I’ve been away awhile but my itchy trigger finger is looking at a 76 CJ7, 304 auto, dana 30 front and some kind of AMC rear diff. It’s roadworthy but it’s also almost 4 hours away. Can you give me tips on what I should be looking for? Thanks!

 

Hey Mike, welcome back! I can't help with your question about the CJ7s, but that sounds like a fun next ride.

 

Hey resharp it’s good to see you’re still here. I’ve been looking for a project since not long after I bought my Cherokee I’m going to look at 2 tomorrow. A CJ5 and CJ7, got a feeling I’ll be bringing the 7 back. It’s perfect for me, the current owner has done most of the heavy stuff all it needs is a new set of hands to finish it. I’m keeping the Cherokee for now at least until I see this one will be reliable. I swear though if this Cherokee tells me what to do and how to do it one more time I’m leaving it on the side of the road with the keys in it and walking away lol. It’s a great vehicle but more for my 82 yo Dad. Way too much technology for a Jeep in my opinion.

 

Woot! Well I brought it back last night 4 hours with no doors and very mushy drum brakes. The first hour I was thinking “crap what did I get into?” Then I got used to the 6” of play in the steering wheel and by the time I got close to home and rougher roads I was grinning ear to ear. It needs a LOT of work but the reason I chose this one is I can do 90% of it myself out in my little shop. Engine and transmission are both solid however I’m pretty sure every single seal on this thing is leaking. My shop floor looked like a Picaso painting after one night lol.

 

That does look like it's in good shape. Mind me asking what you paid? There was a guy about a mile from me selling a yellow one not too long ago, just had it parked in his field with a for sale sign. I probably should have taken it a bit more seriously, but with 2 teenage drivers and a commuter car to boot, I already have a dang used car lot of 5 vehicles and no place to put projects.

 

No I don’t mind, I paid $6,000. That’s probably a fair deal on this one for both buyer and seller in this area. A typical I6 model with 3 speed manual in similar shape would probably bring $4,500 but after driving this one on the interstate a few hours I can say you probably need more than the I6 258. That might be fine for trails but this 304 isn’t anywhere near too much. I’ve been watching over a year and believe it or not prices have increased since the virus I would guess at least 10%. This one doesn’t looks as good in real life it just has a good paint job hiding it’s flaws.

 

Throw in a AMC 390, crank fired ignition and injection from Megasquirt and you will have an awesome powerhouse that is also economical to run. The 390 is the same block as the 304.

 

4.0 might make a great swap. I imagine its hard to find one without frame rot or ton of bonds. Nice find.