Help on broken 97 TJ pricing

[MeatTitan]

Hello all, I am new here and in search of your opinion and help.

I have a red 97 tj mostly stock (A couple minor add-ons nothing fancy). I made a major move and after towing my Harley and some personals my transmission is having problems. I was told its a bearing of some sort. And transmission would need to be replaced. Cant find anywhere that will do a rebuild so its all been replacement recommendations and prices. I do not have the time, money, or knowledge to attempt self repair or have it replaced.

My question is it worth finding and reselling to someone who can, what would that price be in your opinion? Sell to a junkyard or trade in? Ive been riding the Harley as a commuter but at this point need a vehicle asap.

Any other recommendations?

 

[Steel City 06]

Is this an automatic or a manual? Can you describe the issue? Perhaps it is one that is commonly known here. Some have simple fixes, others require replacement.


Could you buy a junkyard or lower cost remanufactured transmission and swap it? Perhaps pay a mechanically inclined friend in beer and pizza to guide and assist you. It can be done in a weekend, though you'll need some tools and basic wrenching experience. I wouldn't recommend trying to rebuild a transmission yourself though. A junkyard swap would be faster and easier.

 

[Rubicon88]

Do you really like the jeep? You will be sick if you sell it.

If so then there has to be someone near you that would help out.

 

[MeatTitan]

I knew I was forgetting a key piece of info. It is a manual transmission.

The problem is a whirring/ grinding noise on accelerating gears 1-3 (loudest in 3), runs quiet and fine on 4, comes back softly in 5. With clutch pushed in noise fades, clutch out noise is there. Noise is faint in neutral goes away when clutch is in. It feels like a little less power( slower to accelerate) but I could just be over analyzing that piece.

I do enjoy my jeep greatly. And would like to keep. But I'm a man practicality over wants. I dont know anyone that is mechanically inclined. I do all my own stuff but this is out of my scope. I considered the swap myself but I dont have a place, tools or time. I'm not sure what the price on junkyard tran goes for but alot of the used ones ive seen are in mid 2k pricewise. Its either an ax5 or the NV series, not 100%. Either way pricing is about same

 

[TJ Starting]

What condition is the rest of the Jeep in?

 

[LJ4me]

Sounds like throw-out bearing.

 

[Steel City 06]

For a 1997, it would either be an AX-5 (4 cylinder) or AX-15 (6 cylinder).

The symptoms you describe could be a bad input bearing, or possibly even just a noisy throwout bearing. A throwout bearing is a $20 part and requires removal of the transmission to access, but the transmission itself is not opened. An input bearing is integral to the transmission.

Have you replaced the fluid in the transmission recently? If not, try that first. Get redline MT-90 and drain and refill. The Redline is expensive but it has a very good reputation for masking/solving issues in older transmissions.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CPCBEQ/?tag=wranglerorg-20

It's definitely not guaranteed, but $50 in fluid versus thousands for a new car might be worth a shot regardless.

 

[MeatTitan]

What condition is the rest of the Jeep in?

Rest if the jeep is in pretty good condition id say. no dents or major scratches, paint is good, sun damage on black plastic fenders. It has half doors and the driver side skin frame has some rust damage. New tires. Driver seat is torn up a bit also.

 

[MeatTitan]

For a 1997, it would either be an AX-5 (4 cylinder) or AX-15 (6 cylinder).

The symptoms you describe could be a bad input bearing, or possibly even just a noisy throwout bearing. A throwout bearing is a $20 part and requires removal of the transmission to access, but the transmission itself is not opened. An input bearing is integral to the transmission.

Have you replaced the fluid in the transmission recently? If not, try that first. Get redline MT-90 and drain and refill. The Redline is expensive but it has a very good reputation for masking/solving issues in older transmissions.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CPCBEQ/?tag=wranglerorg-20

It's definitely not guaranteed, but $50 in fluid versus thousands for a new car might be worth a shot regardless.

The fluid is the first thing I tried just in case. It wasn't that resline you recommended, but it is new fluid.

When I took it to a local place for a quick look over he said input bearing also. Though its not 100% as it wasnt a real deep diag. drove it around and such. Didnt charge but that was what his opinion it was. Its the 4cyl so the ax5.

 

[qslim]

From the standpoint of practicality I'd say it would be a better idea to fix the TJ than go through the ass pain of selling it and finding another vehicle.

I helped a pal of mine change his AX-5 last year. I forget what the symptoms were, but he took it to a local indie trans shop & they said they could either repair it for him for around $1500 or sell him a rebuilt unit for less than a grand including the core. He elected to go with a rebuilt unit and we installed the new unit in about a day in his driveway. It's a strictly bolt-in affair, we only had hand tools & a few jack stands.

 

[Zorba]

I'm no expert, but the fact that it does it in all gears EXCEPT 4th, tells me its internal bearing wear. 4th is straight through. I had similar on an old Mazda transmission years back - drove it for years that way, but finally replaced it.

 

[Billy_Whitehorse]

I agree that the throw-out bearing could be causing problems. The pilot bushing could also be a factor. Cheap parts, but do require some elbow grease and a few sockets, extensions, etc.. I would recommend getting a transmission jack (not too much at harbor freight) because it makes the removal of the unwieldy transmission and transfer case MUCH easier and won’t have you screaming and cursing as you fight it with a floor jack. It’s a days job to remove and reinstall with two men (or very strong women) if they are reasonably experienced or inclined mechanically and have the tools.
It’s also best to thoroughly pressure wash the undercarriage before working under there. Makes it much easier to get the bolts out and you won’t have as much debris falling in your eyes and face.

 

[Billy_Whitehorse]

I agree that the throw-out bearing could be causing problems. The pilot bushing could also be a factor. Cheap parts, but do require some elbow grease and a few sockets, extensions, etc.. I would recommend getting a transmission jack (not too much at harbor freight) because it makes the removal of the unwieldy transmission and transfer case MUCH easier and won’t have you screaming and cursing as you fight it with a floor jack. It’s a days job to remove and reinstall with two men (or very strong women) if they are reasonably experienced or inclined mechanically and have the tools.
It’s also best to thoroughly pressure wash the undercarriage before working under there. Makes it much easier to get the bolts out and you won’t have as much debris falling in your eyes and face.

Also, I forgot to mention that if you do need to remove the pilot bushing, it requires a bit of old-school trickery. I don’t know for certain that yours is pressed in, but if it is, you can remove it by packing mud (yes, mud! It works better than grease, I’ve seen it done) into the hole of the bushing on the back of the crankshaft and finding a bolt or dowel that will fit snugly, then beat it with a hammer or mallet. Hydraulic pressure will force the bushing out. Grease, clay, mud, bread are all variants of this method.

 

[bromel]

Sounds like throw-out bearing.

He said the noise is there with the clutch out, i.e. engaged. If the throwout bearing was bad, he'd be having noises when the clutch was depressed.