TJ Upkeep

[Spartacus]

Hey guys, I'm new to the forum. I have a 2004, 4-cylinder, 5 speed on 33's. I only have 86K miles. About 6 months ago, I had to change the timing belt but before I figured that out, I changed the plugs, wires and almost every sensor on the thing. It's been running great since then. I wanted to ask you guys, other than regular oil changes, what are some things I should be doing to help with the maintenance and life of the vehicle. Thanks.

 

[The Real Lxxtsy]

Welcome to the forum and nice rig, love the wheels. Diff fluids, transmission fluid, power steering, coolant.

 

[Chris]

Honestly, you picked one of the most reliable vehicles out there in terms of maintenance.

These things really don't require all that much depending on how hard you wheel it. If you wheel it hard you're going to go through drivetrain components (i.e. ball joints, bushings, etc.) much faster. However, if you only wheel it occasionally, just stay on top of things like oil changes and other fluid changes and you should be fine. Make sure to take care of your cooling system as well (i.e. make sure your water pump, thermostat, etc. are all replaced at the same time with OE parts).

Other than simple stuff though, there's really nothing to watch out for on these vehicles other than rust!

 

[Rob5589]

Like Chris said, they're pretty reliable. Just keep up on routine maintenance and you shoud be fine. Also be careful when running through deep water, it can seep into differentials. Nice looking Jeep and family. My kids think cruising around in "The Jeep" is cooler than cool

 

[Ussmoore16]

Make sure to keep the grease-able fittings greased. Lube shops say they do this but, to be sure I always do mine every oil change. I drive a lot of highway miles so I probably do this more than most.

If you do end up changing out cooling system, make sure to get the Mopar thermostat (I just went to the dealership parts counter). I had a real tough time getting everything to come up to temp properly by using the aftermarket stats (3 of them). It came down to the bleeder hole on the aftermarket stats not working nearly as well as the Mopar stat.

Good luck, they are a lot of fun!

 

[JP98]

Nice looking rig. Welcome to the forum.

 

[RedTJ]

Compared to everything else I've owned in 35 years, my Jeep has been the most unreliable vehicle I have ever owned.

One of the big offenders in a vehicle of that age is the cooling system. If you are on the original radiator, it probably won't be long before it starts leaking. Radiators are easy enough, but mine is currently in pieces while I wait for a heater core and 2 blend door actuators to be delivered. I never had problems with blend door actuators or the switch before owning a Jeep. Another potential problem is the suspension. This is the only vehicle I have ever had to replace bushings in. I didn't "have to" replace them, but they were deteriorated and loose and it was obvious. Perhaps the short wheel base and tight suspension to begin with makes it more obvious.

This is also the only vehicle I have ever had that had a problem with shrinking brake hoses to the point where brake fluid would go into the caliper but couldn't come out.

I expect the normal stuff for a vehicle of this age such as the starter, alternator, water pump, thermostat and on and on, but there have been a number of items that I have never had to deal with before. If I think about it more, I could probably come up with many more things I have had to fix on my Jeep.

On a positive note, it has been better since I replaced the engine. There is some looseness in the front end but that's cheaper and easier than a motor, and it is easy to work on. But it needs to be. I hope you don't have to depend on it as a daily driver.

 

[Chris]

Very interesting! I've only been driving for about 18 years now, but in those 18 years, my TJ is the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned (and I've owned more cars than anyone in 18 years should have).

I will echo the cooling system sentiment. If you buy a used TJ with 150k plus miles, be prepared to replace the cooling system (i.e. radiator, water pump, thermostat and hoses). It won't cost you that much, it's easy to do, and it will last you another 10+ years pretty easily assuming you use OE replacement parts.

These two threads are worth checking out if you do take on a cooling system overhaul:

Jeep Wrangler TJ Cooling System Overhaul FAQ
Jeep Wrangler TJ Radiator Replacement

With higher mile TJs you can expect to be replacing things such as suspension bushings, u-joints and ball joints. The good thing is that those parts are pretty cheap (even for OE parts), and if you're any good with working on vehicles, they're easy to do.

The one thing I will add is that the TJ is probably one of the easiest vehicles you'll ever work on, short of a classic, pre-fuel injection, American V8.

The 4.0 engine (and the 4 cylinder engines as well) are widely regarded as being as strong as a tractor engine (in fact, they're based off a tractor engine design from what I've heard). Anything that fails on the engine will almost certainly be something electronic (i.e. a sensor).

Just buy a TJ that has a good maintenance history, a caring owner, and looks well kept. Stay away from the ones with the crappy 4" Rough Country lifts, huge tires, etc. The majority of those are owned by kids who can't afford to maintain their own vehicle.

Buy it from the older guy who knows his stuff, parks it in a garage, and can tell you in detail every single thing he's done to it since he bought it. That's the vehicle that won't give you trouble.

 

[bobthetj03]

Many of us ask a lot of our TJ's. Off roading, towing, daily driving, etc.... Maintaining is par for the course. There will always be some jeeps that don't fair as well as others for whatever reason. Personally, I've been pretty lucky with my TJ. 100K miles on the cooling system before I had to do any maintenance to it, and the typical other stuff, ie.. plugs, fluid changes, u-joints, brakes and such.

 

[Rob5589]

Many of us ask a lot of our TJ's. Off roading, towing, daily driving, etc.... Maintaining is par for the course. There will always be some jeeps that don't fair as well as others for whatever reason. Personally, I've been pretty lucky with my TJ. 100K miles on the cooling system before I had to do any maintenance to it, and the typical other stuff, ie.. plugs, fluid changes, u-joints, brakes and such.

Yep. Plus, many people beat the crap out of their Jeep, viewing it as a "utility" rig and not a "nice" vehicle. Funny, the two most unreliable vehicles we have owned was a Honda Civic and Mazda 6. Both had "pesky" issues with the Mazda being a flat out POS, in the shop several times in the short year we owned it, and yes we bought it new.

 

[Chris]

Funny, the two most unreliable vehicles we have owned was a Honda Civic and Mazda 6.

It goes to show that you can have one of the most reliable vehicles (a Honda Civic) according to everyone else, but that doesn't mean crap if it was poorly maintained (and owned).

 

[Rob5589]

It goes to show that you can have one of the most reliable vehicles (a Honda Civic) according to everyone else, but that doesn't mean crap if it was poorly maintained (and owned).

The Civic was bought new, and I did the general maintenance, dealer for warranty stuff. We bought my Fit a month later and it has been nearly perfect. The Fit just passed 326K. Every manufacturer can put out a lemon, some more than others. Even still, I would have no problem spending my money on another Honda based on my Fit.

 

[Chris]

The Civic was bought new, and I did the general maintenance, dealer for warranty stuff. We bought my Fit a month later and it has been nearly perfect. The Fit just passed 326K. Every manufacturer can put out a lemon, some more than others. Even still, I would have no problem spending my money on another Honda based on my Fit.

Oh yeah, you got a Lemon then.

We had a Honda CR-V and now have a Honda Odyssey for the family. Both of those vehicles were just incredibly reliable.

However, the TJ is just as reliable as both of them... But again, I maintain my TJ really well!

 

[RedTJ]

I don't think this vehicle was maintained very well before I bought it, but I bought a Chevy pickup years ago that looked to be in a similar state. The biggest indicator was that the cooling system was not maintained and very dirty. As for the Chevy, I sold it with 333,000 miles on the original 4.3L six cylinder and standard trans. The Jeep hasn't been quite as lucky. I'm hoping for better luck now that the engine is a fresh reman. I'm anticipating smaller problems from this point forward. One issue these Jeeps tend to have is leaks in the emissions hoses that will cause the engine light to come on. One of my future projects is to build my own smoker so I can find the leaks.

 

[Bird]

Hey welcome to the forum.
In the nearly 40 yrs of driving I've never been brand loyal but knew quite a bit about Jeep dependability through other family members.
My brother is on his 11th and they've all been daily drivers.
He claims the 4.0 I6 is the best engine ever designed and all of his except 1 has exceeded 300k.
All i can Add is my TJ is the easiest vehicle to work on that I've owned, very simple to maintain.
Oh, I've only gotten over 300k on one vehicle, A 1996 Subaru outback. Lol

 

[RaymondT]

The Civic was bought new, and I did the general maintenance, dealer for warranty stuff. We bought my Fit a month later and it has been nearly perfect. The Fit just passed 326K. Every manufacturer can put out a lemon, some more than others. Even still, I would have no problem spending my money on another Honda based on my Fit.

I just about bought a Fit in 2012 as they rate pretty high in CR. Even put a deposit down. I asked the salesman casually where it was made as we do have one Honda plant in Canada that makes some models. He sez they're made in Japan - fair enough.

But while I'm waiting a few days for it to be off-loaded from the ship, I stumble across a news article about the latest Fits destined for the Cdn market coming from China (WTF!!!???). Call the dealer - they haven't heard anything but will get back to me. Nothing... call back 3 days later... they still don't know... Are you f.....g kidding me? Give me the first 3 digits off the shipping manifest I tell them. "CNA" the guy says. "You mean to tell me nobody there knows how to decode a VIN to get the country of origin?" So it turns out they were made in China and I got my deposit back. I'm not into buying a $20K lottery ticket. Fits for the U.S. market were still from Japan and we get China.

 

[Chris]

I just about bought a Fit in 2012 as they rate pretty high in CR. Even put a deposit down. I asked the salesman casually where it was made as we do have one Honda plant in Canada that makes some models. He sez they're made in Japan - fair enough.

But while I'm waiting a few days for it to be off-loaded from the ship, I stumble across a news article about the latest Fits destined for the Cdn market coming from China (WTF!!!???). Call the dealer - they haven't heard anything but will get back to me. Nothing... call back 3 days later... they still don't know... Are you f.....g kidding me? Give me the first 3 digits off the shipping manifest I tell them. "CNA" the guy says. "You mean to tell me nobody there knows how to decode a VIN to get the country of origin?" So it turns out they were made in China and I got my deposit back. I'm not into buying a $20K lottery ticket. Fits for the U.S. market were still from Japan and we get China.

So wait... US market Fits are from Japan and Canadian market Fits are from China?

Wow... I don't blame you, I would have canceled my deposit as well.

 

[StG58]

I trust Consumer Reports about as much as I trust Hillery. Bought the wife an Acura RL that was very highly rated in CR and it was the biggest, most under powered lemon I've ever had the misfortune to herd down the road. That thing was the biggest POS, the parts were horribly expensive, hard to obtain and only available from Acura. Miserable to work on. Never again. Switched to Mercedes, which was cheap and easy in comparison.

On the other had, I trust my TJ about as much as I trust my wife. (we've been married 35 years or so..) The TJ requires less maintenance and is easier to work on though.

 

[PCO6]

Very interesting! I've only been driving for about 18 years now, but in those 18 years, my TJ is the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned (and I've owned more cars than anyone in 18 years should have).

Chris - Not to take this thread side ways but, while you're still "young", you should make a list of all of the vehicles you've ever owned and save it on your computer. I did this about 5 years ago and I still wake up in the middle of the night when I remember some stupid old Toyota or something that I owned and drove for 3 months or so. I've been driving for 48 years so it's a long list! It includes the time when I built and raced off road cars. Between a friend and me we owned 19 VW Beetles (for parts) that we park behind our barn/shop. I'd like to own 19 Jeeps ... but my wife wont let me.

Carry on ...

 

[Chris]

Chris - Not to take this thread side ways but, while you're still "young", you should make a list of all of the vehicles you've ever owned and save it on your computer. I did this about 5 years ago and I still wake up in the middle of the night when I remember some stupid old Toyota or something that I owned and drove for 3 months or so. I've been driving for 48 years so it's a long list! It includes the time when I built and raced off road cars. Between a friend and me we owned 19 VW Beetles (for parts) that we park behind our barn/shop. I'd like to own 19 Jeeps ... but my wife wont let me.

Carry on ...

You're right, I really should do that. I know for a fact I'd have at least 40 vehicles on that list so far, some of which I only owned for a month of two!