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01 Cherokee Maintenance Question??

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Old 02-28-2013 | 09:13 PM
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Default 01 Cherokee Maintenance Question??

Hey everyone! Its about time i have a chance to do maintanence on my jeep but just have a couple questions of every how often i have to change parts since i lost track of all maintanence done to my jeep (ex. air filter). I usually have my dad take it to service since im always out of town but now its time to service it myself..

How often or every how many miles do i have to change/inspect these for 4.0 HO all stock cherokee engines 4x4.
• Oil
• Oil Filter
• Air Filter (k&n with stock air filter box)
• Spark Plugs (also what kind of spark plugs? stock or higher performance?)
• Tranny Fluid & T-Case Fluid
• Diff Oil (front & rear)
• Lubricate Steering Linkage & Suspension Ball Joints
• Flush/Replace Engine Coolant
• Rotation, Balance, Alignment

Most of my driving is around town and occasional off-road trips and occasional long trips (1,000 miles back and fourth)

Thanks for any help and God Bless You All!
Old 02-28-2013 | 09:46 PM
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From: Rochelle IL
Year: 2001
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0l
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I want to say searchGoogle is your friend. but i will shed little light.
Engine oil. change it every 3000. get whatever is cheapest. owners manual says 10w30 thats what I run. no sense in spending money on fancy oils this jeeps will run on anything.

grease every single grease fitting at each oil change. doesnt take much to top off the boots. dont over grease.

diff fluid depends on how many miles are on it id say pop the cover off drain fluid clean out crap. look at your gears. if anything looks funny ask another question. again owners manual say 75w90 unless you tow then 75 140 if you have limited slip u need a friction modifier. or limited slip additive. How do you tell if it limited slip? jack up the back spin the wheels if they turn in opposite direction you have open diff no modifier needed.

Transfer case easy enough to check get under there theres a threaded plug mid way open that up look at the fluid on your finger if its dark or smells burnt. drain and fill. the drain plug looks the same as the fill plug(the one you tookout to check it) just on the bottom.

air filter is a kn take it out look at it if its dirty go to vatozone get a recharge kit and follow there instructions on cleaning.

spark plugs stay away from the "extra power" bull****. the 4.0 is a dinosaur design of a motor runs best on regular copper plugs. Having the coil rail like me i see the ngk v power plugs last quite awhile.

Tires check you tire pressure everytime you fill up if you wantbest fuel economy. maybe excessive but i sleep better at night. feel the tread are they wearing funny tires arent rocket science. if there wearing goofy not flat prolly time for a balance alignment or what have ya.

The biggest thing the most important part out all of this. the only reason I type all this is owning an 01 the cooling system and your temp gauge is your number 1 priority. dont want to scare you but the 2000 2001 have the 0331 head which is prone to cracking between cylinder 3 and 4 mostly due to overheating theres been cases where they " it just cracked at random" keep your coolant green thermostat new radiator hoses arent leaking water pump is good and clutch fan is good and aux fan is working.other than that drive it like you stole it.

and you own a jeep start workin on it yourself no more service shops for maintenance. not hard to work on these old thing. my 10 yearold sister can change the oil in my heep. Good luck man
Old 02-28-2013 | 10:13 PM
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Wow i did not know that about the head?? So far never had engine cooling problems and guages and fans and all seem to work just fine. Should i still replace with new thermo and clean/drain cooling fluid? Should i get deluted 50/50 or 100% cooling fluid?? Some people just add all water but i dont know on jeeps. Every vehicle seems to be a bit different...
Old 02-28-2013 | 10:31 PM
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From: Rochelle IL
Year: 2001
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Depends on the mileage. if all looks good and works good no worries. but really i check my temp gauge more than my speedo. just keep your fluids up to level and looing good and ull be fine. How many miles on your jeep?
Old 02-28-2013 | 11:17 PM
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Originally Posted by KB07
Depends on the mileage. if all looks good and works good no worries. but really i check my temp gauge more than my speedo. just keep your fluids up to level and looing good and ull be fine. How many miles on your jeep?
I bought it with 68k+ and it stands now with 78k+ ... I have no clue what the first owner had serviced on it before so im thinking of just doing maintanence on everything and date on that till my next service... I asked the seller when i bought it and he said all he knew is the previouse owner serviced it in a jeep dealer plex so im guessing pretty good service all the time but still dont know what other stuff they serviced other than oil change, oil filter and air filter. It probably even has stock shocks? Id have to change those too but after a 3 or 4 inch budget lift...
Old 02-28-2013 | 11:38 PM
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From: Rochelle IL
Year: 2001
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Engine: 4.0l
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at 78k it wouldnt hurt to have everything flushed then you know for sure what has been done. my jeep had original shocks with 130000 before i lifted it.
Old 03-04-2013 | 01:07 PM
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Dang! Mine usually hits the top in a small bump or hump goin at 15 mph so i know for sure it needs new shocks asap. It bounces too much too kind of like the older cars would driving on the road after hitting a small hump...
Old 03-04-2013 | 01:16 PM
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Originally Posted by KB07
Depends on the mileage. if all looks good and works good no worries. but really i check my temp gauge more than my speedo. just keep your fluids up to level and looing good and ull be fine. How many miles on your jeep?
Lol^ this !!! Well stated!
Old 03-04-2013 | 01:57 PM
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Originally Posted by KB07

grease every single grease fitting at each oil change. doesnt take much to top off the boots. dont over grease.
How much is over-greasing? I've been injecting grease till the old grease pops out.
Old 03-04-2013 | 03:37 PM
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Year: 1999
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Engine: 4.0L OBD-II
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Originally Posted by playbass

How much is over-greasing? I've been injecting grease till the old grease pops out.
Depends on the fitting. Driveline items are open and you want to do exactly that. TREs have rubber boots on them to keep the grease in. They're overfull when they explode (or, less dramatically, a hole forms). Grease boots should be firm.
Old 03-04-2013 | 05:44 PM
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Originally Posted by salad
Depends on the fitting. Driveline items are open and you want to do exactly that. TREs have rubber boots on them to keep the grease in. They're overfull when they explode (or, less dramatically, a hole forms). Grease boots should be firm.
Sounds like I need some new TREs, as they explode when I inject new grease. It was on my todo list, anyways.
Old 03-08-2013 | 06:57 PM
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^^^ yea me too i just check right now. Im adding it to my to do list too.
Old 03-08-2013 | 11:11 PM
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Do you still have the owners manual? In the back of the owners manual is a section telling you what you should have done at certain mile intervals. The PO of my jeep wrote everything down in the book and so am I.
Old 03-08-2013 | 11:54 PM
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Yea still have it. It has pretty good info to when to do maintanences. I did some google search and got other milage maintanence when to's and now im working on making my own scedualed milage maintanence list. Just changing up stuff a bit for ex. change diff fluid every 12k miles instead of 20k miles. I rather keep everything some what freshly lubricated rather then letting it burn or get ugly..
Old 03-09-2013 | 01:00 AM
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From: Colorado Springs, CO
Year: 2001
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Engine: 4.0L
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I have a 2001 and I'll just tell you what I use and you can take it for what it's worth.

Oil - Valvoline MaxLife 10w40, every 5,000

Oil Filter - Mopar M090, with oil change

Air Filter (k&n with stock air filter box) - with a K&N, just buy the recharge kit and clean & re-oil it every 10,000 or so. Otherwise I change my paper filter every 15,000 (or when needed)

Spark Plugs - NGK ZFR5N - every 20,000 (or when needed)

Tranny Fluid - Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc - every 20,000

T-Case Fluid - Valvoline ATF+4 - every 20,000

Diff Oil (front & rear) - 75w90 synthetic front & 75w140 synthetic rear - every 20,000

Lubricate Steering Linkage & Suspension Ball Joints - NLGI #2 GC-LB, every 5,000

Flush/Replace Engine Coolant - Zerex G-05; every 20,000 or 18 months

Rotation - every 5,000

Balance, Alignment - when needed

Everyone seems to have their own maintenance schedule and favorite brands, so do your research on here and through Google. Stay away from the parts that are a bunch of hype or known to cause problems and adopt what YOU feel is best for your rig, climate, driving style, mileage and budget.

And may God bless you as well!


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