I just wanted to ask a few questions real quick to make sure my '91 XJ is runnin ok. First, when I'm sittin the still and she's idling (I have the AW4 auto) I notice she shimmers ever so slightly at random points.. just kinda like adjusting the idle. The RPM needle doesnt bounce up and down, stays on a solid 600 rpm. Is this just from age and the normal adjusting shimmy?

Also, I had an arguement with someone who was sayin my XJ was nothin but trouble, always needed repairs, its old, etc.. btw this person owns a Ford escape with a 4 banger, only 170k miles and the clutch has gone out twice...anyway, being 20 years old with almost 200k miles, all I have needed to replace so far is the water pump, the power steering pump, and harmonic balancer with the usual tune up of plugs, hoses, etc.. I personally think that is pretty damn good. You guys agree?

Two last things. For some reason is seems the ol girl is runnin hotter than normal. Sometimes she balances between the 210* mark and the first white line after running for about an hour in relativly warm weather, and I think the elec fan doesnt come on until it hits the last white mark. Is this normal? And what can I do to make it run a little cooler (I dont know when the cooling system was last flushed, but the coolant still looks ok.. the rad looks a little junked between the fins with bugs and dust, how do I clean this). Lastly, my turn signals need the flashing thing replaced, I forget its exact name but its either two prong or 3 prong and plugs into a board under the drive side dash. How do I do this? Thanks a lot guys.

 

bump

 

the turn signal flasher is what your talking about. just pull it out and replace it. to make it run cooler you could get a colder t-stat i believe. and if im not mistaken the electric fan comes on when the a/c and defroster are on.

 

if you do not know when the radiator was last flushed, I would have it flushed, new hoses installed,new coolant and new radiator cap installed. The jeep will probably run cooler then. if you flush it yourself, make sure you use distilled water,not tap water.the hoses should cost you around $35.00 at NAPA and a cap around $6.00.

 

your electric fan should come on at around 220 and im told the norm temp at idle should be 210 of coarse mine runs cooler than that but i have the elect fan fixed to come on when you turn on the key mine runs around 190 on the temp but i also am running 33's and will be upgrading to 35's when the fan was set to come on like norm it wanted to run hot after driving for a while and the trans was running hot but the electric fan trick fixed it

 

do u have the old coolant bottle setup or a regular rad setup if you have the old setup they have a big problem with air pockets in the system. also with it running hotter just wire your fan to a switch and make it manual, i did this and it helped alot with overheating. turning switch is relatively easy if have minimum mechanical skills just take your time and remember how everything goes you'll have to tear quite abit of the collumn out if i remember correctly. i did it without every doing it before and nobody helping and i did fine. good luck!

 

I know its the flasher but I dont know if the object im thinking of is right. A guy showed me a pic of what he said it was, and I think i found. This board with fuses under my dash left of the steering column.



I think its the two silver cylinder things, but im not sure which one.

 

one is for the emergency flashers and the other is for the turn signals

 

Ok, so I am on the right track. I found this at autozone:

Turn sig flasher

And this:

Hazard flasher

One is three prong, the other 2 prong. Can I just yank one out, try the turn sigs and emergency flasher and tell which one it is or will that hurt the signals?

 

One thing you could do for cooler running is put your electric fan on a switch, install hood vents (there's a write up on here). Flashers are cheap enough that you can replace both of them, it wouldn't hurt.

 

First: Next time you argue over the Escape vs. Jeep. Tell him to count the Jeeps, compared to Escapes out on the trail. Then remind him, about the lack of car payments, cheaper insurance, more cargo space. Along with the availability of cheaper parts. The only advantage the Escape has is the 4 banger, Better gas mph. But I wouldn't want to tow anything. Or pull out any stuck vehicles with it. Not to mention yours will be a collectors, Jan. 1 Second; I own a '91, And know it's full history. Nothing ever really went wrong with it. The usual stuff with age, Batteries, tires, muffler. And the dreaded head liner. (I did replace the front U joints, showing ware. Did them before they broke, to play it safe. My daughter was borrowing it for awhile.) Mine's at 67K right now, And I plan on keeping it for a long long time. Third; I would throw in a colder thermostat in, see how works. there cheap enough.

 

I know on CERTAIN, actually almost all, a colder t stat will make things go wacko on a FI engine. The engine does not go in to closed loop mode to a certain temp. And if it doesn't reach that temp it will always drink gas.

Example, A kid at work had a 94 mustang 5.0 5 speed. Mostly stock, exhaust, headers CAI. He couldnt figure out while he could only get 10-12 mpg. He said it wasent always like that. Finally I got the whole list of things he did. He never told me about 165 tstat he put in. Said he didn't think that would matter, He gained 6 mpg by putting the stock t stat back in.

 

got new rad at Advance discount Auto for .. 89 bucks......i would start with that...

 

I just recently upgraded my cooling system and here is what you could do in order from least expensive to most expensive: thermostat, radiator flush (probably needs it), put your electric fan on a switch, new hoses/fluid, hood vents (cheap but you need to know what your doing), new radiator (don't get a stock replacement! Get an all metal 2 or 3 row radiator - radiatorbarn.com) I probably missed something this is just what I did, but do what ever you feel comfortable with and whatever works.
You could also switch out your mechanical fan with another electric fan I hear this helps keep it cool and you gain a little H/P.

 

Amen brother. Those were my exact points in the arguement.