1997 Grand Cherokee engine problems

your idle air control valve is going out located behind the throttle body.

stopped in drive, engine shook is gross missing.
the belt snapped on front of engine, causing PS assist to end.
time for a new belt.
they last about 50,000 miles, best is to keep eye on belts.
or can be a long walk home.
or very expensive tow job.
the bent runs many important things, do not run the engine like this.

There is a voltage draw from your battery while engine is not running.to prove this loose any one of your terminals.with all switches turned off including engine, disconnect and re-connect the loose terminal.if you get a spark then there is a voltage draw, find the wire and replace it

Need to chek generator, air filter and airflow microcircuit. If the airflow is not sufficient engine dyies with out strugle, just gets slower and stop's. If it's electric problem, it's stops immediately or stops with blows and twitching.

You need to find a repair shop that can figure out the problem. dont waste anymore time and money guessing what to replace next. Find a shop that does a lot of Chrysler/Jeep work, they will have better scanners and techs than a general do it all shop.

self test is with the ignition key switch. you need to cycle the key off-on, off-on, off-on. The check engine light will flash out codes in pairs of numbers. The end of the test will be 5-5. report back with codes. But I'm betting its the crank position sensor.

Whenever a check engine light comes on it is a sensor sending a trouble code to the cars computer. You need to take it in to a mechanic and have them hook a scanner to the comnputer to pull the code and then they can tell you what the problem is.
Good Luck!

I just had those similar symptoms with my 97 grand cherokee a week ago and my crankshaft position sensor had to be replaced...hope this helps.

has this vehicle got antifreeze in it or are you one of these that lives in the south and never puts any in because it doesnt get cold enough ,same thing here in spain with the stupid english who come to live here ,stand up the bar and reckon they know it all with their la de da accents .Well your problem is caused by a blocked radiator that has gunged up with the rust that occurs inside your engine ,which is caused by no antifreeze to stop the corrosion as for the battery ??well they can last a month or ten years ,buy a bosch battery next time and not a cheepie .Anyway best of british with it and as a not i have just changed a jeep rad ,same model a 99 ,and the plastic **** rad was 600euros here in spain

My 2000 Grand Cherokee had the same problem, without all the sputtering, it would just die approaching a stop. We could only keep it running by slightly pushing down on the gas petal when coming to a stop. I replaced the Throttle Position Sensor, but that didn't change anything. A new mechanic I found replaced the Idle Air Control Valve, and we've had no problems in a week.