Our Favorite Jeeps at RadWood 2

A perfect pair of Jeeps from the 1980s and 1990s.

The RadWood 2 car show that took place in Los Angeles on December 2 was paradise for fans of 1980s and 1990s cars. There was something for everybody, from a DJ playing era-appropriate tunes, to a flatland BMX demonstration. There was even an award for the best-dressed attendee.

For us Jeep fans, there was a pair of very cool Jeeps among the hundreds of car show entrants. Parked right next to each other on the show field, they represented two very different ways to enjoy the Jeep lifestyle.

First off, this classic Grand Wagoneer was perfectly imperfect. While it showed some of its thirty years of wear and tear, it was overall in very clean condition. Being a West Coast truck, it was largely rust-free, too.

While we often fantasize about owning a restored Grand Wagoneer from Wagonmaster, we’re sure that this well-loved truck is much more in line with our budget. Restoring it would be a fun project, but we’d also be content to just drive it and enjoy it without worrying about damaging a $70,000 truck!

Next up is this simply stunning two-door XJ Cherokee. This was, by our standards, the ultimate daily-driver XJ. My second car ever was a two-door Cherokee, and I always wanted to build mine up just like this.

There aren’t many deviations from stock on this super-clean Cherokee, and that’s just the way I like it. There’s only one thing I’d change: swapping the automatic transmission for a five-speed manual.

Otherwise, it’s got everything you could ask for: a trailer hitch, LED headlights, a 2″ lift, and 30×9.5″ BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A tires. It’s the sort of truck that would be equally at home around town or on the trails, with a cavernous interior that could swallow anything you need to haul.

Even though the new Cherokees are wonderful, I still long for a classic like this.

Tell us your thoughts in the comments.

Cameron Vanderhorst

Cam VanDerHorst has been a contributor to Internet Brands' Auto Group sites for over three years, with his byline appearing on Ford Truck Enthusiasts, Corvette Forum, JK Forum, and Harley-Davidson Forums, among others. In that time, he's also contributed to Autoweek, The Drive, and Scale Auto Magazine.
He bought his first car at age 14 -- a 1978 Ford Mustang II -- and since then he’s amassed an impressive and diverse collection of cars, trucks, and motorcycles, including a 1996 Ford Mustang SVT Mystic Cobra (#683) and a classic air-cooled Porsche 911.
In addition to writing about cars and wrenching on them in his spare time, he enjoys playing music (drums and ukulele), building model cars, and tending to his chickens.
You can follow Cam, his cars, his bikes, and his chickens at @camvanderhorst on Instagram.