The Oil Specifications for a 1987 Jeep Wrangler
by John Walker
Off-road enthusiasts and many others find the Jeep Wrangler series enjoyable. Over the years, Jeep has offered the Wrangler with minimal changes in the body and engine. 1987 Wranglers came with a 2.5L four cylinder engine or a 4.2L six-cylinder engine. Changing the oil on the Wrangler takes around 15 minutes to do properly.
Oil Weight and Amounts
The 4.2L engine calls for five quarts --- without a filter change, six with a filter change --- of a SAE 5w40 oil. The 2.5L uses 4.1 quarts without a filter and five quarts with a filter change of the same weight oil. Higher mileage engines benefit from high-mileage or synthetic oils. Oil additives geared at conditioning the seals also help the older engines.
Torque and Filter
Both variations of the engine use a WIX 51626 Oil Filter and the drain plugs torque to 30 ft-lb of torque. This equates to hand-tightening the drain plug and then one full rotation with a socket wrench.
Additional Recommendations
Always check the other fluids and air filter when changing the oil and refill or replace as necessary. The 4.2L uses a WIX 42054 air filter and the 2.5L calls for a WIX 42170 air filter. Both vehicles use GL-5 transmission fluid, DOT-3 brake fluid, and standard power steering fluid.
