Jeep Cherokee: Engine Options & Basics Explained 2.5L, 2.8L, 4.0L, 2.1L ['84-'01 XJ]

[@NickInTimeFilms]

Most comprehensive coverage I've ever seen on all the different Engine Variants for these old Jeeps. Great work and thanks for the shout-out!

[@WAEMIDIV]

IT'S THE MAN HIMSELF! AAAHAHAHAHAAA YES hello! Awesome that you watched the video! Oh my god I'm all excited now

[@matthewmattix]

Hey ​@@WAEMIDIV I made a post on KZbin and I tagged you in the post and the videos that I uploaded. I have a question for you it’s about my xj.

[@WAEMIDIV]

@matthewmattix I watched the videos, uh... sounds like the engine runs. I don't see any problems

[@matthewmattix]

@@WAEMIDIV ok

[@bigsandwich]

Waemid, I just came across this channel a few weeks ago and I must say this. Your content is certainly busting. You bless me and my 96 XJ with knowledge

[@Brolop19]

annnnnnnd yet again i am blown away at the knowledge that i gain from every waemid tv video, KZbin GET THIS MAN A WEEKLY PAYCHECK!!!!!!

[@WAEMIDIV]

Weekly? Shit I could buy a candy bar on a good week!

[@Brolop19]

@@WAEMIDIV Dude I love your content, I did a manual swap on my 98 just off your video alone. You make top notch content, and especially with your ex gf jokes!😂 I did a zj disc brake swap and added cruise control on my xj right after covid hit, I just "graduated" hs. More like they just said, "heres ur deploma". But anyway, your content is bitchin! I love it! The next thing for my jeep is to fix this roof rust right above the rear view mirror and put this over head console in. Then if my rebuilt 4.0 bored .30 over with a slightly bigger cam thats currently making piston slap noises YET AGAIN AFTER A REBUILD🤦🏻‍♂️. Then I'm think a TDI swap. Turbo noises and 30+ mpg, yes plz!!!!!! But anyway I can't stress enough I LOVE UR CONTENT BROTHER!🤘🏻😎 No matter what your parents say, we all love ya dude, keep on makin XJ content, no one does it better than you goodsir!

[@WAEMIDIV]

@MWilson19 now that's a high compliment, I very much appreciate it my guy! "Never settle for less than your best" was plastered on a cheezy inspirational poster in my high school, but I think it is a good moral to follow. No sense in making videos unless they're better than the ones out there already.

[@Brolop19]

@@WAEMIDIV Oh absolutely, that is a good moral to live by! Give it your all and rewards will come later. I always go into things with this bible verse and it really helps me keep my motivation. Deuteronomy 31:8 The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

[@Eri-Lan]

Thanks for the big shoutout. I am very happy that I was able to help with the making of the video, as you have helped tremendously with your other videos for diagnosing and fixing my Jeep’s

[@zanehayes4380]

Fantastic breakdown of the timeline! I can’t explain why but, I almost want to torture myself by owning a 2.8l. There’s something intriguing about such a, really well engineered, engine xD

[@WAEMIDIV]

Dude I've heavily considered it too. Just for the novelty sake of having a V6 XJ and fighting with the thing every day. But I think I'd rather have the 2.1L TD, and I found one for sale only 12 hours away... I'm thinking about it...

[@zanehayes4380]

@@WAEMIDIV That TD sounds enticing. Im assuming, it being a diesel, will be a pretty fun learning experience, hands on that is. I personally don’t know that much about diesel engines, only an abstract understanding.

[@WAEMIDIV]

@zanehayes4380 yeah me neither. I've never operated one consistently, and have no idea what to expect. But I'm trying not to get my hopes up, there's a big chance I might not be able to get it

[@GF_Burke]

Love my 98 XJ, it's just like working on my 79 F150 300 straight. Same oil, filter, tires. Both are pretty built. w0mp

[@s3viking_Y2K_Sport]

Ok I’m I’m imnpressed on how comprehensive you went, hats off to your research, I don’t know if it was ball bustin or not

[@WAEMIDIV]

This was a project in the making for about a year, I hit a roadblock when I needed footage and info of the 2.8L V6 and just gave up. Figured I'd never find one. About 4 months ago I found that 1985 on Marketplace about 2 hours away from me and I drove all the way out there just to see it. The project was back on! But the 2.1L TD was impossible. Nobody anywhere knows anything about them, it took some very deep dives into 80s parts catalogues (some of them in German - had to have my Greek friend translate for me) and a lot of useless arguing people on the forums After 4 months, I finally found a guy who had 2 of them, over in New Jersey. He sent me some footage and knowledge, and then it was a matter of editing It was truly a worldwide adventure, footage from Wisconsin, Florida, New Jersey, Greece, and Germany to make this possible! But I still wanna drive a 2.1L XJ someday. That oughta be worth a video of its own

[@s3viking_Y2K_Sport]

Well I’ll be damned, we’ll done. I’ve also got a question. I’ve a got a 2000 Xj Sport, and it’s black like you apparently like (the profile pic shows the black xj), I noticed the xj’s torque went up to 243, that’s a rather good jump in my opinion, was it because of the COP system or was it a different matter? I’d be rather impressed if the torque was that high in the last years

[@WAEMIDIV]

@@s3viking_Y2K_Sport well it was a combination of the horseshoe intake, a different flowing cylinder head, and the coil rail yes. The coil rail fires in a wasted spark method, where the opposite cylinder's spark plug will fire simultaneously with the one on the power stroke. 1 & 6, 2 & 5, 3 & 4. Firing a spark plug on a cylinder's exhaust stroke burns any previously unburnt fuel that survived the power stroke, thereby basically giving you 2 power strokes at the same time. One, of course, being much less effective, and also dependent on the many variables of what kind of gasoline you have in it, but that's a win for the coil rail. The 2000+ engines are also a good few pounds lighter because of the 0331 head, all of these things combine to get every last bit of power out of the thing.

[@s3viking_Y2K_Sport]

@@WAEMIDIV I just watched the coil replacement video and it summed that all up. thanks!

[@s3viking_Y2K_Sport]

@@WAEMIDIV I somehow found a 2.1 TD having fun kzbin.infom4OXLB9D4Cs (acceleration) kzbin.infoTc4HqedMG1E

[@Jayman0057]

9:43 hey, that's me!

[@TylerBigHead]

Dude this is one of the better auto videos ive seen recently and as a tech im so tired of the "whats up guys" vlog content

[@danhambrick6331]

Another great video Waemid.👍👍

[@clevelandcarpenter8535]

Great video! I enjoyed the music.

[@tartopom2669]

Absolutely perfect video, maybe the last topic you could cover now in this series would be the rare/worthwile factory options, or the fleet and special service vehicles 🤪 Anyway every time I come to your channel it gets confirmed more and more, it's astonishing to me how the quality and research in these videos is top notch. One of, if not the best Cherokee content creator that's for sure. Congrats man !

[@ChristianCooper-soundwave]

I love all your content thank you for the many hours of information, inspiration and hilarity.

[@Jayman0057]

5:28 hey that's my Jeep!

[@KyleSVT]

Well done sir!

[@tartopom2669]

2.5 VM Diesel owner here. Like how raw and torquey it feels, though that's all you can say about it since it was an industrial and marine engine at first. Perfect for steep inclines and has a very good fuel consumption, usually doesn't need maintenance at all other than basic stuff. Early versions heads hate overheating, other than that, mechanically talking it's a good engine all around without being excellent. Performance wise it was definitely a good diesel for its time. The exact same engine, but with one more cylinder was put in the WJ, making it a 3.1 I5, and an I6 version also exist in european light/medium duty trucks. Would love to swap these in a XJ 😂😂 and I can't help but think about a Buick 3800 V6 swap when talking about V6 XJ's too...

[@WAEMIDIV]

well that's a lot of new Intel I never knew, awesome stuff

[@tartopom2669]

@@WAEMIDIV fr, the best feature imo is it not having timing belts or chain just put a pile of gears and never touch it again. Glad to see a lot of fellow europeans in the comment section too !

[@nathanburdett1202]

Hey there! i have a 2.1 l and i drive the hell out of it (not abusing it) i've got 352thousands kilometers on the clock but who knows really since when i bought it almost none of the gauges worked and according to the mechanic that rebuilt the ax5 transmission looked like it had close to a million kilometers lol i love this jeep! btw , residing in Argentina and i think this one was imported from France long ago , it's a 1993.

[@WAEMIDIV]

That's about 220,000 miles for us who can't speak metric, and you're the first person I've heard from in Argentina! I've wanted to go there since I was young, it's such a beautiful place. Very happy to hear a 2.1L is driving around, especially somewhere in the Americas!

[@chrisfetzer435]

I just ran across your channel. I have previously owned 3 2dr 2.5 manual xjs 84-85. I still own one now 85 2dr with a swapped in ax5 instead of an ax4 with the np207 transfer case.

[@Yggr153]

This is an awesome channel! I have a cherokee with an evap leak (hose to the intake manifold is split in twain lol) and i was looking for diagrams. Have you made a video on chasing down shorts or parasitic drain?

[@WAEMIDIV]

Nothing on electrical shorts, but I do have a guide to the EVAP system which includes a diagram of it kzbin.info/www/bejne/sIXHlKSpidSopLs I find parasitic draw in the Cherokee is most often one of 2 things: a light somewhere is stuck on (think glove box, footwell, hood light) or its a bad alternator. But I haven't had any notable electrical issues myself so I am not an expert. I know Alternators can do very strange things when they fail though

[@matthewmattix]

Awesome channel waemid you have a lot of good knowledge just like nickintimefilms does with the renix 4.0 and 2.5. You both have good knowledge 😉 and waemid i get kick out of the commentary when you say a joke it funny lol 😂

[@theduderski2848]

I have an 87 amc 2.5l xj and it makes getting parts a pain in the ass

[@cousin_JACK]

I need your expertise dude. Can’t seem to find any information on a second cable attached to the throttle body linkage. One cable goes to the pedal but the other routes under the air box and into a little square box that also has some wires going into it and it does have a sticker on top that reads “ SPEED-CONTROL ELECTRIC SERVO “ both those cables attach at the same point on the linkage ? Any clue on the importance and its operation. Thanks 1988 MJ 4.0 2WD manual

[@WAEMIDIV]

@@cousin_JACK That would be cruise control

[@cousin_JACK]

@@WAEMIDIV thanks a bunch. I may have suspected but thought otherwise, surely they wouldn’t have put in by accident since it’s manual but I guess I will unbolt out completely. Strange and frustrating as I was so confused and to find out, wasn’t even connected haha. Thanks dude

[@cousin_JACK]

@@WAEMIDIV kzbin.infoIalj1f_e87w?si=b3O-rLJ78lI4PntV

[@wr3add]

Awesome!

[@MelodyFierce]

My 2.8l V6 be running great still 😅🤞🏽

[@fernandmarquet4272]

How many miles do you have on it?

[@moejr14]

Where can I find more info on the USA deisel engine?

[@WAEMIDIV]

good luck, because the basic information in this video required me to do some pretty deep diving. The Renault 2.1L shares its parts with the Winnebago Lesharo van, so you might find something there

[@WAEMIDIV]

@moejr14 you gotta either learn to check your YT notifications or give that Jeep to me

[@TheTechnicalWizard]

Proud owner of two diesel Comanches! One is a 1986 and one is a 1987. Both are 2WD.

[@WAEMIDIV]

Whaaaat! Unbelievable! I absolutely must see them! I couldn't find them on your channel. Is there a chance I could meet you?? I've actually never found someone with a 2.1L MJ before

[@WAEMIDIV]

@TheTechnicalWizard are you real?

[@TheTechnicalWizard]

@@WAEMIDIV Yes I am haha. Been very occupied with life this year so I haven’t found time to film the Jeeps.

[@kevintrask2704]

Unless you've seen otherwise, the bad head didn't hit the xj until 2000. The 331 head was introduced in 99, but only was on the WJ 4.0. If you can make it up to Jax, you can drive my 99 2.5L 5 speed.

[@WAEMIDIV]

I have seen a 1999 XJ with a confirmed cracked head, and have never seen a non-0331 casted head crack. So while I can't necessarily confirm this 1999 had a 0331, I also haven't seen anything that confirms only the WJs had them in 1999 specifically. 1999 is a wack year. I should've gotten a 1999 XJ for myself so I'd know these things for certain. Also always wanted a 96 for those same reasons Jax? Jacksonville FL? Not so sure I can anytime soon, I never go up the East coast lol. But I appreciate the offer

[@kevintrask2704]

@@WAEMIDIV I'll see if I can find anything confirming my claims. I remember looking into it a few years ago and that's what I found. But knowing jeep, there always seems to be a few exceptions to the rule.

[@WAEMIDIV]

@kevintrask2704 to my understanding, the 0331 started in mid year 1999. That's why in the video I listed 1999 as having either head. this may also be why people argue about it

[@kevintrask2704]

@@WAEMIDIV that's very possible. I know it started with the WJ. I wonder if they were made at the same plant back then. Having owned two 97s, mid year swaps are a real possibility.

[@tartopom2669]

​​​@@WAEMIDIVdoesn't Jeep, just like a lot of other car manufacturers, start their next model year in the middle of the current calendar year ? That would explain why the 331 heads were fabricated in mid 1999, though marketed on 2000 model year onwards, with few early / "pre-production" equipped 1999 M.Y models

[@eperot]

Waemid, if the 1986 had TBI, who was the manufacturer if not Renix?

[@WAEMIDIV]

@eperot It was GM TBI parts ran by an AMC computer, which was made by Renault/ Bendix. So it's a mess of like 4 brands

[@Azzurra2k]

There is a 2.1 liter powered one on Facebook marketplace in my area right now

[@WAEMIDIV]

if it's not the one in Middlebrook, VA can you link it

[@Azzurra2k]

@WAEMIDIV the link did post right? The year the have listed is wrong for sure but it definitely looks like a 2.1 to me and it has the badges

[@WAEMIDIV]

@FighterDrago no, youtube doesn't like external links and it automatically deletes comments with them unfortunately. What is the vague area this Jeep is in? I can just search for it on marketplace

[@Azzurra2k]

Any luck on locating it?

[@WAEMIDIV]

@FighterDrago no, I can't search nationwide in marketplace, I need the vague area it's in. Like if it's in Arizona or something I gotta set my marketplace location to Phoenix for example

[@marcinwaloszek9316]

Very nice comparison, but dude You've made a mistake in diesel reliability. J8s is worse then VM, no way. Maybe you guys in US do not know much about diesels in jeep, but damm... j8s is doing easily 500 kkm - 700 kkm which for VM is impossible without blowing up head gaskets! ( yes, in plural. 4 heads , 4 gaskets...). After overheating this engine is almlst imposible to repair. In europe there is no problems with getting parts to diesel versions. J8s was very popular in many versions of Renault cars.

[@myronjansen2165]

I’ve seen maybe less than 15 Comanche in person in the Pacific Northwest.

[@Classiccarrescues]

2.8 V6 Runs perfect, sounds great, no misfires, but has random stalls , it loosed all power then stalls…..any help?

[@WAEMIDIV]

I've never messed around with a 2.8L, but I'd guess it's something with the carburetor. There isn't really one place to start with those engines, it could be anything

[@JaimeGalianaGV]

Here in Europe we still have some 2.1td, I own one, fuel consumption is amazing, reliability is brilliant, power is a bit low but okey for towns and secondary roads, you can drive 110 km/h (70mph) without any problem and fuel consumption is also good. The 2.5 VM is trash. In the 90s first 2000 they where everywhere, in the last 10 years all VM disappeared, all with more than 150k km failled of the engine cylinder heads and heat, all. A friend of me broked twice the cylinder heads in 80.000 km. If you drive one Vm 2.5 engine in summer in highway or towing.... the car will heat and automatically dies. 2.1 does the work and don’t break! We have 4.0 but not lot of them because of fuel economy, here in Europe petrol is expensive, so 4.0 are more “weekend cars” for hunting or whatever. Also we have some 2.5 petrol, but don’t really have a good market, tds does better the job with more torque and less consumption. Here we have many small roads between towns, mountains... and reaching more that 70/80 mph is difficult so whe don’t need big engines. Hope I helped a bit

[@WAEMIDIV]

@JaimeGalianaGV Yeah this is all awesome and very interesting to hear! I've been chasing a 2.1L here in the States, haven't been able to get one yet as they're extremely rare. Might have to go to Europe to get parts

[@JaimeGalianaGV]

@@WAEMIDIVyou can search in Europe, Renault was selling Jeeps here for several years, the engine 2.1 was the same engine of the Renault 21 diesel, you can find still lot of parts in Europe searching that car

[@strictlyxjs8750]

My friend cayden (muncher on comanche club) had a 2wd mj diesel

[@WAEMIDIV]

Interesting! The MJs were always a little different than the XJs. Does he have any pictures/ videos?

[@eperot]

Thanks! So the way l figure it, AMC really wanted to ditch the GM sourced V6 badly by 1986 and knowing they had the 4.0 in their wheelhouse for 1987 decided to stick with carbureted V6’s rather than update everything for one year, even though 1986 GM cars themselves that had the 2.8 did in fact run with TBI. So if you have a 1986 2.5, you probably just cross shop with 1986 GM TBI parts.

[@WAEMIDIV]

@eperot I'm sure it's possible but nobody puts any money into the 2.8L, as doing literally anything else is more cost effective

[@moejr14]

I just found a 80s deisel xj but the motor is bad. What is it worth?

[@WAEMIDIV]

hard to say, they're very rare and probably valuable because of that where is it?

[@WAEMIDIV]

@moejr14 I'm trying to help you guy you gotta check those notifications!

[@moejr14]

@@WAEMIDIV I cannot disclose the location sorry

[@WAEMIDIV]

@moejr14 well how's it going? did you get it to run?

[@moejr14]

@@WAEMIDIV not yet. Where are you lovated

[@highoctaneadventure]

I remember that 2.8L well…for all the wrong reasons. 13 seconds 0-60, drank gas pretty fast, power steering pump leaks, flooded and stalled as soon as you backed out of the driveway or parking spot lol. Nevertheless…loved the Jeep.

[@BillehBobJoe]

a 4 cylinder with the grey immobilzer key. that is interesting! you didn't pan down to show. was it a manual or automatic? cause if its a manual. then its really bizzare edit: i'm almost upset to learn that the blank panel in 97+ xjs is a diesel light board. thats incredibly frustrating. a blank panel in your primary market for the vehicle (NA) how do you intentionally design a car that way? man chrysler is so weird sometimes - the only good cars they ever made were AMC vehicles.

[@WAEMIDIV]

That sentry key XJ is a 1999 2.5L 5 speed 4wd, but what makes it so interesting is it's an export model, in Greece. The European models got some weird and unique options for sure

[@neighborsgoat]

Owner of a 2.5 L Diesel VM Motori 2 door XJ Sport from 1999. If you need info or footage, let me know. I ran across 2 or 3 XJs with Renault 2.1 engines here in Eastern Europe, while I was scouting for my future XJ, yet they were in really bad shape (car body, not the engine), so I went for the Italian Diesel version, coming in an XJ owned and driven in Spain (meaning without body rust). And yes, I can concur: not the best, yet also not the worst Diesel engines out there.

[@WAEMIDIV]

Heya that's awesome! What country are you in?

[@neighborsgoat]

@@WAEMIDIV Romania.

[@WAEMIDIV]

@neighborsgoat That's so cool man. I haven't met many people from Europe at all, and nobody from Romania I shall remember you if I ever have a question about these 2.5 TD engines

[@panosli]

Hello.There are also a lot of 2.1 in Bulgaria too , but in Greece its almost impossible to find one

[@WAEMIDIV]

@panosli Is there a reason for that? My buddy in Greece couldn't find one anywhere, the only ones he could find listed for sale were in Bulgaria or Italy, so too far from him. I wonder why there aren't any in Greece specifically

[@OndraZala]

Hi from central Europe (Czech Republic). We have all the engines here. I have home 2.5L AMC 1992. My friend have 2.1L TD renault. It is not difficult to buy it, few of 2.1 is on internet. Price is about 3,500usd (80,000czk). Most rare is 2.8 v6, and VM 2.5TD is junk 😂 PS: ZJ 5.9 is crazy, I drove one. It was for sale in next village, but I didn´t buy

[@WAEMIDIV]

@@OndraZala awesome to hear from Czechia!

[@davideu8552]

i have a 2.1 TD 😂😂 the rare One

[@WAEMIDIV]

What!! where in the world are you? You must realize you have approximately 25% of the 2.1s that are left

[@davideu8552]

@@WAEMIDIV i live in Portugal, and o know at least more 4 like mine. all off te 5, 2.1 TD were imported from belgium, because here this engine was not comercialsed

[@WAEMIDIV]

@@davideu8552 That's so cool! It is wild to me that someone from Portugal has seen my video. You could get some video of these 2.1Ls yourself and put it on youtube!

[@davideu8552]

@@WAEMIDIV yes, now its on the mecânic to Change the oil radiador, when its finish 😉👍

[@jacksoncommins9225]

Me watching this after I bought a 2.8l 😅

[@WAEMIDIV]

well hey I'd love to hear any experiences you have with it, I've yet to drive one still

[@HenryHHolmes]

You can drive my 96 cherokee