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as they said. the 4 cyl is ok for a stock jeep but any bigger tires and or towing even a light boat and it will really slow you down. theres nothing wrong with a yj. they have a better frame than cj's and also the tub is galvanized so they are less likely to rust. i currently have a yj with a bit of work done to it. its it has 312,000 mile on it and still going strong.

three11 wrote:

MudHog wrote:Personally, I would only use the 4 banger on the freeway. Most people say no freeway in regards to gassing on it to weave in and out of traffic, merging into traffic, etc. The 4 banger isn't a powerhouse by any means. For driving with no towing (read economy), I'd buy a 4 banger. For the use you described, I would buy a 4.0L. Just by adding a boat to tow, I would get the 4.0L. You can get the 4 banger to work by lowering the gear ratio like DC12 did, but then you will ultimately be hurting yourself unloaded as the RPMS will be higher at cruising speed. I would look for an older CJ. You can get a CJ5 (83.5" wheelbase) or a CJ7 (93.5" wheelbase) for under $3000. Easier to work on, easier to maintain, and will be cheaper. DO NOT GET A YJ (square headlights). If you insist on a TJ, then '97 was the first year the TJ was made and is a great year which would be cheaper than a newer model.

What's wrong with the YJs?
Just curious.

First model with emissions junk.
The 4wd actuator is problematic.
I hate the long dash with gauges damn near by the passenger.
I'm partial to Jeeps with round head lights.

cable actuator is a good fix for the vacuum BS. And it is BS, but it can be worked around, takes money to replace it all.

Cj8 is the REAL way to go. but one thing is for sure.... if you dont want to work on it, Dont buy it!!!! That should be the jeep moto.

Well I bought a 97 TJ with the 2.5 in it after test driving a YJ and a TJ with a 4.0 in it. The 4.0 was definitely more powerful. The YJ definitely had a more "unrestrained" feel, for lack of a better word.

Not that I didn't take any of what ya'll said seriously- I did. Very much so. However, there is something I have called a budget, and I did not see a 4.0 fitting that budget. In fact, I got the 97 for less than $3500 and still have money left over to buy the metal and weld up a rack and do some other things to it. Of course the heater didn't work or the air. The Jeep didn't have a belt routed to the AC compressor, and so I went and bought one and put it on and voila, it works. I changed the thermostat out and flushed the heater core and the heat is now working surprisingly well. The PCV valve has a small crack in it so I am going to change it out and put a new valve cover gasket on it, and she should be good to go for a little while.

I welded up a wannabe Reese towing hitch and pulled my trailer (very heavy 12 footer made by a man in between L'ville and Ackerman) and my 4 wheeler and it did fine for what I am doing and where I am going. Underpowered? Yes. Leaving me with regrets? No, not really. If I need to pull a boat real far I can always use my work truck- which I would do anyway.

So far we are real happy with it. I would say my use for the Jeep would more match what Vicksburg mentioned in his post. Hell, this thing will do good to leave this side of the county. I grew up in Jeeps, all of my uncles and dad had them. I have even rode in the back of a 4 cylinder to Destin and back...with 2 others back there with me .

The only thing I don't like about it is the tires. They are way too damn big. Anybody wanna trade? 80% tread on them!

That size are they?

Exact same TJ I had years ago, except I had the 4.0L. Down to the year and color too. You will like it. You could have found a 4.0L or an older CJ with a I6 within your budget. It would have taken some looking, but they are out there.

If you find you don't have the power you want, bring the gear ratio down to 4.11:1 or 4.56:1. The 4.11 ratio will give you some good power with not much higher cruising RPM. Get me the information off the tag on the rear differential cover and I can track down what ratio is in it now (if it is stock that is, which I assume it is from the looks).

If you plan to go to 33" tires, you will notice a fairly decent loss of power, but there are performance things you can do to the 4 banger to get a little increase in power.

Mud,

Memory leads me to remember my tj with the 2.5 came stock with 4.11's front and rear. I replaced them with 4.88's when I went to the 33's. I also went with 33x10.5 to reduce weight. She did fine without a load with that set up. And 4 low 1st was creeping in the rocks of Arkansas Super Lift off road park. 4 low 3rd was the mud gear. 4 hi would turn them over if it was a slick mud but the gumbo mud took 4 low 3rd to keep any power moving forward.

I have a 95 2.5 Jeep Rio in the shop. Transmission blew bought used on EBay for 500. It belongs to one of my students and has been ragged out. 2.5 seems to have plenty of pep. He had 31x12.50 15's on it


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