxx), yet rode nice, tons of room, comfy, and was $2900. I've always like the look of the discos and the only thing that would drive me away is the reliabilty, and not knowing a ton about them.

Wethen drove a 99 WJ with V8 and cloth interior. I liked it alot as well, but the price was too much for what it was. (5300) Didn't like the tcase too much with just fulltime and 4lo. (same with disco) and power felt a little better than the disco.

Anyways we are still on the search, and now the XJ is in the mix of potentials, so thats good.
 
What was the mileage on the WJ for 5300?

Recently picked up a 99 WJ, although i wasnt much a fan of the styling this Jeep is really growing on me.
 
OverlandXJ said:
What was the mileage on the WJ for 5300?

Recently picked up a 99 WJ, although i wasnt much a fan of the styling this Jeep is really growing on me.
Click to expand...

145XXX- I feel I could get a better deal. It was clean, but there were some paint blemishes on it as well.

The styling is growing on me as well, I especially like them slightly modified as well.
 
wheelinscott said:
145XXX- I feel I could get a better deal. It was clean, but there were some paint blemishes on it as well.

The styling is growing on me as well, I especially like them slightly modified as well.
Click to expand...


This is about the mileage you will be buying a transfer case on your 99. Check to see if the front calipers have been upgraded to the new akebono brand. Blend doors no longer have to remove the dash if you are willing to do a little cutting under the dash out of sight. Other than that, I love my 99. They have better seat warmers than the newer ones.
 
pulled my xj nearly 700 miles round trip with my 01 wj limited 4.7 v8
http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m498/rlpetty43/wftw2011/2011-09-18090100.jpg no problems at got about 10mpg. unloaded it gets 15-18mpg. things I have encounted with it is I had to replace the resistor module on the blower motor and replaced the indash speakers cant think of anything else that I have had problems with. According to the owners manual, a 4.7 v8 4x4 with a class IV hitch and 17" tires has a towing capacity of 6700 pounds.
 
I've owned two WJs. A 99 and now an 04.
Both Limited with the 4.7 and Quadra Drive.
I like both. Never had an issue with the 99 until I blew the motor towing my YJ.
I think it was my fault as I was pretty hard on it.
After the 99 I got an Expedition with a 5.4. It towed my junk with no issues.
I recently sold it and went back to the WJ(financial reasons).
Got a good deal but it has been in the shop 5 times in 3 months. They say the problem is now fixed and it hasn't reared its ugly head so maybe it is.
Anyway, i'm driving a little easier now and towing an XJ on a 15ft trailer. I can always tell it's there unlike the Expedition.
I think they are nice vehicles and am glad I was able to afford my new to me WJ.
This past weekend I put a 2" budget lift on it which only took 1-1/2 hours to do.
I know this is an old post but thought i'd throw in my .02.
Stukboy
 
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