1998 jeep cherokee 4.0L stalling out after warming up

thetower06

New member
hey im workin on this jeep for my ole lady that she had bought a few years back and its been sitting up for almost a year and half now cause if it stalling out well got it pulled over to our new house and i threw a hot battery in it and she fired right up with a lil help my priming the gas line up and it ran great sounds like it should and everything no rough idle or anything noticed freeze plugs were rusted out so i replaced them before ever driving it got em replaced and drove it a mile down the road to the gas station filled it up put some sea foam in it to help clean the fuel system up left from there decided to take the longer route home so i can see how it ran got about a mile and half from the gas station stopped at a stop sign and we i went to turn and go it died out so i dropped it in neutral and cranked right back up put it back in drive and as soon as i hit the gas it died out again and kept on doing it so i let it sit on the side of the rode for a few minutes cranked it up and took off and never let out the gas until i got it back to the house and ive been doing mechanic work for about 5 years now and worked in several shops and this thing is just confusing the shit out of me i cant figure out what is causing it i noticed it seemed to be running hot so my next step is changing the thermostat but i also noticed it seemed to be pouring a good amount of water out the ac drain line more then it needed to be enough to leave a trail which is whats leading me to a thermostat problem but ive been doing some research and have noticed alot of jeep owners have been having the similar issue but none really point to one thing and im not trying to drop all the money into replacing every part till the issue is solved so if anyone can help please let me know
 

Two or three items to check and or replace.
First any codes?


Check and clean the battery terminals and the opposite ends of the grounds. Loose or bad wire or connection can cause the engine to shut down without notice.

Check the CKP and the CPS the CKP crank sensor on the bell housing can go bad causing the engine to die without warning or code.

CPS can sensor can cause but usually a code and rough idle.

Fuel pressure


TPS throttle position sensor.


Only use OEM sensors. Others fa right out of the box.
 
You mention the thermo. If it overheats it will go into limp mode. Limp mode acts like a clogged cat slow and no power with lots of sputtering.

Thermo should be 195 deg. Use only recommended coolant.

If you did the freeze plugs did you burp the system?
 
Hello and welcome to jeepz.com.
That problem of excessive water coming from the a/c moisture drain sounds like a leaking heater core . Guessing the coolant consumption is excesssive . A radiator pressure test will confirm that but as long as your seeing colored liquid draining . It's sure to be coolant and that would mean a heater core . It's possible to remove the heater/a/c module from under the dash to perform this swap but I did it and preferred removing the dash to work more comfortable . Luckily a Cherokee dash comes off a lot easier than a grand Cherokee . There screws in tight places that dash removal just makes it easier . Besides , if your a/c is working , why disturb it . Remove the dash , remove the top cover and swap the heater core without disturbing the a/c evaporator. It's involved but not the worst job I can think,of. Just tedious. as far as the stalling problem , just wondering if it's related to the coolant loss or a drivability problem . If the engine temperature is running too hot , the PCM may be shutting the engine down via the auto shut down relay . Low coolant and/or low oil will trigger the ASD if the PCM picks up on it. That's to save the engine from destruction . Looks like modern technology has advanced since the idiot light , thank goodness. Meanwhile , things to check also are drivability items that could contribute to stalling . In your case , the engine stalls warm engine . That means the PCM is in closed loop running off its sensors . If the coolant temperature sensor is picking up a hot engine engine , the ASD kicks in and cuts the ignition . Let's say the coolant system is fixed and no more leaks and it still stalling . Now it's a drivability problem which can send you climbing the money tree . As you've stated , you don't want to be a parts changer and no one should . Changes what's bad , not what one would think MAY be the problem . This is when we've got to start simple . If the engine starts and runs well until the stalling begins , that could be many things but got to start somewhere . Does the engine start and run at a higher rpm than at a warm idle ? The idle air control motor may be working but the chamber and IAC motor pintle may be gummed up. The jeep was sitting a while so it's worth a look and a can of throttle body cleaner . When the cleaning is done , see if there is an improvement. Hey , before I forget to ask , any dtc's ( diagnostic trouble codes ) stored ? Any check engine light ? I would expect so but that needs to be checked. There's no EGR valve so that wouldn't be the case here . Chrysler took care of that with fancy camshaft dynamics lobe separation angles take care of the time combustion occurs so volumetric efficiency is all taken care of in that department. Only know so much of engine physics so we'll end the engine theory lesson there. Jeep sitting for quite a while . Wonder if the catalytic converter a little clogged ? From your description of how well,it runs until it stalls , dosen't sound like it . This problem is saving you money already on haircuts since it's got you pulling your hair out . A scan tool would be helpful right about now but I don't own one either . It's all test lights and multimeters for me. Like to know if an O2 sensor is lazy and not switching rich/lean so the fuel injectors aren't doing the right thing and may be leaning out when the engine gets a little hot due to the coolant loss problem . Not to mention the coolant pressure is dropping when air displaces the coolant when leaking out. That will promote detonation which would trigger a knock sensor to retard timing . Only problem is I don't think the '98 4.0 liter has a knock sensor . I got a spare 4.0 out of a '98 GC and don't recall a knock sensor on it. Just more food for thought , clarification and process of elimination . So whys this jeep stalling ? See if a trouble code has set . If so , try to erase it or if more than one , erase them and see what comes back . Those are hard codes that means are still existing faults for problems still not fixed. Let's not fall into the trap of parts changing . I know you know that. For example , just because an O2 sensor reads lean , don't mean it's bad and must be changed . Has to be read if it switches rich/lean ( cross counts ) . A lean condition may mean a vacuum leak . I takes on these 4.0 engines are common. Think I'm working on one in my '92. You can only torque but so many times. So , fuel system pressure good ? Maybe , running well but should be checked since a drop suddenly on a slowly failing pump can mean stalling . But that's extreme . Look for dtc's , bypass the heater core for a test only but the fix is a better option . The heater core actually is a heat exchanger and if bypassed will contribute to a hotter running engine . I would start with the obvious ( the heater core) and after the air is bled from the cooling system , see what happens next . Don't want you to start thinking o2 sensors , coolant temperature sensor , etc. until the engine cooling system is stable. Also , the idle air control and chamber too. Start small and let's see what happens there. Hope this helps and looking froward to your post(s) soon as you can. There's enough work as you know , may be a while ? These problems can sometimes turn into a volume ( already wrote a book now ! Lol) so we'll see what's next. Best of luck and thank you for your membership here at jeepz.com.
p.s. - JPNinPA beat me again . Lol . Got to get home earlier or learn to type faster. He's got a condensed ( thank goodness) diagnostics procedure WELL worth following .
 

Gregg If the heater core leaked wouldn't that be inside the cabin area. The only fluid that I know that comes out of the AC drain is condensation. Here it is really humid and yes I drip a trail of water.

Plus as you leak, there is some air that gets in the system. Ur to the air the engine usually ends up boiling over. No?
 
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it does have the check engine light on and the nearest part store that does the free scans is about 4 miles done the most busy street in town from our house and with the way its runnin i dont wanna attempt to drive it to there so ive been contacting a few people i know that have one to see if i can borrow theres no luck so far but on the heater core issue ive seen plenty go out but always dump water into the floor board never seen one dump water like this out the drain line its not a drip its like a steady flow of water and when i did the freeze plugs i check in take and all that and its all clean because they had someone do a valve gasket and exhaust/intake manifold gsket on it so all of that is fairly clean and i put some sea foam in to clean the fuel system and a radiator flush to clean the system out and was gonna drain it after the run to the gas station but started having issues so havent gotten around to it but its got a fresh oil change and all fresh fluids in it so im leaning towards a electrical problem but no ones givin that for sure fix yet thta ive been able to find and yesterday when i moved it it seemed to sound like it was bubbling the fuel in the gas tank like it was get to much pressure in it or not enough pressure but it seems to idle like it should and only time it runs at a high rpm is when it first cranks up it runs at a somewhat high rpm for like 3 seconds then drops back down like any vehicle should do and all battery cable ends are clean and look perfectly fine and idk if a o2 sensor would cause this issues cause on my 96 jeep GC (same exact engine) i had no exhuast sytem and no good o2 sensors and it ran fine and my 06 chevy has no good o2 sensors and it runs like a beast i know bad o2 sensors will mess with your gas mileage but will they cause a engine to shut down
 

and with the over heating issue the temperature gauge inside isnt reading over heating but you can see the heat coming from the hood unto the winshield and feel it when you pop the hood and hear the water at a boil just about
 
went out and cranked it up and let it run for a lil while noticed it has a slight lope to it like timing is off just a hair and noticed water leaking out of the #3 and #4 exhaust manifold so migth have a cracked head so im gonna tear the engine done and chevk that out before goin any further into trying to fix the stalling problem i have a 96 GC and 99 C engines to work with if the head happens to be cracked so ill let yall know when i get througgh all of that might notice somethi somewhere else while the engine is tore down that can be causing the issue if not ill let yall know but thanks for the help so far hopefully i can get this jeep up and running good so i can start the build on it for my ole lady cause shes obsessed with having a lifted jeep but anyways thanks guys
 
and with the over heating issue the temperature gauge inside isnt reading over heating but you can see the heat coming from the hood unto the winshield and feel it when you pop the hood and hear the water at a boil just about

If you hear water at a boil but none comming out there are two things to check.
Is it boiling into your overflow/expansion tank?
Or Does it sound like it's near the intake? Check for the smell of exhaust isn't sweet or your oil doesn't look like a chocolate milkshake.

If it's in the expansion tank get a new 19 lb rad cap. Top off and burp. Make sure the expansion tank does not leak and is connected. Fill it to the cold full line.
If it sounds like it's near the exhaust and you have chocolate milkshake or sweet smelling exhaust you may have a cracked head or blown head gasket. From there do a compression test.


But read the codes and verify fuel pressure first.
 
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Gregg If the heater core leaked wouldn't that be inside the cabin area. The only fluid that I know that comes out of the AC drain is condensation. Here it is really humid and yes I drip a trail of water.

Plus as you leak, there is some air that gets in the system. Ur to the air the engine usually ends up boiling over. No?

You are correct , heater cores have a nasty habit of producing spills IN the cabin when a/c condensation has the courtesy to drain out of the cabin as all leaks should should . Was hoping the OP could enlighten us if the cooling system holds pressure. Air introduced into the cooling will certainly cause a boiling effect due to air pockets trapping cooling from proper circulation . Was also trying to determine if there is any connection between a possible cooling system problem and an ASD shutdown . No shortcuts here , still have to determine the cause of the shutdown .
 
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