First TJ 1999 Sport - Opinions

[Ardalan11B]

Hey all. I'm in the process of looking for my first TJ. Currently talking with someone now looking to buy this. Here's a list of what it has:

1999 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4.0L inline 6 with 5 speed manual transmission
135000mi (ATK rebuilt engine installed at ~125000mi)
Centerforce clutch with less than 5000mi. High inertia flywheel.
4” Rock Jock lift with Johnny joints
High clearance front flat fenders and hi-line lift
Hummer-style cowl snorkel
Hi-lift jack and hood mount
On-board air (ARB CKMA12) with bumper quick disconnect.
KC LED headlights and 4 KC LED off-road lights. LED brake and running lights.
Front Anti-Rock sway bar
Rock Jock heavy duty steer
35” General grabbers with ~5000mi. Matching spare tire and wheel.
Best Top seats with Carhartt seat covers
OEM low hard doors with Quadratec soft uppers
Best Top NX top (w/ Sunrider option)
Best Top full soft doors
BedTred full interior carpet kit
Rugged Radio GRMS radio (GMR25) and Rugged Radio intercom kit (RRP696)
Voswitch 8-gang Switch Panel
ATOTO 10” Stereo with GPS and Cell antennas.
Warn rock crawler front bumper and RuffStuff high clearance rear bumper.
LED magnetic rock lights
Rusty’s reinforced tailgate kit mount
Engine and steering box skid plates
High clearance transfer case skip plate
4.88 gears with front and rear ARB air lockers
NP231 with heavy duty chain and 6 planetary gear upgrade
Front Dana 30 with chromoly shafts and rear Dana 44
Milwaukee Packout rear cooler/storage system
Monstaliner Jungle Love Green (non-rubber paint)
Good solid frame with no issues, skidplate nutserts replaced with OEM style.
OEM rear seat not installed but included with Jeep.


I'm waiting on underbody pics and engine bay pics. Other then the obvious look for rust, what else should I be on the lookout for? What's a fair price? I love the way it looks and it seems to be setup well. It's about a 4 hour ride from me so I want to be prepared and get ad much out of the way as possible.

I appreciate all the help. I'm excited to get into a classic jeep.

 

[hear]

rust is the #1 thing you don’t want. On the frame especially. Share the pics when you get them. Establishing the value is hard. But know that anything that has that inventory of upgrades has probably been wheeled hard. Not that it necessarily matters. Just something to know.

 

[Duck Doctor]

Replacement of the nutserts under the tcase skid is a potential red flag that the frame has rust issues.

 

[Gilaguy23]

If you ever modded a vehicle you'd know you will never recoup the cost of the mods. Lots of mods, lots of hard core wheeling?? Look for a beat to xxxx underside and pumpkins. Of course rust is s killer, look inside the frame where you can. Why a new engine at 125K, a 4.0 is barely broke in at 125K. Rode hard and put away wet by some dumbass kid??

 

[Ardalan11B]

First response from seller.

1. Frame is rust free (one of the reasons I originally got the jeep). There is some rust around the body mounts below the cab where rock sliders are attached. I will get pics when I get home if you are still interested.
2. It rides very good. My wife and I took it to Asseteque Island which 6 hrs from us on major highways driving 70+mph.
3. No overheating or oil pump issues. The original engine had no issues except leaking rear main seal. To fix it permanently would have required sleeving the crank where seal rides. I was able to get a deal on a refurbished engine through 4Wheel Parts so it was easier/less expensive to swap engine.
I use a conventional motor oil as this was recommended by ATK. During break-in, an additive was used (I believe zinc, but can look through receipts if interested) for the first 1000miles. I changed the oil at 100, 500, 1000, and then every 3000 since.
4. Yes a slip yoke eliminator was installed (before lift actually). Correct length drive shafts were also fitted for the lift.

I appreciate the help from everyone so far.

 

[bbaldwin237]

That rear main seal leak sounds a little suspicious. Many of us have a rear main seal leak, and I would never opt to replace the engine for a minor leak.

Torque box and body mount repair could get expensive too if you're not prepared and equipped to do it yourself. But that depends on how bad that rust is. Some people will say there's rust for surface rust, others will say mostly rust free when a whole section of frame is rotted out because that's the only spot.

 

[Duck Doctor]

Definitely not easier/cheaper to replace an engine versus repairing a rear main seal leak. This statement from the seller would cause me to question the accuracy of all statements

 

[TheBoogieman]

Having bought a few Jeeps (20). the entire thing is a red flag to me. Unless it's under $5000.

 

[TheBoogieman]

It's about a 4 hour ride from me

Hopefully, that's a 4 hour ride SOUTH of Jersey.

 

[Rickyd]

The tj boxed frame holds water and salt. Looking inside the frame would be a must

 

[DaveC]

RMS/ engine swap story is total BS.

 

[hear]

I had a leaking axle seal and bought a new Jeep. I've learned from selling many Jeeps, that most buyers know NOTHING about Jeeps.

The guy I bought my 97 from sold it because it kept dying. It was the crank sensor. Now it's the most reliable car in our fleet, even behind my Land Cruiser (the screen keeps flickering and the climate control is baked into the touch screen for some stupid reason).

There is nothing better than finding a TJ that somebody is just giving away because of some issue that you know is $12 in parts and 15 minutes of effort. You know, or has a blown 32RH.

 

[Gilaguy23]

"I've learned from selling many Jeeps, that most buyers know NOTHING about Jeeps" As of lately here anyhow most know nothing about a vehicle let alone a jeep. Guess It keeps the shops and the likes of Matts offroad recovery in biz.

 

[Rickyd]

RMS/ engine swap story is total BS.

It is possible.there is always some level of lies to a used car sale. Or they guy had the RMS changed a few times at a shop that finally gave up and tried to blame the motor,not their car quest parts.

 

[Ardalan11B]

Well I got an update. Unfortunately I think I'll have to pass on this jeep. I really liked it. But here are pics. "surface Rust" on the tub /frame and real rust on the torque box per the seller. I'm guessing everyone's opinion is to walk away? He's asking over $10k but very open and honest. Anyone think different? As a chevy owner rust scares me. My 2500 is dissappearing lol.

 

[hear]

Pass, don’t look back.

 

[bbaldwin237]

Big pass! Again, some people's definitions of rust free or surface rust are surprising!

 

[Cooper Smith]

Hey all. I'm in the process of looking for my first TJ. Currently talking with someone now looking to buy this. Here's a list of what it has:

1999 Jeep Wrangler Sport 4.0L inline 6 with 5 speed manual transmission
135000mi (ATK rebuilt engine installed at ~125000mi)
Centerforce clutch with less than 5000mi. High inertia flywheel.
4” Rock Jock lift with Johnny joints
High clearance front flat fenders and hi-line lift
Hummer-style cowl snorkel
Hi-lift jack and hood mount
On-board air (ARB CKMA12) with bumper quick disconnect.
KC LED headlights and 4 KC LED off-road lights. LED brake and running lights.
Front Anti-Rock sway bar
Rock Jock heavy duty steer
35” General grabbers with ~5000mi. Matching spare tire and wheel.
Best Top seats with Carhartt seat covers
OEM low hard doors with Quadratec soft uppers
Best Top NX top (w/ Sunrider option)
Best Top full soft doors
BedTred full interior carpet kit
Rugged Radio GRMS radio (GMR25) and Rugged Radio intercom kit (RRP696)
Voswitch 8-gang Switch Panel
ATOTO 10” Stereo with GPS and Cell antennas.
Warn rock crawler front bumper and RuffStuff high clearance rear bumper.
LED magnetic rock lights
Rusty’s reinforced tailgate kit mount
Engine and steering box skid plates
High clearance transfer case skip plate
4.88 gears with front and rear ARB air lockers
NP231 with heavy duty chain and 6 planetary gear upgrade
Front Dana 30 with chromoly shafts and rear Dana 44
Milwaukee Packout rear cooler/storage system
Monstaliner Jungle Love Green (non-rubber paint)
Good solid frame with no issues, skidplate nutserts replaced with OEM style.
OEM rear seat not installed but included with Jeep.


I'm waiting on underbody pics and engine bay pics. Other then the obvious look for rust, what else should I be on the lookout for? What's a fair price? I love the way it looks and it seems to be setup well. It's about a 4 hour ride from me so I want to be prepared and get ad much out of the way as possible.

I appreciate all the help. I'm excited to get into a classic jeep.

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A 4.0 replaced at 125,000? This thing's been used.

If he wants >10k for rotted out torque boxes, he's waiting for someone who's NOT gonna look under it. It's a bunch of flashy parts (which might fool someone) bolted to a slowly disintegrating tub. Huge pass. I've learned my lesson with rust belt vehicles, I just take road trips now and only drive vehicles I care about in the spring/summer.

 

[DuckNut]

The guy I bought my 97 from sold it because it kept dying. It was the crank sensor. Now it's the most reliable car in our fleet, even behind my Land Cruiser (the screen keeps flickering and the climate control is baked into the touch screen for some stupid reason).

There is nothing better than finding a TJ that somebody is just giving away because of some issue that you know is $12 in parts and 15 minutes of effort. You know, or has a blown 32RH.

I bought a Ram 2500 from a dude who's mechanic told him it needed a new motor. I changed the completely plugged fuel filter and drove it for 4 years and nearly 100k miles before selling it.

@Ardalan11B ..now you know what to look for. Keep in mind that if you are not capable of turning wrenches every time you take it to the shop it will cost you a grand.

You will never find a perfect 25 year old vehicle. The frame is critical, the rest can be fixed. Pick the issues to walk from and weigh the cost to repair and make an offer.

That jeep has about 5-7 more years of life. If you could get it arond 5k drive it until its final drive to the dump. By then you will know tj's and you are in cheap. 5k is cheap tuition.

 

[hear]

There are 3 MUCH better jeeps on DFW marketplace for 5k or less right now. I wouldn’t touch that for 4k.
And I have three TJ’s in the driveway I haven’t spent $12k total on.