jeeps of the last 20 years pros and cons

well to start this one out i want to say this is my personal opinion.
i am going to list some of the pro's and cons of certian jeeps mainly jeeps made from 1985 to 2007. i do not want any one to get upset or mad.I know we are all very passionate about our jeeps with that being said iam going to start now.

2002-2007 "KJ" Liberty
pro: good fuel economy
pro: decent ride
pro: the Renegade package
pro: some came with a diesel
con: replaced the XJ cherokee
con: they are roll too easy
con: after market parts cost too much
con: to buy one used your still are looking at 10K+
con: no cargo room
con: CV joint style axels
con: some what difficult to mod "lift or, run over size tires"

1997-2006 Wrangler TJ
pro: loads of after market parts cheap
pro: classic jeep body styling
PRO: removible top and doors
pro: fairly easy to work on mod and lift
pro: available with 4.0L engine
pro: common to find one with a 5 speed
con: exepensive to insure "if you are under 25"
con: half doors the ones with the vinyl windows
con: soft tops always leak and are hard to heated inside in the winter
con: hard tops cost an arm and a leg

1993-1998 ZJ Grand Cherokee
pro: availably with the 5.9L Magnum V8 &  5.2L Magnum V8
PRO: after market has caught on in the last few years
PRO: factory air bag in 1993 "that was unheard of in a SUV back then"
PRO: solid axles
con: eletrical issues
con: front end suspension problems "ball joints"
con: failure of the Ignition Coil
con: large plastic moldings on bottom of the doors and plastic bumpers
con: Creature comforts the begining of the end of the truck like SUV

1984-2001 XJ Cherokee
pro: cheap to buy used average cost for a nice one is between 2000 to 6000.
pro: exetreamly cheap to insure "if you are under 25"
pro: decent cargo room.
pro: very long  production life "18 years of XJ"
pro: utilizes a coil spring front suspension with a leaf spring rear suspension.
pro: easy to lift and mod
pro: two and four-doors both have exactly the same wheelbase measurements
pro: verry rare some came with a 2.1 L Renault turbodiesel I4
con: floor board's rot out
con: it's a unibody cant do a body lift also makes it hard to repair frame damage
con: not made any more last year mid 2001
con: Vibration Noise and Harsh ride
con: factory recal where the steering box mounts to the frame some times cracks
con: 2001 model years use a distributorless ignition system exepencive to replace

1986-1992 MJ Comanche
the same as the cherokee


well let me know what you guys think iam not puting any one's ride down i just wanted to post this for some one that is may be looking to buy a jeep to lift and make a decent rig out of. but feel free to coment on this thank you for your time  

Interesting...  
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So it's not a Jeep... sue me... it's still faster!

Questions? Comments? Concerns? PM Me!

Cool post, keep 'em comin'!  
Happy trails!
Casey

1977 CJ-5
1" body lift, 1" spring lift
AMC 304 V8
Edelbrock performer intake
Holley Pro-jection
RV Cam (unknown specs)
4:1 T-18 4-speed, Dana 20 T-case
Stock axles, 3.54 gears
Turbo muffler, stock manifolds
32x11.50 BFG M/T TAs

what about all the other jeeps out there...JK,YJ,CJ,LJ....come on if yoour gona list them then do them all.  

JK
pro-great looks (subjective I know! lol)
pro-very rigid vehicle
pro-reliability
pro-true dana 44 axles
pro-rubicon out of the box-possible best offroad vehicle ever.
pro-great interior
pro-very livable ABS, Trac control, Airbags
pro-decent gas mileage
con-3.8 is slow but really not THAT bad
con-aftermarket is still trying to catch up
con-aftermarket prices are still high since the market isn't saturated yet
con-front axle tubes supposedly bend with extreme to moderate four wheeling
con-have to be careful with plastic fenders  

YJ
pro-getting more affordable
pro-91 and newer had the HO 4.0
pro-easy to lift to get 33's
pro-lockers and gears are readily available
pro-there are examples of all types from ild to wild to be found
pro-parts are easy to find.
pro-readily available aftermarket parts
con-square headlights. LOL
con-1989 and 1990 had terrible carb issues
con-most had dana 35 rear axles
con-rough ride
con-if you really want to build one then have your wallet ready.  

CJ
pro-classic styling
pro-some came with V8's
pro-lots of aftermarket support-even bodies are available!
pro-easy to work on
con-getting harder to find
con-frames crack after years of use
con-rust can be an issue
con-vinly graphics are usually faded LOL
con-rough ride
A lot of the same pro's and cons as the YJ in my personal opinion.  

LJ=Long Jeep
Technically doesn't exist!

I've owned 1 '79 CJ5, one YJ, two Cherokees, one Grand Cherokee and now I have a JK two door model on 37's with the Rock Krawler 5.5 inch lift.

I just thought I would try to finish the list that Hammerdown had.

We still have the WJ, ZJ, Old Grand Cherokee (the big ones), JT, Willy's and a few more that I'm sure I'm forgetting.  

Great thread!  TODDSRODS I am not sure I agree with you about the JK having "true" Dana 44 axles.  I like the beefier ring and pinion, but to me a true Dana 44 would have locking hubs and wheel bearings that I could repack.  

Also, on the YJ you left off the Peugeot transmissions.  I agree with 99% of your points though, and I am glad that you typed them out so I didn't have to!  
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www.harrysituations.com

One big con about the CJ: ROLLOVER!  Especially the CJ-5, it's a squirrely sucker!  Although it got better when they introduced the wide track and started using sway bars more.

Excellent thread, full of win guys!  
Happy trails!
Casey

1977 CJ-5
1" body lift, 1" spring lift
AMC 304 V8
Edelbrock performer intake
Holley Pro-jection
RV Cam (unknown specs)
4:1 T-18 4-speed, Dana 20 T-case
Stock axles, 3.54 gears
Turbo muffler, stock manifolds
32x11.50 BFG M/T TAs

iam glad every one is being so positive about my poast. tho i shuld have just put the name as jeeps from 1990 to 2001 in the title insted of jeeps of the last 20 years LOL  

lol......that is alot of jeeps to cover  
I work to support my Jeep

WJ
Pros
Comfortable
V8 power avaiable
Lot's of creature comforts
Towing capability
Nice looks

Cons
Not a lot of aftermarket support
Lifts are expensive
Once lifted-still hard to run large tires
I've seen heating and AC probs with the dash. Will heat on one side and blow
  cold on the other.  Expensive fix.  About $1700.00
I've heard of the axle control arm mounts tearing off easier than most models.
Plastic bumpers.  

My vote goes for a 95-98 XJ with a chrysler 8.25 and a HP dana 30! so inexpensive, easy to build, and work great.  
Avatar photo credit: John Cappa

CJ
pro-LOTS of aftermarket support- only if you're talking post-1976
pro-doesn't matter how rough it is, CJ5s are chick magnets