Not Again!

Trying to clear up a couple of issues on the 94 Cherokee.

Both have gotten extensive froum time, of which I have read and tried.

(1). Cooling: Biggest problem at idle. Temp will increase to a certain point and then electric fan kicks in, and brings it back down. It seems have replaced or repaired everything in the cooling system (radiator, hoses, water pump, thermostat, etc.) with the exception of the fan clutch on the mech fan. Bit of confusion on its actual operation. It spins freely at operating temperatures.

(2). Front end shake: do not think this is the infamous death wobble? Everything is still stock. Have had tires balanced at least three times, front end aligment checked, new shocks, new steering stabilizer, front end components checked, on and on. Still at 55 to 65 mph the steering wheel gets the shimmy, even the front passenger seat shakes. But the condition is intermittent? Could this be a rotor or bearing problem?

Any advise would be great, Thanks in advance
JD

[the_fixer]

Did you check the clutch fan yet? The fan should not turn freely, it should have some amount of drag to it. Take your fan belt off and spin the blades by hand.

[Sycho15]

You don't have to pull the belt off to spin the fan. Run the engine up to operating temp and shut it down, then spin the fan by hand. There should be some resistance. Honestly, the electric fan is supposed to kick on and bring the temps back down, so I'm not sure why you think anything is wrong. My MJ has a completely new cooling system and it will still run warm during the daytime here in sunny FL. Doesn't help that the Jeep is black.

My MJ has a similar shimmy. Mine also comes on around 80-85 again. I can drive with it, so I ignore it or go a little faster or slower (usually faster [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] ).

Thank for the input.

The 90's model mid-sized jeeps (Cherokee) are notorious for running hot. Granted the electric fan is suppose to kick in with increased engine load and/or hightemp. But sitting at idle and the temp gets up to 240-250, is not what I would consider normal, someone correct me if i'm wrong.

As far as the front end shake, yours happens at 80 to 85 mph. Max speed on my speedometer is 85!

No, that is not normal. Another person (I think it was mscornville on this board) had a similar prob. Turned out it was leaking freeze plug(s).
About the fan clutch. Both Haynes and Chiltons rec that "resistance test" for the fan clutch for every vehicle out there with 'em. It's a BOGUS test. If, when the engine is "revved" you don't hear that fan ROAR like a LION REPLACE THE CLUTCH.
Above all means AVOID the cheapo fan clutches. They seriously kill power and gas mileage as they hardly ever freewheel. Put one on a 4 cyl S-10, after that the thing couldn't pass wind or a gas station....

[NIX]

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(2). Front end shake:

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If you didn't crap your pants, very unlikely it's DW.

I think it's an unround problem or tire vibration. Sometimes the structure in the tire makes it vibrate in a way no alligning or balancing can cure it. Sometimes bad alignment or imbalance causes the tire to wear unevenly, also makeing softer and stiffer at different places, causing vibration. No cure except replacing, or moving the tire to the rear, hoping the rear tire has no problems.

Unround wheels can be caused by warped rims or unround tires. Rotating the tire on the rim 180* and rebalancing sometimes helps.

Were the tires balanced outside and inside? Some balancers only put weights on the outside (visible side) of the rim. Properly balanced tires have weights on both in- and outside.

Change front and rear tire on one side at a time to see if the problem changes.

Worn bearings usually growl instead of causing vibrations, but you'll never know. A warped rotor mostly only shakes when breaking.

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
(1). Cooling:

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Only thing not replaced is the fan clutch and it spins freely. What's more to say? The aux fan takes over what the mech fan is supposed to do. I'm never too shy to mention the worst problems like blown gaskets and cracked heads, but I bet it's the fanclutch. Buy a good one. I assume your fanshroud is OK and mounted properly.

Thanks folks for the helpful advise!

Fan Clutch is next on the list. Probably have to go through the local dealer for one.

As far as the vibration, I have rotated tires, but haven't tried re-mounting.

Thanks Again
Cheers