Ram 1500 or Jeep Grand Cherokee?

[Ghostdog914]

I have a 2004 Ram 1500 quad cab short bed. 5.7, AWD, off road package, tow package, and 263k miles. Runs good, gets awful mileage, needing some basic repair (ball joints, heater core, Ujoints). I don’t use it as a hauler much and it’s my daily driver for a 20-25 mile round trip to work.

There is a guy wanting to trade me a clean 98 Grand Cherokee, 4.0 auto 4x4 with 163k miles and no history of overheating. I’m tempted to trade but wanted some opinions from people in the know. I do have some property I go to occasionally that can be a little rugged with hills, trees, rocks, etc.

I’m not sure if I want to give up potential hauling capability for something more nimble and more trail ready. Anyone have any other pros or cons?

[Stercutus]

If the Cherokee is stock or mostly stock I'm not sure it will be more trail ready. All the repairs on the Ram are pretty simple and you can do them yourself although you may need to borrow some tools for the ball joints (some stores will lend for free). The only thing might even be costly will be the heater core.

However at 263K miles the Ram is getting near the end of it's service life on the engine and the transmission. Either one could die at any moment. Depending upon how the Jeep was treated you should be able to get another 50-100K out of both.

[flybynight]

If you're not hauling, you don't need a truck

[Zed Hunter]

JEEP. Just empty every pocket.

[Ghostdog914]

Ball joints are a pain but I’ve done them before. I know the Dodge automatics are kind of junk and I figure that’s my weak link. The 5.7 is pretty quiet for the mileage and still feels strong.

The Jeep would just get a three inch spacer lift and new tires for now. I know 4.0s are reliable as long as they don’t get hot because the pre 98s were prone to cracking.

[The Twizzler]

Well I am not a big fan of Chrysler products so I would say no to both, but since you seem to like them I will say a few things about the Jeep. I had a 2004 Grand Cherokee that had issues.
1. electronic gremlins-this is pretty standard
2.brakes- the rotors kept warping and needed replacing pretty frequently ( I was not off roading or driving abnormally.)
3. The 4wd system Qudratrac II sucks balls. It's to complicated and I could never get it into 4wd low on mine, even 4wd High was tough. It felt like the Jeep was fighting you and it sounded like a beached whale when trying to engage it. I know the 90's regular Cherokee's had a more conventional Selec Trac system that is pretty good.
4. The mileage sucked but I expected that out of the 4.0 inline 6. I will say it was reliable.
5. It was uncomfortable on trips. It's a Jeep so I can't really ding it for that to much.
6. I didn't know this until I needed it towed. If it does have the Quadratrc II system it will require a flat bed to be towed. I called 3 tow truck companies and they all said the same thing when it broke down one night. This is weird as it does have a neutral setting on the 4wd transfer lever.
Just some things to think about.

If I may, could I suggest possibly a used Toyota FJ or possibly a Hummer H3 (the small one).