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Looking for a KJ for my daughter
http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=83489		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  trivet [ Sun Nov 15, 2015 6:40 pm ]
Post subject:  Looking for a KJ for my daughter
Hi all,

I'm looking to pick up a KJ for my daughter, as she is ready to for a "new" vehicle. I own a 2010 KK, and I am very happy with it. My daugheter has caught the Jeep bug since I let her drive it for a week when I was working on her current vehicle.

She is interested KJs, (price and availability) and I was wondering what I should be looking for - either "must haves" or something to avoid.

This will be used as a daily driver for college, will never be off-road, but I like the stability, safety, and capability of the Jeep for her. And since we live in Michigan, the 4x4 is very nice with the winters we sometimes have.

Thanks for any advice.
Author:  tommudd [ Sun Nov 15, 2015 8:03 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Looking for a KJ for my daughter
trivet wrote:
Hi all,

I'm looking to pick up a KJ for my daughter, as she is ready to for a "new" vehicle. I own a 2010 KK, and I am very happy with it. My daugheter has caught the Jeep bug since I let her drive it for a week when I was working on her current vehicle.

She is interested KJs, (price and availability) and I was wondering what I should be looking for - either "must haves" or something to avoid.

This will be used as a daily driver for college, will never be off-road, but I like the stability, safety, and capability of the Jeep for her. And since we live in Michigan, the 4x4 is very nice with the winters we sometimes have.

Thanks for any advice.


There are a few differences in the years, 02-early 03 had a better transmission , although later model owners have a ton of miles on theirs with no issues
Check bottoms of doors, around the upper rear brake light
Seems later 05,06,07 had window regulator issues, not so much on earlier ones
Of course different models , Sport, Limited, etc have a few differences as well
All springs are weak so look into that
After April 12,03 they would of been about 19 inches in front middle of the wheel to bottom of the flare.
I picked up an 03 one owner with 81,000 miles last month and its sagged over an inch , so it gets new everything underneath soon
Thats will give you a start
I have an 03 Sport , the one I just picked up with 83,000 now, 04 Kilimanjaro Edition bought new with 218,000 , and got my 88 year old Stepfather an 05 Limited with 79,000 on it last fall.
Great little Jeeps and they are my DDs as well
Author:  trivet [ Sun Nov 15, 2015 9:33 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Looking for a KJ for my daughter
Thank you. That's exactly the kind of info I'm looking for. Going to check out an 03 tomorrow....
Author:  Function > Form [ Mon Nov 16, 2015 9:55 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Looking for a KJ for my daughter
Pay attn to which transfer case it has - does it have full-time (AWD which you can use all the time, dry road also) *and*& part-time (locked centre diff, will hop on dry roads, not good for it), or only part-time 4x4? Most people prefer the on road ease of use of the former (Selec Trac) vs. the latter (Command Trac).

Common trouble spots - OEM Rads can leak at the side tanks and front driveshaft CV head may be bad, but is about a $55 fix you can do yourself in about 20 mins. Also, front wheel bearings often go bad, should be replaced with Timken, SKF or Moog parts, others will fail much earlier and aren't worth the hassle unless you are short on cash.

Also, valve cover gaskets often leak - if you smell a burning birthday candle smell, it's likely seeping slowly onto the exhaust. Parts are about $100, and it's about a 1.5 hour job likely with some bloody knuckles.

Options to look for: overhead EVIC console, leather seats, sunroof (actually I'm not sure the sunroof was avail. that year)- not too much else.
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