Good-Bye Jeep Liberty! WELCOME BACK JEEP CHEROKEE!

Red__Zed

If you want to get into off-roading, buy an XJ Cherokee. It's more capable than the Wrangler, which surprises most people. It's cheap, the 4.0L engine is bulletproof, and if you put a rock through the oil pan, you did it on a $4000 car, not a $40,000 car.

Cmike2780

I had an 89 XJ. It was bulletproof until it caught fire on the interstate. I poured thousands into that thing to get it reliable....didn't work. The XJ's are great, especially when modified, but they don't come anywhere close to the cj/tj platform in extreme off road capability with modifications. For one, the xj is a unibody. That in itself is very limiting for off road use. It does win in terms of versatility and usability, which are huge factors for doing other stuf besides off roading.

OP, check out the Moab Easter Jeep Safari concepts for the real badass looking jeeps.

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[09][MB][6-Spd MT][Touring][Stillen Gen III][K&N][Borla CBE][Evo-R]

Red__Zed

For pretty much anything that resembles a budget build, the XJ tends to be a better route....a lot of that has to do with cost of entry. Unibody is kind of misleading, since the body welded rather than bolted on. it's much more beefy than most people realize. A couple of stiffeners usually get the chassis where it needs to be for more serious off-roading.

I've never seen the unibody become a limitation, even in extreme trails. There's a lot of guys that do things in XJs when the TJs and YJs turn around. You'll see a lot on forums about fatiguing the unibody and not being able to replace it, but by the point that occurs, you've generally destroyed something else on the car, not to mention I would just as quickly shift base cars as I'd shift frames.

What reliability issues did you have? I think I owned three that all went well beyond 250k and were sold running.

Fringe capability is arguably better (ie, wrangler has more favorable approach angles, but double whammy at Moab is far easier to manage in a cherokee), but for most first-time off-roaders, the lower cost of entry in the XJ means enough left over for the parts you need. YMMV.

I've owned 3 XJs and a tj. Loved all of them, but the xj is far cheaper, and when there are major wheelin' expenses coming--not to mention a sharp learning curve--cheaper is better.

Cmike2780

No, I completely agree. It's the least expensive option if you can do a lot of stuff on your own. Out of the box, the TJ just looks the part IMO. My dad had a CJ when I was younger and I guess its partially sentimental. I never took mine to any extreme trails, just some rough dirt roads and farms upstate.

Let's be honest, it really depends on how far you go with the mods and where you intend to drive it. Its probably cheaper to build an old Civic hatchback to go stupid fast in a straight line than buying a new Z or mustang for example... I just don't think cheap is the only factor for most people.

The XJ was my first car. Had about 120k miles on her before she was gone. I worked all through high school and summers to save up enough to buy a car. I remember the insurance per year was almost as much as the car, but to be fair, I was a new driver at the time. Everything ran fine when I got her, then I had to replace the radiator, the fan, the injectors, the water pump....just about everything under the hood except the motor. Damn thing would still overheated. I loved that car. Engine blew while driving home from school, about halfway between Buffalo & NYC.....something ignited and that was that. Lost all my stuff in the process. Insurance didn't cover anything, so I was pretty much screwed. This was sophomore year in college, about three years of ownership. As much as I hated the problems with that car, I still miss it. A lot of awesome memories.

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[09][MB][6-Spd MT][Touring][Stillen Gen III][K&N][Borla CBE][Evo-R]