A lot of the younger guys at work have started picking up old solid-axle vehicles for VERY cheap. Before I bought the XJ, there was an '88 GQ Patrol with 400K+ on the clock, an '84 60 series cruiser getting rebuilt, an '86 leaf/leaf hilux and an old MQ Shorty patrol. Everyone kept pestering me to get something oldschool that I could go to town on, but do so without breaking the bank.
After talking to a number of overseas and local distributors, I settled on an XJ Cherokee. The main reason was the 5-link front end, which offers heaps more flex from standard than any of the above vehicles. I just had to find the right one at the right price.
Anyway, a very clean '96 Sport came up on Gumtree for $1400 with auto issues. I haggled the seller down to $900 without rego, and the deal was done. Picked the car up the next night and towed it home. Put 6 months rego on it the day after that and she was good to go. Having driven it around for the past couple of weeks, there are a couple of issues I'd noticed:
-Wouldn't start when hot, and will randomly stall when changing gears after driving around town;
-Had to change gears manually, meaning a loss of 2nd gear.
These have since been rectified, which I'll cover later.
The whole point of this build is to create the most capable off-roader for under $10k. So far I've spent $2100 including rego, insurance, servicing and initial purchase, so I'm off to a fairly good start. I'll be building as much as I can myself for this (rear bar, sliders, etc.), although I'm pretty sure I've got the best start, that 5-link front flexes extremely well.
Alright, first issue: Inconsistent starting habits.
After testing the injectors, fuel pump and relay, dizzy and everything else I could think of, it was left down to the Crank Angle Sensor. Sure enough, it was malfunctioning. New one was ordered through work and fitted today, and has done the trick. Starts up within the first couple of cranks now.
Next problem: The non-auto Auto.
I had to manually shift through the gears as the auto box would simply try and take off from a stand-still in 4th if left in D. This was alright for a while, but the TC wouldn't lock-up on the highway either, which was seriously killing the fuel economy. I know the XJ isn't great on fuel, but 15L/100km on the highway was a bit crap.
Anyway, after testing the NSS and checking all fuses and relays for the TCU, the only thing left was to pull it apart. Found a thread on AusJeepOffroad from a member with identical issues, and his fix was to replace the solenoids. Rather than just do the two shift units, I replaced all three (TCC, Shift 1, Shift 2) as I didn't want to have to pull the pan off again to replace another further down the track.
2.5hrs on the hoist, and it was all done. Had a little issue with the clearance between the pan, exhaust and crossmember, but got there in the end. Put a filter kit and new oil in at the same time as the original ones were completely cactus. The cork was hard and brittle, and the oil was dark brown.
New gear all fitted up with fresh new oil, and it was running like a dream. Oil level is a little above the full marker, but not enough to worry about.I'll be doing a full service on the rest of the engine tomorrow, so will hopefully get her purring like a kitten again.
After that will be a full new stereo system, as I got a decent Pioneer head-unit from a few friends for my birthday. Just have to get the amp and speakers now.Gratuitous Flex Shot with the boss' GQ Patrol:
on the "other forum"?
They also scrub just about everywhere, so I really need to get the lift fitted. 
Most of the parts have arrived, but I can't build the shocks until the front control arms and steering rods turn up. Need to get as much suspension travel as possible from this thing.
