Hi and help! Is it worth the risk?

[Metallicar]

Hi all,

New here and looking for a bit of advice.

I went to look at a used 2000 Grand Cherokee Limited 4.7 last night. High miles but otherwise all seemed ok except the steering. The guy selling it said that the knuckle joint at the bottom of the steering column had been replaced for the MOT last month and the tracking just needs doing following this but when I took it out for a spin and noticed that the steering wheel is slightly out of line and that it vibrates when you go over 50mph.

Is this something to worry about our would sorting the tracking and/or some minor adjustments sort this?

Any help much appreciated as I need to get back to him today if I want it. Thanks in advance.

[Matt_N]

If it was just the tracking that needs sorting then for the sake of £20-£30 he would have done it and not advertised the car with a problem?

Bit like all the ads you see where it says 'aircon just needs regassing'.

All in my opinion of course

[McSam]

Unless it's ridiculously cheap or there are few other options around, I would definitely steer clear. No pun intended

There's nothing worse than finding reams of work that needs doing on a car you've just bought, so I'd try and avoid anything with any major issues. However, if you're set on this car, then I'd recommend taking a mechanic with you to have a look at it, and they may be able to tell you with more certainty what the exact problem is, and how much it's going to cost you. They'll also be in a much better position to say whether or not you should be considering it. If you know somebody then great - otherwise a lot of local garages' mechanics will accompany you to view a car for a few quid for their time.

And welcome to PH, hope you enjoy your stay

-Edited for typespasm

Edited by McSam on Friday 22 October 12:01

[teen_cerbera]

I run one of these, well its actually the 3.1 ltd edition. All I can say is they are not the best built cars and parts are very expensive. Also check all the electric windows, there are plastic "blocks" that clip onto the window/motor, these break and then cause all kinds of trouble with the motor etc.

This is a very difficuilt job, our local garage gave it back, Cherokee offered to do it for £450, luckily after alot of reading (us sites mainly) and ALOT of potch, i manager to replace the blocks and the motor - a job I would despise doing again! Dont be fooled into the "Ohh its just a motor, u can get them from a scrappy".

I would not get another, with the Petrol version, running costs will be even higher, on a good note, they have some of the comfiest seats available. Depending on your budget there must be better vehicles available....

[Metallicar]

Thanks guys.

I did a pretty thorough check of everything and it seems to be a very nice car for the money (he's asking £1750 but there's always room for haggling). I just don't want to part with my money only to find that it needs a lot more work on it than I thought. The guy selling seemed genuine and pointed out some of the flaws before I'd noticed them.

[snoopstah]

The steering being off-centre is easy to fix even at home -- unlike most cars, the alignment of the front wheels is separate from the centring of the steering wheel, so it's easy to re-centre the wheel without affecting the geometry.

The wobbling is more of a concern though -- could be something minor, or might not be. Given they're a relatively common car I'd try and find another.

Edit: See the bottom section on how to centre the steering wheel: http://4x4xplor.com/alignment.html

Edited by snoopstah on Friday 22 October 12:27

[BigBen]

If an alignment is about £30 offer to pay to have it done with the agreement you will get the money back during haggling

[snoopstah]

teen_cerbera said:

I would not get another, with the Petrol version, running costs will be even higher, on a good note, they have some of the comfiest seats available. Depending on your budget there must be better vehicles available....

To be fair, I've been very happy with mine (2004 2.7 CRD).

So far (touch wood!) the only part that's needed replacing is the air con expansion valve -- the specialist prepared me for a price of around £100 based on what most manufacturers typically charge, but it actually ended up being around £20 from Jeep!

There are a few common issues, but most cars have a few issues, and generally the Jeep ones are more inconvenient than serious (although windows dropping into the door wouldn't be much fun!)

I have to admit that I'd also be a bit scared about a 4.7 V8 though, from the fuel economy point of view. I'd strongly consider finding one that's had an LPG conversion done as the savings will be significant, although obviously the initial price is higher.

Are there better cars? Depends on what you want. For a car that can go properly offroad, yet is extremely comfortable, has modern looks, all the gadgets, and is astonishingly cheap for what you get, it's not that easy to beat. If you just want a high-up driving position then, yes, there are probably better choices.

[Metallicar]

That's the problem though. Other than this one and one other (which is red, OH doesn't do red) there isn't another one within over 100 mile radius according to AT and another website which is strange considering where I live (deepest, darkest Cornwall). None in the local papers either. I have a limited budget and this is a lot more car for the money. Alterantives seem to be petrol Freelander which I've been told to avoid due to reliability or really old Pajeros.

If I bought this one and it cost £100 or so to fix it would still be cheap. I'm really stuck with what to do.

[over_the_hill]

Matt_N said:

If it was just the tracking that needs sorting then for the sake of £20-£30 he would have done it and not advertised the car with a problem?

Bit like all the ads you see where it says 'aircon just needs regassing'.

All in my opinion of course

What he said. If it was in for the knuckle joint then why didn't he get it tracked up at the same time. In fact I'm surprised it wasn't included as part of the job.

[BigBen]

Metallicar said:

That's the problem though. Other than this one and one other (which is red, OH doesn't do red) there isn't another one within over 100 mile radius according to AT and another website which is strange considering where I live (deepest, darkest Cornwall). None in the local papers either. I have a limited budget and this is a lot more car for the money. Alterantives seem to be petrol Freelander which I've been told to avoid due to reliability or really old Pajeros.

If I bought this one and it cost £100 or so to fix it would still be cheap. I'm really stuck with what to do.

I repeat, pay for the tracking to be done pre-purchase. If it fixes it then buy the car, if it doesn't don't.

[Metallicar]

I need a big car for two reasons. One being that there is soon to be a mini Metallicar and the other being my massive dog. Had a Toyota Avensis estate before as a company car but she outgrew that and needs the extra height. I under no circumstances want a Picasso/Scenic/Touran thing either btw. We also take the dog out to remote locations and beaches for walks so the 4wd would be handy too.

Edited by Metallicar on Friday 22 October 12:48

Edited by Metallicar on Friday 22 October 12:53

[GPT]

I agree, do all your haggling, agree a price for the car, add £30 and say, "go and get the tracking done and if it fixes the steering problem I'll stand by the deal. If it doesn't I'll walk away". If he really believes that sorting the tracking will fix the problem he should have no problem agreeing to that deal. If he refuses then it's likely he's hiding something.

Simple.

[Metallicar]

GPT said:

I agree, do all your haggling, agree a price for the car, add £30 and say, "go and get the tracking done and if it fixes the steering problem I'll stand by the deal. If it doesn't I'll walk away". If he really believes that sorting the tracking will fix the problem he should have no problem agreeing to that deal. If he refuses then it's likely he's hiding something.

Simple.

Could be the way to go. I'm waiting on a call back from the sevice dept and the nearest main stealer for their opinion.

If it wasn't for the steering issue I'd have done a deal then and there. I'm not too worried about the MPG as it's only for weekends (works van during the week) and that V8 did sound good

[Metallicar]

Dealership reckon it's either the wheels need balancing or a universal / cv joint on the driveshaft. If it's the latter then maximum bill would be £250.

Have spoken to the seller and he is getting the tracking and balancing checked tomorrow then ringing me.

Either way looks like it might be worth it!