it's a half past four and I'ma shiftin' gears...

October 24, 2006 12:10 PM

The wife and I are considering the purchase of a 2001 Jeep Cherokee and we have two very specific questions relating to a.) the transmission, and b.) the stereo. Hop on in...

OK, first question: Our other car is a toyota tacoma with a manual transmission and a 4x4 that is engaged with a stick-shift like lever next to the transmission shifter. It shifts in and out of 4WD very smoothly at any speed under 50mph or a complete stop with clutch in. I've never caused the transfer case gears to gnash.

The jeep we're looking at, however, has an automatic transmission and a 4x4 that engages by coasting to about 2-3 mph, then shifting the 4Wd lever into gear, then putting the transmission back into drive before the whole thing comes to a halt. If you stop coasting, you have to turn off the engine. This process is quite clunky, and seems rather crude to me. I've only had japanese trucks - is this normal for all jeeps, or is there something wrong with this one?

The other question: The stereo, like the one in our 01 tacoma, doesn't have an aux plug for an ipod. I don't want to have to buy yet another griffin itrip (we seem to go through them pretty quickly!). Is there a way a plug of some sort could be hardwired right into the stereo, into which the ipod could plug in? It wouldn't be a problem if this plug dangled down under the dashboard, it would just need to work. I am not a car stereo expert, and have no idea whether or not this is possible.

posted by M.C. Lo-Carb! to travel & transportation (11 comments total)

re: the ipod

I just installed one of these in my Ford. You'll need an RCA cable that converts to the 3.5mm miniplug (less than $10 almost anywhere, target/walmart/etc). Installation is easy for anyone that can turn a screwdriver. So far it's worked flawlessly for me, and it leaves FM transmitters in the trash (where they belong) when it comes to sound quality.
posted by ninjew at 12:26 PM on October 24, 2006

There's something wrong with that one. You should be able to engage 4WD at a dead stop without having to turn on the engine.
posted by saladin at 1:05 PM on October 24, 2006

Without having to turn off the engine, sorry.
posted by saladin at 1:06 PM on October 24, 2006

Jesus H., without having to restart the engine. Please forgive me.
posted by saladin at 1:08 PM on October 24, 2006

You should be able to engage 4WD at a dead stop without having to [restart] the engine.

Hmm, yeah. Many of the older auto-locking systems do require various strange things to get them to engage and disengage, but it seems unlikely that any are meant to require shutting off the engine. At a guess I think it would cost about $1000 or less to replace that with manual locking hubs.
posted by sfenders at 1:18 PM on October 24, 2006

ninjew - the stereo is pretty basic, AMFM/Casette/CD, it doesn't have CD changer controls. Without those, I'm wondering whether it would even have a miniplug outlet in the back of the head unit, as these products require.
posted by M.C. Lo-Carb! at 1:42 PM on October 24, 2006

M.C. Lo-Carb!, ninjew - It plugs into the where the cd-changer plugs into the head unit - it is not a miniplug but rather a 9-pin or something similar. They also make those for Toyotas.
posted by Big_B at 1:55 PM on October 24, 2006

I know that Mopar makes a hardwired iPod kit for Chrysler Group products ... but I don't know if it can be used for your specific application. You'd need to check with a dealership parts department.

Apple sez:

For a complete list of carmakers please visit, http://www.apple.com/ipod/ipodyourcar/. In addition, an array of after-market solutions are available from Alpine, Clarion, Kenwood and Pioneer for automobiles that currently do not offer iPod integration.

posted by pmurray63 at 2:19 PM on October 24, 2006

"...This process is quite clunky, and seems rather crude to me. I've only had japanese trucks - is this normal for all jeeps, or is there something wrong with this one? ..."

That is definitely borked. You should be able to engage and disengage 4WD without taking the transmission out of gear, as long as you are going 40 mph or less (maybe higher, depending on your model recommendations and tires). I'd suspect problems in the transfer case, which could be several hundred to a few thousand dollars (mostly labor) to fix/replace.
posted by paulsc at 5:36 PM on October 24, 2006

I have a 1994 Cherokee. There's no strange process or voodoo magic required. You can shift between part-time 4WD (4 HI) and 2WD at any speed under 55 MPH. Keep the transmission in Drive, and just grab the lever and shift smoothly and quickly.

Shifting between 4 HI and 4 LO is a trickier process, however, but you should never need 4 LO unless you're doing some serious off-roading. You need to put the transmission in neutral and coast at 2-3MPH while shifting to/from 4 LO.

Mine has the optional "Selec-Trac" system which adds a full-time 4WD position. The full-time position can be used on dry pavement all-year-round. However, I rarely use it--it sucks in the snow. I like 2WD for dry/wet roads and part-time 4WD for the really slippery stuff.

Technical details: The full-time position allows power to be variably split between the front and rear wheels. Ideally, it's half-and-half, but it's a "dumb" system and if the rear wheels start slipping, they keep getting power--as much as they want. A part-time system locks the ratio at 50/50, so the wheels won't spin out-of-control when they lack traction. In snow/mud, part-time is your friend. Full-time is just for soccer moms that want the re-assurance of 4WD. IMO, of course.
posted by bhayes82 at 5:33 PM on October 30, 2006

Thanks for the help. Just in case any of the answerers are checking back in, the 4x4 turned out to be fine, and worked just like bhayes82 described (except it's a command-trac, without the optional full-time 4wD). I was just reading the directions wrong.

We did end up buying it, and my wife's been guzzlin' gas on her 20-mile commute with it for a week. She loves it.

Oh, and we just went the easy route and bought another goddamn itrip, which makes that like our 5th. Oh well.

Thanks again!
posted by M.C. Lo-Carb! at 3:55 PM on November 1, 2006