Hi guys.
I'm picking up my first jeep on Friday. It's an 89 tan YJ. It's in good shape, but I am completely new to jeeps and read a lot of things about yjs. Is there any pointers you can give for a first time owner/driver of a yj?
Reading through some posts on here I'm a little nervous with people saying water pours into them when it rains, things go wrong on them all the time, etc. etc.
I also read that when pumping gas it doesn't stop when it's full. Is this true for all yjs?
Just trying to get a crash course before I pick it up, so any pointers or heads up will be much appreciated!
Is it the 6 cylinder or 4? The 4 is throttle body injected and the 6 is carbed. There are a lot of mods that can be done to the carb setup to make them more reliable and run better.
Things will go wrong with them because it is 25 years old. There are parts that should have been replaced that may not have been. Short list of things include, axle seals, wheel bearings, ball joints, tie rod ends, ect.
The water issues are easy to narrow down and fix if you have any.
It's located far away so the guys sent me some videos.
Here is a screenshot of underneath in the rear.
It almost looks like it was painted or something. Does this look normal, or bad?
He said there wasn't any serious rust at all on the frame.
But it's a 3.5 hour drive and I don't know if I should take his word.
OK... first item... Rob bank
begin mild modifications
when complete.. rob bank
begin mid level modifications
when complete.. rob bank
begin heavy modifications
when complete.. rob bank
begin outrageous modifications
when complete.. sell YJ for huge loss :jawdrop:
purchase new Rubicon :drool:
begin cycle all over..... :thumb:
It's hard to tell from that screen shot. Need to take a screw driver and start stabbing it. But it has def been painted. Either to cover up or protect. That is the place they rust though.
If that is weld splatter in that pic they suck at welding not sure what kind of deal you are getting but there are frame repairs you can do for that spot just depends in you. If you are not confident about that stuff or do not have a lot if money you will be disappointed I think in the long run a lot of people buy YJ's to fix up and lose interest quick when the money flys out of the wallet.
Bottom line is it is your call your money and your time.
Having said all of that that pic in my opinion shows frame rust and crappy repair so if they screwed the pooch on that what else did they goon?
I'm pretty sure that is just peeling/bubbling paint. Wouldn't that be an odd spot for a weld? (could be wrong).
I'm not getting a crazy deal on it. I'm just really emotionally invested after weeks of talking to the guy and looking at pics. That's my problem right now.
It's a tan Sahara which is really hard to find. I am mostly attached to the color to be honest.
If one area is rusty and rotting away, there are probably others. Body bolts, etc, will be a total PITA to remove. Simple jobs will become difficult. Investigate very thoroughly before buying. It's hard, but try not to get emotionally invested in it.
Personally, I'd recommend that you find one without rust. Many other things are easy to fix, but rust can lead to frame swaps or tub swaps, and neither one of those are fun or easy.
Thanks. I think you might be right.
Ya, I've been thinking about this jeep nonstop for about 3 weeks.
It's really hard.
I haven't been able to find another tan 89 for sale anywhere (in the country, let alone locally) so that is what has kept me sticking on this one.
I'm having him check if it's just paint or a bad weld. There is a tiny bit of rust in the rear but that's it. Just want to make sure someone didn't try to cover up more.
This wouldn't be a problem if the jeep wasn't so far away.
I want it really bad, but I don't want a nightmare either.
It sucks being a newbie with jeeps and falling in love with one that might have issues.
I just talked to him and he says that that area is just some kind of coating. Not a messy weld or a cover up.
He is going to raise up the jeep tomorrow morning and send me photos.
I will post back here around 930-10.
I'd appreciate it if some of you guys could check the pics out and give me a yay or nay. I'm in the dark here and could really use some help.
Face it. They are ALL nightmares and pain-in-the-azzes! Good luck finding one with no rust. The newest YJ's are 20 years old now so chances are they have been butched, modified, abused, and put away wet. I know all of you that think your Jeep is the "end-all" "best-thing ever", will disagree with me. So quit your whining. But I am being honest. They were junk new, and are junk 25 years later. Fact of life. If you can accept that fact, have fun with it and be prepared to waste time & money when it lets you down.
As far as this one, if you like it, buy it. If you are scared, don't. Find one closer to you and paint it the color you like. They will never be worth that much money even if you happen to find a real nice one. If you dump a ton of $$$ into it, kiss the cash goodbye forever.
I do like mine, but it is a junker. I can live with that fact and don't expect it to be any more than that.
I do want this to be my daily driver, but I don't drive a lot. And I will not be taking it on any rough trails or anything like that. The most it will be is a beach driver as well.
I just want it to be safe.
I understand there are quirks and things that go wrong with these. But I currently drive a basically brand new honda...and I'd rather have $5k jeep and dump a few thousand into it over the years than keep driving a new honda!
And as long as the frame isn't going to snap in half while I'm driving or something, I honestly don't care about a little rust or anything.
The thing that worries me here is he says there are 2 small areas (one on each side) in the back, and I don't know why someone would do this.
I'll know more in the morning when he gets it up in the air and sends some more pics.
To the OP: Through the years, many improvements were made to YJs.
I'd recommend a 95 with a 4.0l engine and AX15 manual transmission, if you can find one. 95s had all of the following:
Better rust protection
Larger front front axle u-joints
External slave on the manual transmission
Fuel injection
Better brake booster and master cylinder (on the 4.0l only)
Additionally, the 4.0 and AX15 are known for their reliability. Personally, I would stay away from pre-91 engines without fuel injection. Others may disagree, but that's my opinion.
This doesn't mean that you won't have issues, but you're minimizing the risk.
My biggest problem with this whole post is you say it's been weeks that you have been talking to this guy about this jeep...... Maybe it's where I live but if a yj is for sale at a good price in Michigan it's gone in hours not weeks. So be extra careful in checking frame, body, engine, drive train, not sure where it's from but if it's been for sale for weeks than there's a reason, jmo
His price isn't a steal by any means. But he won't budge. That's why it hasn't sold. Also, he took it off the market a week and a half ago when he replaced the carb and brakes. And never really re-listed it since he knew I was interested.
But ya, it isn't super cheap otherwise I'm sure it would be gone by now.
It's all tan. Which was only made in 89, which is the only reason I'm even still interested. It's the exact jeep I want and I can't find (or haven't even seen) another one for sale.
Tomorrow morning he is going to send me good photos of the entire underneath which will give me a better idea. (I will start a thread).
And if I end up going there tomorrow, I will obviously check things out myself. He also said that I can meet with his mechanic with the jeep raised and go through everything.
Just look over it really really well..I didn't look over mine enough and I'm finding some rust I didn't notice before, nothing serious or really that expensive (knock on wood) but just check it over like crazy. It's already good you're doing more research first on here. And from what i am seeing at least, the people that have them that require a lot of fixing, are the ones taking them off-roading a lot!
Ya, I mean, I won't be doing any off-roading. And I work from home, so driving in general is minimal. The post office/errands daily and the occasional weekend trip. Anything over a couple hundred miles I always rent a car or fly anyway.
So basically, any jeep I get will be driven "carefully". Especially a 25 year old one.
He wants $5100. Which I know is high. It does have new tires, brakes, carb and exhaust. And the engine is super clean and runs very well. No other issues. It's just the frame that's worrying me.
I wouldn't pay over $4,500. Mine runs great and has less rust than the one you are looking at, plus had a couple little, but not cheap, mods and 6 extra bf Goodrich tires and I paid $4,500. But if you have the money then by all means, I'm just a 20 year old who wanted his first car haha just some advice though, it's all entirely up to you my friend!
Paid $1800 for mine, and it was in reasonable shape for a Jeep. Needed a weld in the rear frame, a floor pan, and some (not much)mechanical work. I did it all myself, so consider that when plunking down your cash. Be strong. Take a BIG friend with you, show him your cash, and be willing to walk away. He still has it for sale after a month or so, right? There are 650,000 of these junkers out there. Don't let someone else's POS become yours for WAAAAAAAY to much money. They are ALL POS's, just find a decent one for cheap. If it was me, I'd offer him 25 brand new 100 dollar bills, and walk away when he says no(that is what the big friend is for!).
Again, my $.02.
So did you go look at it or what? What's the verdict?
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