5 reasons this is the BEST BUDGET OVERLAND Vehicle

Instagram: OverlandingOzarks

JEEP EXTERIOR

JEEP MAINTENANCE

OVERLANDING

[ryanjewell]

I had one with a 4.0, it was a great engine wrapped in a body full of electrical gremlins. Other than that when it worked it worked well.

[danhambrick]

The WJ Grand Cherokee ran from 1999-2004

[dexterchapman]

Couldn’t agree more. I got a 2001 Limited V8 with 130, 000 miles for $2100. It’s absolutely unstoppable in the snow.

[briroc]

Agreed !! WJ is the way to go .. got an 02 4.7 with 160, 000 miles 4 " lift 30" tires goes anywhere from fishing on the beach to climbing trails and camping

[KurNorock]

The ZJ is a much better option. Much more reliable engine/transmission/transfer case options, the gas tank doesn't hang as low, it has the same suspension as a TJ and front end of an XJ so both OEM and after market parts are much easier to find.

The WJ does have better brakes and the limited slip is nice, but i don't think those are enough to offset the positives you get with the ZJ. Besides that, I'm pretty sure the WJ brakes are easy to put on a ZJ.

All of that being said, i don't really think either are great for overlanding. Maybe it's just because I'm a bigger guy, but i find that there really isn't enough space in either the ZJ or WJ. Just to go on a 4 day camping trip, bringing a small tent, food, water, supplies, and tools, filled every inch of available space i had, including loading up the front passenger seat.

The spare tire is mounted inside the back, behind the back seat, and takes up tons of space, especially if you have oversized tires.

The other problem is that once you do put oversized tires on either, your fuel economy drops by 50% meaning you only get 200-225 miles per tank of gas, meaning you have to bring extra gas with you, which takes up more space. You could spend a few thousand dollars regearing the axles to 4:56 to get some of that fuel economy back, but now you are defeating the purpose of the affordable rig.

I suppose a roof rack or a trailer would alleviate some or all of the cargo space woes, but once again you are sacrificing fuel economy, and while these rigs can pull trailers just fine, in an offroad situation you may find your transmission getting hot which will cause your engine coolant to get hot and possibly overheat your engine.

So while you can overland in them, you have to make a lot of concessions. It would be very difficult to bring another person for example.

I think these rigs are MUCH better suited for day or overnight trips to do some more difficult wheeling, like rock crawling. Or even traveling across the country to hit up short trails along the way. But for actual overlanding where you may not see a gas station, a shower, or a laundry mat, for days at a time, i think they fall a little short.

[DavidVoxDem]

1. Solid axles
2. Cheap
There you go that's all.

[That_Lifted_Minivan]

I’ve owned 5-6 grand Cherokees (ranging from ZJ’s to WJ’s) I have to agree with you at the price point comment, I found my most recent one, a rust free 96 5.2 for $1, 500, and by the time I’m done at this stage I’ll have roughly $6-7, 000 into it (IRO 7” long arms, 35s, steel bumpers, lockers, etc.) which is what I see stock TJ wranglers going for (at least around me) and I have more room in the cabin, more comfortable, a better ride, etc. but, personally I’ve always liked the ZJ’s better (personal opinion) I’ve always kinda liked the smaller, more compact, squarer body of the ZJ

But with your solid axle comment, I would love to find a Cheap WK1 just to see what I can and can’t do with it and see how it would compare on trails to a ZJ/WJ, and to expand my knowledge on grands.

[daviidfm]

Awesome video. I have a wk2 overland and low key want one of these to build out. Would feel way more comfortable taking a 2k Jeep out rather then a 50k Jeep on the trails.

[zcatfish]

WJ are very suceptable to Death Wobble when lifted.
#BastardHeep has been a love hate relationship, BUT found the Cure.
Replace the frame side of the Trackbar bushing with a JK bushing, and drill out the hole in the frame for the larger bolt.
Gets rid of 90% of it.
Now the brakes on the WJ the first couple years, was problematic, but Jeep did upgrade them to cure brake inspired Death Wobble.
One last gripe is the Seat Brackets are weak, pivots on the seat frame are not much heavier than the dang body panels.
they are prone to breaking.
Only good solution is get a set of manual sliders and replace the power ones. Sucks I know, I love my power seats.

[dl.B]

I removed the rear seats, so I can fold the backrests down, and still be able to store my toolbox and equipment under the seats and floor. WJs are great

[niall]

Another point worth mentioning is that there are loads of WJs and ZJs about that have been well looked after family cars that have never left the pavement. For the equivalent money if you buy a wrangler it's almost certain that it's had a hard life wheeling, whereas many of the equivalent WJs have probably never seen more action than a Walmart parking lot. I find them to be pretty reliable, even the 4.7l can be really reliable as long as you keep on top of the cooling issues which they are prone to.

[jacobfulton]

Stopppp telling everyone how sick these are! Everyone will want one😂

[subiemon]

production years in the USA 99-04 for wj

[cristianfmendez]

I got my WJ for 1000 with onlly 178 on the 4.7. 3k miles later this is my favorite car I’ve ever owned and love taking it out wheeling. Safe to say this is what’s made me a hardcore jeep guy

[riverbankfisher]

Very good points are covered here. Just a quick mention that the WJ series began in 1999, rather than 1998. I've got two of them: A running 2004 WJ Overland 4.7V8 HO and a work-in-progress 2004 WJ Laredo 4.7V8, both with the QuadraDrive 2 option. The WJ is great-looking and a very capable off-roader for sure.

[UnderFunded_inc]

Paid 10k for a 2004 Limited with 100k km im from Canada tho

[hestonwilliams]

*80 Series LandCruiser enters the chat*

[michaeljohn]

Jeep withstood the test off time and stayed true to its fan base I don’t see explorers out there. These Cherokees last forever like Toyotas 300, 000 400, 000 miles

[CNylundPhotography]

I have an WJ 2004 in Finland. Did buy it sheep actually cheeper that most listened in US. It's not to easy to get second hand spear parts over her dut then again new parts from Amazon or like wize is cheaper than most other brands so I don't complain.
Thanks for your helpful content 👌

[elsydeon]

The JKU is basically a crappy WJ. Aside from the JKU's longer wheelbase, the external dimensions and curb weight are nearly identical. The WJ has a triangulated 4-link rear suspension while the JKU goes back to the 5-link.

10 days ago, I bought a 2002 Overland with a transmission that was stuck in limp mode for $900. Even stuck in 3rd, the 4.7 HO has enough balls to move it in stop and go driving. This fix is relatively cheap as it is simply repairing a wiring harness and replacing the shocks, since the shock mounts broke and the shocks chewed up the wiring by the TCM.

Even without 1st and overdrive and the engine limited to 2k RPM, I love my WJ.