Should I buy or walk away?

Tjrubicon

Tjrubicon

Something clever
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Oct 29, 2017
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253
Location
AR, United States
Hello forum. I’m new here and looking to put myself in my first jeep and hoping for some help. I’ve always loved trail riding and ready to move away from the ATV/UTV world and into a TJ. Unfortunately There’s not many to choose from around here but I come across an 03 Rubicon with 95,000 miles I’m interested in. My concerns are obvious oil leakage underneath around main seal and possibly back of the head but could be coming from elsewhere. Also Rear window on hard top barely makes contact with the tailgate and can be opened with the gate shut with little effort. Are these serious issues for the 4.0 liter TJs or easy fixes?
 
All TJs have a rear main seal leak and valve cover leaks too. Mine never lost a quart between oil changes tho. 95K is low mileage. Rear window seal? Might be missing a part but a cheap fix. Might be just poor adjustment after being topless to.

"03 Rubis are the best !! Whats the price and where?

If this is an Arizona born TJR it is likely rust free !!!! Buy it !!
 
Last edited:
Tjrubicon said:
Hello forum. I’m new here and looking to put myself in my first jeep and hoping for some help. I’ve always loved trail riding and ready to move away from the ATV/UTV world and into a TJ. Unfortunately There’s not many to choose from around here but I come across an 03 Rubicon with 95,000 miles I’m interested in. My concerns are obvious oil leakage underneath around main seal and possibly back of the head but could be coming from elsewhere. Also Rear window on hard top barely makes contact with the tailgate and can be opened with the gate shut with little effort. Are these serious issues for the 4.0 liter TJs or easy fixes?
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The rear main seal would be a fix with just about any TJ. Not a deal breaker IMO. TJs are prone to leaking. It needs to be addressed if it’s leaking bad but it wouldn’t keep me from buying the Jeep. Rust on the other hand is the main dealbreaker. If you have a rusted frame, run away. Stick you finger inside the frame and check for flaking rust. Also, check to see if it’s been painted to cover up rust. Do you have a picture of the back window? That might help diagnose the issue.


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Michael Roberson said:
The rear main seal would be a fix with just about any TJ. Not a deal breaker IMO. TJs are prone to leaking. It needs to be addressed if it’s leaking bad but it wouldn’t keep me from buying the Jeep. Rust on the other hand is the main dealbreaker. If you have a rusted frame, run away. Stick you finger inside the frame and check for flaking rust. Also, check to see if it’s been painted to cover up rust. Do you have a picture of the back window? That might help diagnose the issue.


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Click to expand...
I did not take a picture of the window unfortunately. As I was driving down the highway I noticed it was rattling and open. Once I closed it I realized I cold open it with the gate closed. The top of the gate made little contact the bottom of the window where weather strip is. Wondering if top of the gate is missing some weather strip? Oh and no rust that I could find.
 
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What price is being asked for it? I’d also ask if you can take it for a test drive. Pick a spot with hills and ask if you can test out the 4LO-4HI transition and see if there is any noise.
Post a pic of the rear window- you may be missing a bracket at the bottom of the rear window. 9/10 times (if it can be located) the bracket can be glued back onto the rear window using some good window sealant from HD. There are several ways to fix it otherwise, using more...unorthodox methods.

Rear main seal takes about 6-8 hours and a good set of jack stands to fix, and is relatively inexpensive to do yourself. I’d look it up on YouTube and judge whether that’s something you would want to do yourself...

Otherwise, keep a quart of oil in the Jeep and monitor your oil pressure. Then, buy a soft top and go naked as often as possible.


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Those aren't serious issues at all. The rear main seal is incredibly common on these engines, and it's also very easy to fix. Most shops would charge 3-4 hours for labor, making it anywhere from a $300 to $600 job depending.

The rear window is an easy fix as well.

Your biggest concern should be whether or not there is a lot of rust on the underside (or anywhere for that matter).
 
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Rearvwindow? Check a few other '03s. i bet it is a minor fix. Oil leaks as mentioned? My bet you fix it and 6 months later it is leaking again. As long as it is not measurable between oil changes???? That's the price of owning a 4.0L.
 
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billiebob said:
All TJs have a rear main seal leak and valve cover leaks too. Mine never lost a quart between oil changes tho. 95K is low mileage. Rear window seal? Might be missing a part but a cheap fix. Might be just poor adjustment after being topless to.

"03 Rubis are the best !! Whats the price and where?

If this is an Arizona born TJR it is likely rust free !!!! Buy it !!
Click to expand...
Thank you for the info. This jeep is in Arkansas and asking $12,500.
sinatranate said:
What price is being asked for it? I’d also ask if you can take it for a test drive. Pick a spot with hills and ask if you can test out the 4LO-4HI transition and see if there is any noise.
Post a pic of the rear window- you may be missing a bracket at the bottom of the rear window. 9/10 times (if it can be located) the bracket can be glued back onto the rear window using some good window sealant from HD. There are several ways to fix it otherwise, using more...unorthodox methods.

Rear main seal takes about 6-8 hours and a good set of jack stands to fix, and is relatively inexpensive to do yourself. I’d look it up on YouTube and judge whether that’s something you would want to do yourself...

Otherwise, keep a quart of oil in the Jeep and monitor your oil pressure. Then, buy a soft top and go naked as often as possible.


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Click to expand...
thank you for the input. The bottom of the window seemed to have all the necessary weather stripping from what I’ve seen online. Did take a drive. Found a gravel road and put in 4h and 4l and all seemed to work correctly with no noise.
Chris said:
Those aren't serious issues at all. The rear main seal is incredibly common on these engines, and it's also very easy to fix. Most shops would charge 3-4 hours for labor, making it anywhere from a $300 to $600 job depending.

The rear window is an easy fix as well.

Your biggest concern should be whether or not there is a lot of rust on the underside (or anywhere for that matter).
Click to expand...
thank you for your advice. I could not find any rust on the body or frame. Great forum I appreciate all the quick responses. Great community.
 
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Tjrubicon said:
thank you for your advice. I could not find any rust on the body or frame. Great forum I appreciate all the quick responses. Great community.
Click to expand...

No problem at all, happy to help. Glad you're enjoying the forum as well.

If the price is right, I think you found yourself a nice buy. The miles are low too!
 
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12500 seems like a decent price for that Rubicon. How are the tires? Any work done to it (like a lift, bumpers, winch, etc). Tires will be 800 minimum...arkansas should be a pretty rust free tj. Nice find
 
Ranger_b0b said:
12500 seems like a decent price for that Rubicon. How are the tires? Any work done to it (like a lift, bumpers, winch, etc). Tires will be 800 minimum...arkansas should be a pretty rust free tj. Nice find
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The jeep is basically stock but was told does have 3 inch lift, feels like shocks need replaced though and the tires were new firestone destination.
 
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Tjrubicon said:
The jeep is basically stock but was told does have 3 inch lift, feels like shocks need replaced though and the tires were new firestone destination.
Click to expand...
The more stock the better. A 3” lift is no biggie. You can check to see the actual lift by measuring front and rear coil springs (12” is stock on front, and 8” on rear). Anything’s my above that is your actual lift. Then you can know what shock length to shop for. Or, you can research here, decide how you want to build (mild to wild), and get started. Either way, new shocks will certainly improve the ride if you go with something high quality. Sounds like it has no spare?
 
JMT said:
The more stock the better. A 3” lift is no biggie. You can check to see the actual lift by measuring front and rear coil springs (12” is stock on front, and 8” on rear). Anything’s my above that is your actual lift. Then you can know what shock length to shop for. Or, you can research here, decide how you want to build (mild to wild), and get started. Either way, new shocks will certainly improve the ride if you go with something high quality. Sounds like it has no spare?
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info. I’ll definitely be looking into new shocks if I get it. Yes it did have a spare of same brand that was covered.
 
Officially a Jeep owner and can’t wait to start enjoying it!

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