what does all those abbreviations mean, like, CJ, YK, TJ, YJ etc.. and which one is for my jeep? i have a 1993 Cherokee Sport 4x4 (4dr)
so which is it?? XJor ZJ...daniel i dont have a grand cherokee, just cherokee. i assume a XJ.
CJ 5, 6, 7, & 8 All Years Just CJ & #
Cherokee All Years "XJ"
Comanchee All Years "MJ"
Grand Cherokee 1999~2004 = "WJ" 1993~1998 = "ZJ"
Liberty All Years "KJ"
Wrangler 1987~1996 = "YJ" 1997~2005 = "TJ"
What's in a name? Plenty if you're a Jeep diehard.
When dedicated owners gather to discuss their rides, the talk is not so much about Wranglers, but about CJs, TJs, and, soon JKs. Those are the corporate engineering codes identifying the various generations of Jeep's small, two-door, open-top 4x4s--the quintessential Jeeps.
The World War II versions were the Model MJ, for Military Jeep, and were built by Willys-Overland Motors and Ford Motor Company. After the war, Willys continued production based on the MJ. It called these the CJ, for Civilian Jeep.
Gaining a numeral suffix with each design update, the CJ series sustained through ownership under Kaiser, from 1953, and then American Motors Corporation, starting in 1970. Heavily modified examples of AMC's CJ-5, CJ6, and CJ-7 models can be found today on Jeep trails everywhere.
In 1987, AMC replaced the CJ series with the Wrangler. Identified by its square headlamps, it was more street-friendly than the CJs and designed to appeal to a wider audience. But it was less-adept for off-road use. Hard-core Jeepers said its code name, YJ, stood for "Yuppie Jeep."
Chrysler Corporation bought AMC that same year, and took the lessons learned from the YJ to create the next-generation Wrangler, code named TJ. Introduced for 1997, it revived the classic round headlamps and was an advance both in on-road drivability and off-road prowess. No mocking nicknames for this one.
Officially, YJ and TJ were simply internal engineering codes; they were not abbreviations or initials. When it came time for the next-generation Wrangler that would become the 2007 model, Chrysler's engineering-series code said it should be the TK.
But there was a problem.
"There wasn't a 'J' in it," Kevin Metz, Wrangler brand manager said. The Jeep crew tossed around various alternatives, and came up with JK. "It actually was very arbitrary," Metz said. Beyond the letter J linking it to "Jeep," JK doesn't officially have a meaning, Metz said. "If nothing else," he said, "I guess I like to think it stands for 'Jeep King.'