Is your CJ Original? Maybe Not! "Heavy with Pictures"

[Peanut Butter]

So I bought mine from a guy in Denver that had it listed on eBay for $1750. My expectations were not high given the price, but it was a starting point. Hauled it home on the car hauler, and to my surprise it drove fairly well. After looking everything over I could see that I had my work cut out for me. Here are some pictures of what it looked like on day one:















Dirty, grimy, greasy, and rusted. So given the overall looks, I'm thinking it is an original 1979 CJ7 . WRONG! This is where I was fooled because of all the grease, oil, and grime. I mean it was caked on everything! I started repairing some of the holes in the tub first.





Then I got to this point. I planned to just replace the fenders from the start, but at this point it didn't make any sense to not go a the way. :bounce: And boy did I go all the way.............

In doing so I found out that I had a Cadillac GM Turbo 400 with an engine to Transmission adapter. ( http://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/f2/jeep-th400-technical-information-24384/ ) Not normally found on CJ's, but in most trucks of this vintage. I also learned that the gear reduction box on the Transfer Case was an option in the trucks, but almost always found in the CJ's. Guess what? I didn't have one. The transfer case although full of grease and grime was a nicely painted blue color. Another clue!

So what are some other clues you can use.

Matching numbers. Look for your vin number on top of the frame at the passenger rear wheel. (not sure what years this is good for, but look) They should match. Mine matched.

Engine numbers. The flat machined surface near the distributor on an I6 will give you the year and date the block was built. Mine was from a 1976 build.

Transmission numbers. See my reference above for automatics.

Other numbers. The manifold casting number, engine casting number, etc. all give you an idea of their build date. The AMC Engine forums are good places to find this information. Mine were different than the engine build date.

Wheels: My jeep had wheels from the late model Jeeps.



So when you start adding all of these clues up, you may find that your Jeep like my Jeep was not original!

 

[mriplaybass]

Kind of makes you feel like something of an archaeologist! Not knowing which bone comes from where! That's why our 59 CJ5 is titled "One piece at a time"

 

[Peanut Butter]

You bet. I was really shocked what I found, especially given the dirt and crud that was everywhere.

 

[Peanut Butter]

I also forgot to mention that when I tore the front axle down I found that one of the front outer axles had been replaced with a Spicer part.