Jake Rainwater

Hello everyone,
My 99 cherokee has been doing some strange things.
When I got it it starts on the first crank and runs nicely. Now it takes a 3-4 cranks to start and has been running rough and dieing while idling sometimes. It runs very rough to where the whole jeep shakes. It has been a project for over a year now and hasn't moved much. The mileage is hasn't gone up since I got it.
So I wanted to ask what you all think my issue is with it running? I'm thinking carbon buildup, sparkplugs, or something jammed in the exhaust. I just put a new one on after about 6 months and it has been blowing water out the end when it starts. I was also thinking the timing might be off or the distributor.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Jake Rainwater

Forgot to say it is a I6 with an ac delete pulley and no ac components.

exasemech

sounds like the gas in the thing is ąt least a year old. That might be a place to start.

Saudade

How long did it start and run nicely after you got it? What other work have you done/been doing?

Like exasemech says, your gas is likely bad anyway so you should replace it. Possibly the fuel filter too.

Some water blowing out the tailpipe after startup is normal as condensation can form in the exhaust. However, this should clear up after a few minutes.

Timing is not adjustable.

After you get some clean gas in it, check your fuel pressure.

missedbass

add seafoam to the tank

Ricthewrench

Old gas = possible water and loss of aromatics can do that. Drain & fill beats firing the parts cannon....

Cha-ching!

Jake Rainwater

The gas is about a month old with a heat fuel treatment to get rid of water. I have had the valve cover off a few times and just put on a new gasket as of a few days ago. Other than that and the delete pulley I haven't done anything to the engine besides general maintenance. It ran nicely when I got it with only the occasional cylinder 4 misfire I'm sure every xj has. I haven't gotten into serious stuff in the engine like spark plugs or injectors.

Jake Rainwater

Also forgot to mention it idles around 300-600 rpm on a cold day and 400-800 on a warm day

That Jeep Guy XJMJ

What's the inside of your throttle body look like? Carbon buildup could have gummed up your IAC and I can tell you from a recent experience, sticky gummed up IAC is no good for idle

cruiser54

Plugs, wires, cap and rotor are to be replaced every 30,000 miles along with cleaning the throttle body.