We’ve had a soft spot for the Wrangler TJ of 1996- 2006 ever since we ran one here as a long-termer. It was the popular 4.0 Sahara with a removable hard-top. There’s a 2.5 petrol, too, but the 4.0-litre, although thirstier, is the engine to have.
Jeep Wrangler TJ 4.0 Sahara, £6500: We found a 2001/51-reg 4.0 Sahara with 89,000 miles for £6500. It sounds like strong money for a private sale, but never underestimate the power of a handful of readies and a determined stare.
It has a full service history, too, the last fettle being a major seeing-to less than 100 miles ago. Surprisingly, the seller hasn’t thought to put a year’s MOT on it. It expires this month. That’s fine: it’s the perfect excuse to chip the price further still.
So we’re interested. Time to poke around. First, we’ll check the water pump isn’t leaking and that oil isn’t weeping from the engine’s rear main seal and crankcase vents. We’ll inspect the exhaust manifold for cracks and the radiator seams for splits and leaks.
Turning to the transmission, we’ll check the synchros are sound (early ’boxes can have issues here). The TJ hasn’t the ground clearance of a Defender, so we’ll peer underneath, looking for dents on the fuel tank. The coil springs can sag and the ball joints on the ends of the Panhard rods wear. On the test drive, we’ll feel for the infamous death wobble caused by a poor front steering and suspension set-up.
The TJ has a galvanised body, so things should be rust-free there. The chassis may show some light rusting, but the rear end of the frame and the rear axle can suffer badly. Generally, imports aren’t as well protected as official UK-bound cars.
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What sort of actual range can
What sort of actual range can you genuinely get from an e-up? As a city car it's quite an appealing prospect.