Is it a keeper or should I replace it??

[haumana 1,221]

Just as the title says ... Is it worth keeping.

Here's the info:

2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo; 101,300 mi; 4.7; Quadra-Drive; Leather (love the leather!)

    * bought used in January 2008 (98k mi)

    * new Die Hard $120

    * new plugs

    * new shoes from Coscto (incl. spare)

    * new rotors and pads (front)

    * new headlight lenses (upgraded to Limited)

    * new low-beam bulbs (Sylvania ULTRA's; I love them!)

    * new door latch assemblies (2 out of 4; soon to be 4 out of 4)

    * one of the plastic pieces on the sunroof is busted, so you gotta hold it down while you close it.

    * the CD-changer is just beginning to get hinky.

The "forever" Jeep seems to be draining the bank account forever. I'm not going to complain about the gas mileage, I knew it was going to suck from the day I bought it. I just didn't anticipate that so much stuff what going to break. The door latch assemblies are killing me, and now if the WJ doesn't make me a hostage (until I get the new assemblies from Kolak), it dies whenever it sees fit (see this thread).

So now I can't believe that this one WJ is now making with that I bought a 4Runner or Highlander. I needed the storage convenience of an SUV, and having a 4x was just a bonus. I never took it off-road and never planned to - the most I would do is to hop curbs so I can 'create my own parking'.

I've done what the Jeep Forum guru's have suggested and everything comes up roses, but in reality it's still "doing whatever it wants." The beast is killing me! I have a good friend that owns her own tow company, but that doesn't mean that I want to be calling her to come and rescue the beast.

Any insight and suggestions appreciated. I'm just at my wits-end with this.

Mahalo!

Oh yah, and I forgot to mention that I think I might be able to sell it for what I bought if for, and just chalk up the "improvements" to "operating costs."  Anything 'better' than this will of course be a little more and I'll have to do a LOT of cutting to make-up for it 

[BannerJohn 1,324]

there should be room in the back for a bicycle. Buy one.

On the up side...you may have fixed everything that is likely to go wrong already.

Find a good meachanic. Here is an illustration of why:

when my uncle Don died,I bought his 1988 Chevy truck.(I did wait til after the funeral to ask,btw) It was in mint condition...always garaged...looked brand new inside and out.

After a year or so it began to run kinda rough. I had it to 2 different garages..between the 2 of them I spent over $500 and it STILL ran rough. So I took it to a guy my brother knew...he opened the hood,ran his hands along each spark plug wire..found a place that had rubbed against the manifold and burnt a hole in the wire. Solution: $35 set of plug wires and the thing ran great and still does.

Moral of this story is: Sometimes,it's something simple but it takes a smart mechanic to figure it out.

You can go here:

http://www.cartalk.com/content/mechx/index.html

to find a good mechanic in your area (hopefully) that people use and recommend.

[dnewcomb 0]

Cars are cars - they are tempermental little bastards!  Sometimes you just need to waddle through the crap they give out, don't SKIMP on the parts - you buy cheap, you'll end up paying more at some point.

[Beardown 0]

Here is a lesson learned ehh??

I hate mechanics and i never go to them .....If I ever need one that means that the work is to hard and I need a new vehicle anyway ...

I just bought a minivan 3 weeks ago heres my story :::

Ok i bought a 2000 Chysler Town and country LXI

Mines white however

Ok I bought it from a private seller as I do all my cars

Asking price was $2800.00

The interior floor was dirty..the interior everything else was emaculate !!

Outside Emaculate !!!

Driving you could hear the wheel bearing going out in the drivers rear.. Scarey to the lady that was selling it !!

Also there was 2 bottles of transmission fluid in the van ...(Uhhohh) you would think !! Also scary to the lady

Also there was a noise (grinding coming from the serpentine belt (1 of 5 things and cant be the drive so its ok) also scary to the lady

So I test drive it and do the whole "well this and that is wrong with it"

Then I say I will buy it from you but Im going to have to do alot of work to it so I will only offer you $800 for the van... She went in the house and said she had to talk to her husband...came out with the title and I wrote her a check for $800 ...

Drive it home ....then off to autozone !!!! (YES!!)

I buy :

Front Brake Pads $25

Rear Brake Shoes and springs $30 had them turned in the processes ($20)

Spark Plugs and Wires $45

Oil Filter and Oil $15

Air FIlter $5

Automatic Transmission filter and gasket $18

Rear Wheel hub assemly (wheel Bearing) $100

Water Pump $24

Serpentine Belt $40

Muffler $50

2 new tires $100

So I get home and time to go to work

So I do the easys first Air filter,

change the oil and oil filter,

cut off the old belt then water pump,

now onto the front brakes,

then rear shoes ...then take the drums in to get turned...(make smooth)

while im here time to do the wheel bearing hub...

Day 1 is over

Beginning of day 2

Assemble rear brakes and drums back together

Spark plugs and wires (pain in my butt the back 3)

Muffler...... always fun thank god I can tig weld !!

Transmission filter and gasket .....

Fill all the fluids .....off the steves tire center for two new tires

I spend $800 on the van

I put  $410 into it (auto zone rewards got to love it) spend $120 get $20

A hard weekend of weekend mechanic

and the van I kid you not runs like the day it was build !!!!

Its tempting to sell to make a profit but it is a truley awsome van

Moral !!!! stay with it to the work and it is rewarding ...dont give up unless the motor or trasmission is bad ......everything else is an easy fix or at least can be cheap and easy ...take your time !!!

BEARDOWN

Ohh yeah the kelly blue book (which I hate is $6245.00 for good condition..private seller)

[Jay2703 704]

I would dump it. While Beardown may be able to do the mechanical stuff I can't (more honestly just don't want to). I would have to pay to do it. Sounds like Huamana is in the same boat. If it's draining your bank account and you don't see any end, cut your losses and sell it. Consider yourself fortunate you can get what you paid for it. Sometimes you can make a new car payment on what you pay to maintain a lemon.

[FatDad 2]

Spark plugs and wires (pain in my butt the back 3)

i hate the back three on any minivan. It seems the only way for me to be able to get to them was with a long ext from underneath the van 

[haumana 1,221]

Bear ... why couldn't you be my neighbor who would be willing to help out a neighbor?    And yes, it required some skinned knuckles to change out the two plugs closest to the firewall. Good thing I'm not a girlie-girl. 

While I can do some of the more basic wrenching myself, some with guidance (oil, plugs, brakes, door latch assemblies), I am really wondering if it will turn into a money pit (even more than it currently is). Not to mention that there is only so much effort that I want to invest in this beast. I think that the straw that broke the camel's back was when it died on me the second time. If the first was a fluke then fine, but since it's died twice there is no reason to think that it will not happen a third time. The rest of the stuff was simply a pain in the butt, but when it starts to mysteriously die, then (to me) that elevates it to a completely different level. Yes, that would be me "scary to the lady."

I knew that buying a used car was basically buying someone else's trouble, and I can handle everything else but the engine dying. To not drive it not the answer, but I don't want to constantly be driving in the right lane just because I can never be sure the next time is going to die. I can see an accident waiting to happen, ARGH!  I mean, how am I supposed to whiz by the elderly drivers if I'm driving in their lane 

I know that everything seems like it's all good, since just about everything that required routine maintenance has been changed, but I guess my hesitation is now I gotta chase down what might be an electrical problem, or might not be.

I don't know .... a 4Runner or Highlander is looking pretty good at this point 

[Beardown 0]

Ship that bad boy to illinois and I would more than happy to fixer up .....Now with my experience i would say that it sounds like a vacuum leak to me .... hook the ol' smoke machine up to her and see if she leaks ....or by the manual and trace it down your self... Wish I was closer to help !!

DOWN

[haumana 1,221]

I wish you were closer too.

It ran fine, up until my last errand. Dropped off a friend after lunch (engine still idling), as soon as I shifted into reverse the engine died. Everything electrical stayed on this time. Shifted to N, turned the key - got nothing, no electrical, no crank, not hearing the fuel pump. Took the key out, shifted to P, tried to start - got everything but the engine turning over. Thought it was a fuel pump. Took the key out, waited a bit, turned the key - didn't hear the fuel pump, tried to crank it anyway - everything but it firing up. Battery sounds good when trying to start.

Called the friend, tow-truck on it's way. Gonna cost me a few cases a beer for this favor.

Got out, ate my (not so) cheeseburger happy meal at my friend's office. Went back outside, checked all the fuses (inside and out) again ... everything looks good. Gotta try it just one more time for the hell of it. Key in, and it fires up! This just can't be happening. What the heck? Turned it off, took the key out, put the key back in, started-up like a charm.

Still had it towed to my Uncle's house (where I usually do my limited skills wrenching).

So with that being said, anyone still have anything to add? Could it be on of the coils on the plugs going bad? If it was the crank position, wouldn't I just grief all the time, and wouldn't it just not fire up at all? Never had a vehicle as difficult as my HEEP. I grew up wrenching on old school Audi's, MGB's, Honda's and Scirocco's.

I'm thinking that I don't like vehicle drama.