1980 Jeep CJ

1983 jeep cj7 6 cyl 4 speed 4x4.   I'll assume you know what a jeep cj 7 is of your reading this. But short version it's a really cool fun bouncy go anywhere mini truck.   It has a carburetor . Not fuel injection.   it has manual everything. But it's really fun to own. The details. . carb is Motorcraft 2100 with "nutter bypass" done on ignition. It's an old op grade that got rid of the horribly unreliable carter pulse air system.   What that means is the jeep starts up easily and runs well in all types of weather. Cold mornings. hot days. rain or whatever.   It has passed NY and NJ state emissions testing every year with no problem. It has a current NJ inspection through April 2017.   You could also register it as a classic car. I have it as a classic for insurance but as a normal car for the plate.   Keeps the insurance down to $100 a year but I can drive it daily as long as its inspected.   I have always had other vehicles and the jeep has always been my summer toy.   It hasn't left the garage in rain or snow in at least ten years.   No fault of the jeeps. I'm just not interested in driving it on those days.   Lets see I guess I'll describe the details. The 4. 2 litter straight 6 was rebuilt about 10 years ago. it starts and runs perfect. Its reliable and road worthy.   The 4 speed transmission shifts normally and reaches a top speed of about 75. It will go faster but its an old jeep with reasonably low gears its not happy about it. No i don't know the gear ration but id guess 3. 73 something mid 3s anyway.   4x4 works fine in high low and 2 wheel drive. This is an older jeep with real manual locking warn hubs. Good news is you will never break them. Bad news is yea you do have to get out and lock them by hand.   The tires are 31x10 all terrains. I don't remember when I put them on but they have plenty of tread and no dryrot. They roll down the road straight. stop well. and are in perfectly good condition.   Spare is the same size better tread. The body is good. Any real rust was removed and new steel welded in over the years.   Structurally its completely solid. If you look closely at the paint sure there are a few little bubbles here and there but for a north east jeep this jeep is in great shape.   Frame is perfectly straight and has never been patched or repaired in any way. No serious rust. Its had poor 15 and rustoleum and all the usual magic treatments over the years.   Its not show quality but its a really nice road worthy solid jeep.   The paint on the body is clean and shiny still. Yes it has chips and scratches 40 years will do that but you will be able to still drive it anywhere and get compliments about it being a nice jeep.   I drive it only as seen no doors. bikini top. tonneau cover. basically in summer mode. For those who wish to drive it all year I have a 2 year old best top in black in perfect condition with perfect soft doors. good windows good zippers. no rips. no tears. its all there in my basement.   I also have 2 matching hard doors in good useable condition. They are original to the jeep and have no rust. On;y problem is the door locks don't have keys.    Like all old jeeps the gas gauge doesn't work. I'll give you the website of how to rewire the cluster but I've had jeeps for 20 years. The gas gauge never works for long. and it never bothered me.   Otherwise the jeep has power nothing. luxury nothing. its a real jeep you start the engine. put in gear and drive it. no electronic gadgets of any kind. No air conditioning. No heat well defroster motor works fine. but with no top or doors. I seldom use it the way I drive the jeep.    As for spare parts I have a complete spare engine. Extra carb. all the extra excessories like starter and alternator and water pump and Clutch and whatever there are boxes of parts.   I've always loved jeeps and have built a few. You tend to accumulate a lot of spare parts that way. I'm at the stage in life where I'm not interested as much. I drove the jeep only a handful of times in the last 3 years. nbsp; I can probably count the number of times I've had it out this summer on one hand. I have 3 other modern toyota trucks. Its time for me to leave the jeep world so I'm going to offer everything to the next guy who wants to continue the jeep dream.   As far as the driveability.   Get in and it will get you wherever you want to go. I personally seldom drive it more than an hour or two at a time because well my Tundra is more comfortable and has air conditioning and its quiet. To me the jeep is fun for around town. getting ice cream and going to the lake.   Ive never driven it to anything more serious than a dirt road. But its perfectly capable of driving anywhere.   I take it out on the highway as well for short trips. Only thing I know of that really should be fixed is the emergency brake release handle. It broke off two weeks ago and the emergency brake has been hard to release since. I may fix that if I have time.   So If your interested. contact me. I'm in North Western NJ.   I'm happy to let you drive the jeep.   No I will Not ship it unless its paid for in cash first. I can deliver it within an hour or two but its perfectly drivable for that as well.   It will be listed for sale locally and that's my preferred method of selling it.   Come by in person. bring cash and make a deal.   I'll accept paypal for deposit only. they charge 3. 5 % of transaction so no Im not accepting full paypal payment.   Offers will be considered in person. Oh yes the title is clean in my name and in my hand.  

I listed this two weeks ago. lots of questions and plans to look at it but only one person actually showed up in person. I realize its the internet and it is what it is but I really don't have much free time so if you're interested and want me to waste a weekend waiting for you please show up or give me warning time to change plans.   I have tried to list as much detail as possible but please call or email with questions.   I added a few more pictures. Hopefully they help.   Other updates. There was a concern about a soft rear body mount at the back of the cab. Its visible in one of the frame pictures.   Since that was a concern I have since cut out both rear body mounts. Cut the rusted piece of sheet metal out and welded in new 1/4 inch thick steel on both sides. Replaced the rubber mounts and bolts. The body was actually fine it was just the rubber mount that had gotten soft. but with the new 1/4 angle welded in it will never ever be a concern again in any of out lifetimes.   The original metal was 1/16 thick and it lasted 36 years.

Other questions I've gotten:

 Is there rust under the aluminum diamond plate. Answer No! Years ago there was a rust hole under one side. That got cut out with a grinder. New steel welded in. repainted and looks perfect. I didnt like the look of the stock mono color body and I liked the diamond plate look. So 1/8 thick diamond plate was bolted over the good steel body. the step and rock slider is schedule 80 pipe just under 1/4 thick. its welded to the 1/4 x2 angle iron underneath the body.   Those are real rock sliders and not just decorative. you can support the jeep and anything else you want on them.

Is the roof rack removable? Answer yes its made from schedule 40 pipe welded together.   It does have bolts that can be removed so it can be lifted off the jeep. it may require two people and its not something you are going to take on and off everyday but yes it can be removed.   As a side note I used it to carry 3 kayaks and sometimes lumber and long things.   Its also not decorative. It will easily hold 1000 lbs. I don't know if I'd want to trust it as a roll bar. but if I ever had to roll I'd be glad its there. Its very strong.   Also I had a hard top on the jeep once. It will fit on and off the jeep with the roof rack on. I left enough clearance to fit soft and hard tops.   Also I have the jeep kept in a standard garage at my house. It should fit in the door of any normal garage as seen with the roof rack attached.

Is there a back seat?  Answer sort of.   The rear tool box was designed to be a rear seat. Its a heavy welded steel box with 2 seat belts.   It is fully functional as a seat. I meant to put a cloth cushion over it to make it more comfortable. The plan was to simply staple black vinal and foam pad to a wooden board and then bolt the board to the 1/4 thick tool box top.   Reality was I've only carried backseat passengers 2x so my answer was simply suck it up your ridding in a cool jeep and Ill buy ice cream in a few minutes. But other than a hard bench seat its perfectly legal safe and fairly well designed.   Seat belts are perfectly functional.

Does the jeep have a radio? Answer sort of. I don't have the factory radio but I do have new spealers installed and the jeep comes with a nice am fm cd aftermarket radio new in the box. I kept meaning to get around to it but last few years I use my phone and a bluetooth speaker so I never installed the brand new radio.

What are the little doors under the front seats. Answer jeep seats waste a lot of space in that little pocket. Those are now custom built steel tool boxes. They work great for parts and tools. keeps everything out of the way and well hidden. No I didn't make them lockable but if you buy a $3 flip latch from walmart you can easily make them lockable. Yes they are bolt in so you can remove them if you don't like them.

Did you fix the emergency brake handle? Sort of.   I made a temporary brake release handle from a bolt and some wire. It works fine but yes I can do a much more professional job of fixing the release if I get a chance this week.

Will you deliver it to???  Answer maybe. but not really.   I do have a truck and trailer capable of towing it. If your somewhat local we can talk about it. or maybe agree on time and mileage cost. but I don't have time or interest in dragging the jeep and my trailer all over the place. I'd rather you make your own arrangements for transporting.   On that note: The jeep does come with a tow bar. I have used it in my younger days. Its perfectly legal assuming you have a heavy enough truck but its not something I'd suggest for anything more than a short trip.   Tow bars are hard to hook up. stressful to tow because the jeep is riding on its own wheels and you should disconnect the drive shaft for long distance.   If the bar or the jeep mounting bracket ever broke I don't think your insurance covers it as it would a normal trailer. Oh and you would be towing 4000 lbs with out the added benefit of the brakes found on most trailers.   But you get the bar with it if you want it.

Does the spare engine run? Not currently. It turns freely. It was running. but its in pieces. I had the plan of building a 4. 8 stroker motor using the 4. 2 cam and bottom end with 4. 0 heads and intake. Its a way to get the power of a chevy v8 from the old 4. 2 straight 6 design but keep the "stock look"  I never got around to building it but if your interested there are hundreds of guys on the internet who can help educate you.

Will you take ????  best offer?  Well online charges me fees and is a huge hassle but it does advertise well. I have a minimum I'll accept as an online sale and a slightly more flexible number in mind if your standing in front of me with cash in hand.   That being said I think this is a fairly nice jeep and I have no need to get rid of it beyond a few feet of extra garage space so no I'm not going to accept a really low ball offer but yes we have plenty of room for discussion.

Will you take trades or partial trades?  I don't really need or want anything. I have too much stuff now. but I am having bad thoughts about a small lightweight classic looking motorcycle. I don't think I'm actually interested in buying one though.

Also published at eBay.com

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