2002 TJ First Drive - Please Help Answer a Few Questions

[BaxterJeep]

I bought a 2002 TJ soft top, full door, 4.0, MT with 153K miles. I paid $8K.

My first drive today, about 50 miles on the back roads here in Middle TN and had a blast with it. I don't think it's been driven much over the last few years and it was a rough start to the trip, with a lot wandering on the road and poor handling that really had straightened out a lot by the end of the 50 miles. I think my little TJ really like getting out to drive again.

I have quite a few things to address on this vehicle to get it driving and working the way I want. I have a few specific issues that I would like your help with.

I am getting a loud snap noise from the front end on steep hill take offs in first gear. I also got this snap on slow sharp turns. I think I even heard it on a downhill coming to a stop. It sounds and feels to me like a loose bolt in the front end somewhere. Any ideas?

When starting in first gear on an uphill slope, I notice the clutch not engaging very well. It shudders and bounces and has a hard time getting going. Any ideas?

When slowing down in second gear coming up to a stop sign, if I engage first gear I get a grinding of the gears. This happens while still going 10mph or so as I'm slowing down. If i wait until I'm almost stopped to engage the first gear, I don't get the grinding. Is this just a TJ thing, or is this something I should be concerned with.

It's 23 years old. Should I just replace all the front end parts? Or should I have someone look it over and identify which parts are needed? Yes, parts will be needed. It does not handle well - or good enough for me. I'm very particular about how my vehicles feel going down the road. This one is moving far too much over bumps and in corners, and generally feels loose and frankly a bit dangerous.

Lastly, where do you all like to buy your TJ parts? I would prefer to buy them from a Jeep specialty store rather than Rock Auto.

Greg

 

[Oneslowtj]

I buy maintenance parts from rockauto for my jeep. Then any specific parts (Jeep stuff- lifts, bumpers etc) I buy from Jeep store . Usually Quadratec

 

[GregBelleville]

Rock Auto is a reliable supplier for replacement parts. Amazon might be faster but it's rife with counterfeit parts.

 

[KennethS]

Rock Auto if I can wait on shipping, the local auto parts store for things I want the same day. FYI, you can get the exact same parts from both of the above, and “Jeep specialty” places such as QuadraTec. None of them make the parts, they simply sell parts from various manufacturers.


To address the snap noise and wandering, I would check the control arm bushings. You can buy new control arms with the bushings already installed for around $25 each. Find the part number on one of the mentioned sites, then shop the internet for the place with the best price (including shipping). I like looking up part numbers on Rock Auto as they typically show multiple different manufacturers, then search the one you want to locate the best price.

Be aware that while Rock Auto has very good prices, it is not a single store but is a network of warehouses, so if you order multiple parts they can ship from different warehouses, each with its own shipping charge. I try to get all the parts I need from the same warehouse to keep the shipping cost down, but that sometimes means selecting different manufacturers than what I first wanted.

 

[Duck Doctor]

Rockauto is my go to retailer for stocks parts. Why are you downshifting into 1st while going 10MPH?

 

[BaxterJeep]

Rockauto is my go to retailer for stocks parts. Why are you downshifting into 1st while going 10MPH?

I'm not downshifting into first. I have the clutch in and I'm putting the gear lever into first in anticipation of starting up again from the stop sign.

Greg

 

[BaxterJeep]

I see a lot of you use Rock Auto. But how do you know what manufacturers are good to buy from?

Greg

 

[TallGuy]

I like your TJ! I have an '02 as well. I've purchased a few parts from Extreme Terrain, one arrived damaged tho. Good luck with the fixes.

 

[BaxterJeep]

I like your TJ! I have an '02 as well. I've purchased a few parts from Extreme Terrain, one arrived damaged tho. Good luck with the fixes.

Thanks! I'm excited to have this Jeep.

I've been driving my Porsche Boxster around these wonderful back roads we have nearby to us and I see all these great dirt roads as I drive by them. I have taken the Boxster on some of these dirt roads and a couple were pretty rough on it. So I was trying to think of a good vehicle that would allow me to enjoy the dirt roads and also be good on the paved roads as well.

I own a 2011 Audi Q7 but it's so heavy and floaty it just isn't fun to drive on backroads. It's a great vehicle for long road trips, but no good on dirt roads.

So I started looking for a fun vehicle to drive on these back roads. I would need something with decent ground clearance and AWD - full-time AWD, not the Haldex AWD. Ideally this vehicle would be a convertible with a manual transmission. Or at least one of those two. It would also need to be small, light and with nimble handling. With good paved road manners with the capability of light off-road use.

I was looking at Audis and Subarus for a long time and just not finding the right combination. Then a light bulb went on in my head. There are a lot of Jeep Wranglers out there for sale that are open-air, MT, and 4WD. They are small and nimble, and can be bought for less than $10K. They are super easy to work on too.

So I'm very happy to be part of the Jeep family now.

Greg

 

[primetime4]

Welcome to the club. My journey is almost the opposite of yours. I’ve owned my TJ from new and have no plans to get rid of it anytime soon but I just picked up this 981 and have to say it has permanently kicked the Jeep out of the garage. It’s just so darn sexy to look at and obviously the drive is amazing in comparison.

You’ll want to check all your bushings and steering linkages for the wandering. Worn sway bar end links can also cause clunking noises and handling issues. Keep in mind even brand new it’s not going to feel as precise. Make sure you get a good balance and alignment with the new tires and only inflate them to about 26 psi or so.

Coincidentally I also obsess over horn speakers. Specifically vintage JBLs but yours look amazing. Will have to take a closer look.

 

[Moglocker]

I bought a 2002 TJ soft top, full door, 4.0, MT with 153K miles. I paid $8K.

My first drive today, about 50 miles on the back roads here in Middle TN and had a blast with it. I don't think it's been driven much over the last few years and it was a rough start to the trip, with a lot wandering on the road and poor handling that really had straightened out a lot by the end of the 50 miles. I think my little TJ really like getting out to drive again.

I have quite a few things to address on this vehicle to get it driving and working the way I want. I have a few specific issues that I would like your help with.

I am getting a loud snap noise from the front end on steep hill take offs in first gear. I also got this snap on slow sharp turns. I think I even heard it on a downhill coming to a stop. It sounds and feels to me like a loose bolt in the front end somewhere. Any ideas?

When starting in first gear on an uphill slope, I notice the clutch not engaging very well. It shudders and bounces and has a hard time getting going. Any ideas?

When slowing down in second gear coming up to a stop sign, if I engage first gear I get a grinding of the gears. This happens while still going 10mph or so as I'm slowing down. If i wait until I'm almost stopped to engage the first gear, I don't get the grinding. Is this just a TJ thing, or is this something I should be concerned with.

It's 23 years old. Should I just replace all the front end parts? Or should I have someone look it over and identify which parts are needed? Yes, parts will be needed. It does not handle well - or good enough for me. I'm very particular about how my vehicles feel going down the road. This one is moving far too much over bumps and in corners, and generally feels loose and frankly a bit dangerous.

Lastly, where do you all like to buy your TJ parts? I would prefer to buy them from a Jeep specialty store rather than Rock Auto.

Greg

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Start by getting a buddy to help do a dry steer(wiggle the steering wheel with engine off)and see what’s lose.

 

[BaxterJeep]

Welcome to the club. My journey is almost the opposite of yours. I’ve owned my TJ from new and have no plans to get rid of it anytime soon but I just picked up this 981 and have to say it has permanently kicked the Jeep out of the garage. It’s just so darn sexy to look at and obviously the drive is amazing in comparison.

You’ll want to check all your bushings and steering linkages for the wandering. Worn sway bar end links can also cause clunking noises and handling issues. Keep in mind even brand new it’s not going to feel as precise. Make sure you get a good balance and alignment with the new tires and only inflate them to about 26 psi or so.

Coincidentally I also obsess over horn speakers. Specifically vintage JBLs but yours look amazing. Will have to take a closer look.

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That's a beaut. Mine is a 2000 Boxster and it's my favorite car I've ever owned. I do lust after a 981 though, a very solid choice. Not many issues with those and none of the stupid stuff that all new vehicles have. I'm not buying a car that shuts itself off at stop signs (and I'm not going to put up with having to turn off the nanny stuff every time I get in the car. How ridiculous). The pinnacle of all automotive engineering has to be around 2013 for most vehicles - IMO. If I had to keep it, I wouldn't take a GT3 over my old Boxster.

Thanks for the advice on what to look for on my Jeep. Is it worth just replacing all the front end parts? Does anyone offer a complete front-end rebuild kit with all the goodies and hardware included?

Greg

 

[BaxterJeep]

Start by getting a buddy to help do a dry steer(wiggle the steering wheel with engine off)and see what’s lose.

Thanks I'll do that. I'm very lucky in that I have a mechanic who comes to my garage to do work on all my vehicles. He is meticulous in his work. A bit slow at times, but very thorough. Never cuts corners. $40 per hour. Can't beat it. Plus he's a nice guy. We take our time to talk over what to do with the fixes and find the best options for each vehicle. We both research - he does YouTube mostly and I do forum advice. So much better than a shop.

I appreciate you all.

Greg

 

[primetime4]

I would not try to replace the entire front end. There are 4 control arms, a track bar, the steering linkage, upper and lower shafts, and the sway bar connects not to mention the steering box. That’s a lot of parts and any combination could cause some wobble. I would do the test recommended and start from there.

 

[BaxterJeep]

I would not try to replace the entire front end. There are 4 control arms, a track bar, the steering linkage, upper and lower shafts, and the sway bar connects not to mention the steering box. That’s a lot of parts and any combination could cause some wobble. I would do the test recommended and start from there.

There's something very appealing to me about doing this

https://www.amazon.com/Detroit-Axle-Adjustment-1997-2006-Wrangler/dp/B07BYMHY81/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Greg

 

[Rickyd]

There's something very appealing to me about doing this

https://www.amazon.com/Detroit-Axle-Adjustment-1997-2006-Wrangler/dp/B07BYMHY81/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Greg

Don't put that garbage on your jeep. Use good brands

 

[machoheadgames]

There's something very appealing to me about doing this

https://www.amazon.com/Detroit-Axle-Adjustment-1997-2006-Wrangler/dp/B07BYMHY81/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Greg

Whatever you do, don’t run any ball joints that aren’t stock Dana spicer. Anything else will be knurled like the ones in the pic and will stretch out the holes in the axle inner C.

Throwing a whole bunch of new parts at it is not a terrible idea, as much of that stuff is old and worn by now..however it will make it difficult to tell what part fixed the actual problem, so unless you do test drives between each install, you won’t learn much about what actually needed to be fixed.

And it could be that you do all that and then find out you still need a new steering gear or something else. So probably best to narrow down the problem point first. Personally, I think factory joints are better than the OEM replacement level parts from retailers, so I wouldn’t replace the tie rod ends at least until I had determined one or more were bad. Until then, grease them up and run them.

Also, I don’t like Detroit Axle. I’d choose one of the higher rated brands on RockAuto and try to find Mopar on anything you can.

 

[CharlesHS]

As previously posted; perform a dry steer while observing parts movement on the front end to identify where the worn parts are.
IF you determine the front steering tie rods are worn and require replacing the front steering assembly; I would recommend upgrading the the Jeep ZJ steering assembly using MOOG parts.
Research the conversion on this Forum with this link.

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/zj-tie-rod-conversion.2373/

 

[BaxterJeep]

Don't put that garbage on your jeep. Use good brands

I'm just learning about what brands to use on my Jeep. This is why I'm asking about using a Jeep specialty store to buy my parts, since they will be able to presumably steer me towards the better brands. For my German cars, I use FCP Euro and I can get a person on the phone who can help me find the parts I need and give me options on parts and pricing. I usually check with Parts Geek to see how much more I'm spending with FCP. If it's not too much of a difference, I buy from FCP to support them. If it's more than 50% higher for the same brand, then I use Parts Geek.

What brands do you recommend for my Jeep?

Greg

 

[BaxterJeep]

Whatever you do, don’t run any ball joints that aren’t stock Dana spicer. Anything else will be knurled like the ones in the pic and will stretch out the holes in the axle inner C.

Throwing a whole bunch of new parts at it is not a terrible idea, as much of that stuff is old and worn by now..however it will make it difficult to tell what part fixed the actual problem, so unless you do test drives between each install, you won’t learn much about what actually needed to be fixed.

And it could be that you do all that and then find out you still need a new steering gear or something else. So probably best to narrow down the problem point first. Personally, I think factory joints are better than the OEM replacement level parts from retailers, so I wouldn’t replace the tie rod ends at least until I had determined one or more were bad. Until then, grease them up and run them.

Also, I don’t like Detroit Axle. I’d choose one of the higher rated brands on RockAuto and try to find Mopar on anything you can.

Hi macho. How's one supposed to know not to use something other than Dana for ball joints? Do I have to ask the forum on every single part I need for my Jeep? I mean, I will if I have to. But this is why I'm asking about buying parts from a specialty Jeep parts store. See answer above. Is there a place that's trustworthy that would give me the same advice you are about ball joints and steer me in the right direction on other parts? I don't mind spending a little more money for their guidance, as long as it's good guidance.

I don't need to know what part fixed the problem. There is comfort in knowing that all the front end parts on my 23 year old Jeep are like new and making the vehicle drive as straight and tight as it did new. Or near to that. It just doesn't seem that expensive to me. But if what you are saying is correct, I should only replace tie rod ends if they absolutely need it. Although, what if they are worn 50% and upon inspection by my mechanic he determines that they are still fine? In other words he doesn't see the 50% wear? Then would it better to have the best quality replacement tie rod ends that are 0% worn, even if they are not as high quality as the original ones? By the way, this is why my wife says I'm difficult. I can't help it, I'm just a thinker.

I don't know how to find out what are the higher end brands on Rock Auto.

Should I always look for Mopar, or OEM spec, or ??

Greg