I have a 08’ wrangler with the 3.8 and 4spd auto. I just hit 99k miles today and was wondering what kind of preventative maintenance I can do to make my jeep last. I hear that the 3.8 is pretty reliable, but I also here that some ppl get engine failures around 100k miles. I always change the oil every 3k miles, and try to never go above 3500 rpms. I have not had any problems so far except for a small coolant leak. It does burn about a quart of oil every oil change, but I’m not worried about that. I check the oil twice a week.

 

I have 225k miles on mine and I'm the original owner. I routinely take it over 4k rpm and change the oil every 10k miles with synthetic oil plus Lucas stabilizer. It doesn't need to be babied.


And with all of the above, it's been reliable.

 

Good to know. Do you have the 42rle? That’s my next worry. I occasionally tow and I have the max tow package with 3:73 rear end. It will sometimes go into overdrive a little rough but rather than that it shifts perfectly.

 

No, I've got the 6 speed but I've done towing with it when on 33's with the 3.73 gears- zero issues. It's been good to me, even though I'm not particularly easy on it. I used to daily drive it 50 miles/ day then turn around and drive 8 hours each direction up to Rausch Creek PA to wheel it a couple times a year. I've always been able to drive it home.

 

Ia have 186k on my 3.8. Change the oil per the book with synthetic- whichever is on sale and no problems. Leaks a little oil, burns none and gets daily driven. 6 speed manual as well so can’t comment on the auto trans.

 

The best recommendations are in the owners manual.. you choose which schedule regular or severe service. Close to the intervals (under) is fine just do the service. I you don't have the manual sign up at mopar.com and list your Jeep in your garage. Its a cool site and very informative.

 

My oil changes (Pennzoil synthetic and Lucas oil mix) was checked out by Blackstone oil analysis labs, for full disclosure. You certainly shouldn't run 10k miles on an oil change if it's all stop and go with no highway speeds or giving it a chance to really warm up.

 

awesome. I’m doing full synthetic 5w-20 and changing it every 3k miles. The only issue I’ve noticed the past 15k miles is that If I let the jeep sit for a couple days and then cold start it, I will get a timing chain rattle for not even a second. My buddy’s 2012 jk has 220k miles and his does it every startup so I’m not too worried.

 

Also, my jeep has the 24s unlimited package. The vin lookup states that I have 17 inch rims, but I have the more uncommon (at least around here) 16 inch alloys. I have the max tow package. Anti spin rear end, deep tint sunscreen, etc. that the package is supposed to come with. Do y’all think that someone switched out the wheels at some point or is it a mistake? I’ve seen lots of x wranglers with this wheel setup.

 

If the VIN called out a package with the tire size as 17s I would suggest they were changed. It could have been by the dealer or later. Since most people go for a bigger tire I am thinking the dealer did this. But this is just a guess. I looked mine up and it matched perfectly to the proposed package.