03 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited purchase

[OC455]

Middle son has been stoning me for a vehicle, tried to find something reasonable in a Ram, but that isn't happening....used truck prices around here are through the roof even for Gen3s.

Found a 2003 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited for sale locally.

Reach out and I know the gent selling it. 114k on the clock, not bad for that year. $2800 is the asking price. Pretty much done for the sale. Rather surprised at what the Jeep had for features and it's specs.

It has the 4.7L V8....5 speed Quadratrac Ii on demand 4x4. The good. Up Country suspension with all the skid plates...heavy duty gas shocks. 10 speaker Infinity system, leather interior and all the goodies.

Was trying to research what the Up Country suspension is and what makes it different from the regular WJs. It's supposed to be one inch taller than the regular WJ suspension and has heavy duty gas shocks from the factory. When I was looking at specs and the like, the one article said the Limiteds didn't come as an option with Up Country suspension package...so unless this one is a "Unicorn" so to speak, the article i was reading is not correct.

I ran the VIN through the website I listed under the pinned post in Towing and Hauling to check the equipment list of the specific vehicle. This Jeep has 3.73 gear ratio, 20.5 gallon gas tank. Some nice goodies.

Headlights need replaced because of bad yellowing/fogging and the tail lights it would just be nice to switch them out for a nice LED set.

Patriot Blue color.

Has some rust but not terrible...

 

[Travelin Ram]

Those were pretty good vehicles new. We bought one new in a Laredo with the up country package and 4.7. It gave us six trouble free years.

I bought an 04 a few years back to restore as a toy. But this time I sought out a 4.0 for reliability.

Weak points in that platform are the 4.7 which have issues with age and are nasty to work on because it’s so tight. And the quadratrac transfer cases.

 

[OC455]

Its been well maintained, so it should be okay for a first vehicle for now until he gets a better job. It comes with snow tires so that's a plus too.

 

[OC455]

Probably need to get another set of rims and tires for it or just get some ATs and call it good. I am hoping he doesn't try any "off roading" with it either.

 

[huntergreen]

Upcountry is heavier duty suspension
That lifted the Jeep about an inch. Bought 2004 limited new. She drove that 240000 miles when we traded it in in 2016. It also had the 4.7. Only repairs it needed, rear axle seal, transmission valleys and sensor pack, alternator and power steering unit.
Mine had Quadradrive, no issues and was unstoppable. The 4.7 doesn’t tolerate lack maintenance. I used Mobil 1 changed every 5000 miles. If maintained properly, all fluids, you should get another 100000 miles out of it. Nice find.

 

[OC455]

Up here it will probably rot away before it dies....just had the transmission fluid and filters changed, going to do the oil in the near future. Couple of regular maintenance things and going to check the brakes. I feel a slight pulsing/thumping when driving it.

 

[huntergreen]

Up here it will probably rot away before it dies....just had the transmission fluid and filters changed, going to do the oil in the near future. Couple of regular maintenance things and going to check the brakes. I feel a slight pulsing/thumping when driving it.

Drove my 04 in jersey, surprisingly, very little rust underneath . Body was rust free. Have no idea why.

 

[Shockracer]

We've had our 2001 60th anniversary model since 2009. It's been great and reliable, especially for what I've put it through. the biggest things is don't let the 4.7 get hot, make sure the cooling system is working and if it has it, the hydraulic cooling fan is doing its job. If it has long starts after sitting, there is a good chance its the fuel filter as it has a pressure relief line that goes back to the tank and its check valve can fail, bleeding the pressure back to the tank. There is or will be a good chance the valve cover gaskets will need to be replaced because they crack over time. The water pump if not already done will be on that list too. Window regulators will break at some point too. Check the blend doors if it has dual climate control, those are a headache. I've got 175K on mine now and it's been an awesome rig and still don't want to get rig of it.

 

[OC455]

I'm checking off the boxes as I go on what it may possibly need. Probably look at some new control arms if I can find the correct ones. Some sites say there is a difference between Up Country ones and the regular ones. Probably just buy the adjustable ones and be done with it. Shocks are a pain in the a$$ to find. The ones that are listed for the Up Country are either no name brand or the higher priced Bils, Ranchos, or the like....ugh.

 

[OC455]

I've never heard of PRT shock, Performance Ride Technology but they have a reasonable price for shocks for the Up Country suspension....don't feel like slapping $400 worth of Bilsteins in there...LOL. Core 4x4 makes controls arms for them, so those are getting a hard look....there's some other no-name brands that look like Chinese made on Amazon....

 

[BuschLatte420]

Had 2, loved em.

 

[BuschLatte420]

Those were pretty good vehicles new. We bought one new in a Laredo with the up country package and 4.7. It gave us six trouble free years.

I bought an 04 a few years back to restore as a toy. But this time I sought out a 4.0 for reliability.

Weak points in that platform are the 4.7 which have issues with age and are nasty to work on because it’s so tight. And the quadratrac transfer cases.

The weak point in my 4.7L was when I hydrolocked the engine, all because I never knew the plastic air intake shield was cracked and gone, $5 at the junk yard costed me a few grand. Live and learn!

 

[BuschLatte420]

I'm checking off the boxes as I go on what it may possibly need. Probably look at some new control arms if I can find the correct ones. Some sites say there is a difference between Up Country ones and the regular ones. Probably just buy the adjustable ones and be done with it. Shocks are a pain in the a$$ to find. The ones that are listed for the Up Country are either no name brand or the higher priced Bils, Ranchos, or the like....ugh.

Rock auto has upcountry shocks for a not so bad price

 

[pacofortacos]

Upcountry wasn't a really big deal, softer suspension for offroad - which makes it handle like a pig on the highway IMO.
It was not standard (was on the Overland, however they offered a package for $0 and it deleted the Upcountry and many people mistakenly thought that they were getting something for free vs. reality which was giving something up for free) on the 2003 models, but if you run the vin you can see if it was an option.

Visit https://ironman4x4fab.com/ for your control arms - very well made and reasonably priced. Very nice, I can send you a pic if needed as the front lowers aren't installed yet.
Stock aftermarket just hasn't lived in my son's 2003 Overland - get maybe 2 years out of them stock replacements and it never goes off road.

Upgrading the front and rear sway bars are supposed to really help the on road handling, but I haven't installed them yet. OEM 2004 front solid bar in place of the hollow bar, aftermarket rear bar.

Shocks, I just got Bilsteins at Autozone instead of Rockauto - for the warranty.

My son loves his, I hate it with a passion. I hate working on it, everything is just a pain to do.

 

[OC455]

Upcountry wasn't a really big deal, softer suspension for offroad - which makes it handle like a pig on the highway IMO.
It was not standard (was on the Overland, however they offered a package for $0 and it deleted the Upcountry and many people mistakenly thought that they were getting something for free vs. reality which was giving something up for free) on the 2003 models, but if you run the vin you can see if it was an option.

Visit https://ironman4x4fab.com/ for your control arms - very well made and reasonably priced. Very nice, I can send you a pic if needed as the front lowers aren't installed yet.
Stock aftermarket just hasn't lived in my son's 2003 Overland - get maybe 2 years out of them stock replacements and it never goes off road.

Upgrading the front and rear sway bars are supposed to really help the on road handling, but I haven't installed them yet. OEM 2004 front solid bar in place of the hollow bar, aftermarket rear bar.

Shocks, I just got Bilsteins at Autozone instead of Rockauto - for the warranty.

My son loves his, I hate it with a passion. I hate working on it, everything is just a pain to do.

Yeah,
Everything on this is either worn or rusted....got Monroe Reflex shocks for it that are for the UpCountry suspension.....I'm not dropping Bilstein money on this...lol. I have new Gorilla lug nuts for it, and some EVAP replacement parts to get thay cleared up. Replaced the lift supports for the hood, no issues, tried replacing the rear lift gate supports, broke off the new one when tightening the screw....gotta replace that one again.

 

[ThunderMug95]

Ive owned 5 ZJ’s and 2 XJ’s…varying trim models all were 4pointslo’s and would buy one again in a heartbeat. Unbeatable.

 

[pacofortacos]

Yeah,
Everything on this is either worn or rusted....got Monroe Reflex shocks for it that are for the UpCountry suspension.....I'm not dropping Bilstein money on this...lol. I have new Gorilla lug nuts for it, and some EVAP replacement parts to get thay cleared up. Replaced the lift supports for the hood, no issues, tried replacing the rear lift gate supports, broke off the new one when tightening the screw....gotta replace that one again.

His was rust free when we got it, still nice, but it just isn't fun to work on.

You can get control arms from autozone or advance with a warranty - just might have to change them every couple of years - but free at least. Those aren't too bad to do.

We tried Gabriels for shocks and they worked but not as well as oem.

If you have a pic-a-part nearby, the front sway bar upgrade is cheap and chinese rear bar is about $100 or so.
Grabbed like 30 lugs for $5 bucks at my pic-a-part, I think front bar was $25.

Stock his feels like I am riding in a 69 caddy hahaha. No road feel and way to much body roll.

 

[OC455]

His was rust free when we got it, still nice, but it just isn't fun to work on.

You can get control arms from autozone or advance with a warranty - just might have to change them every couple of years - but free at least. Those aren't too bad to do.

We tried Gabriels for shocks and they worked but not as well as oem.

If you have a pic-a-part nearby, the front sway bar upgrade is cheap and chinese rear bar is about $100 or so.
Grabbed like 30 lugs for $5 bucks at my pic-a-part, I think front bar was $25.

Stock his feels like I am riding in a 69 caddy hahaha. No road feel and way to much body roll.

Yeah, one of the rear shocks is blown right out, and the others are closer to going on their way out. I'll just get em changed before too much longer.

 

[huntergreen]

most likely too late, but I would look at KYB.

 

[OC455]

most likely too late, but I would look at KYB.

The KYB's didn't seem like they have any that match to the Upcountry suspension. I was able to get the Monroe's for it. Handles like a new vehicle now. Going to get it smoked to find out where the EVAP leak is....couple little odds and ends that need to be tidy'd up.

The front shocks looked original and still were "OK", the rear shocks looked like they were replaced with the wrong shocks...no where near the size of the Monroes and were completely shot.