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More advice for new Jeepers, please.

Hello again. Thanks for the help on the previous posts.

Still trying to find a jeep for farm use ( across a couple creeks, towing small trailer, skidding small trees, etc. on mostly wooded, not very steep terrain). Perfect one got away this week. Old CJ-7 with crummy body and good running gear.

Finding lots of Wranglers in the $5000 range, a few CJ-7's in the $5000 to $6000 a few CJ-5's in the $3000 range; even an M38 in the $2000 range.

Is there anything to recommend one of these over the others? If the older Wranglers are OK, they are much easier to find and closer to home. Any style that isn't as useful? I'm after serviceability; not a particular style or type , I guess.

Thanks again,

Richard

Reply to
Richard and Michelle
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For a work truck, I would recommend the CJ7. CJ5's are really short and pulling a trailer can be squirrelly on even the longer CJ7.

It has pretty stiff leaf springs and can fit 31" tires stock. The 4.2 carb engine is a 'really' strong puller at low rpm. I climb sand pit walls and when I top them I am only turning 400 rpm or so in 3rd low. Get too steep and at 400 rpm it will just dig my 33x9.5 BFG muds in rather than stall.

The carb can be an issue if it hasn't been looked after, but a carb kit is only twenty bucks or so and is easy to put in. They also are super easy to kill the computer on and get a sweet 25% power boost and still be able to pass emissions if needed.

The wranglers have soft springs and can only fit 235's or 30" tires stock, but have a bit more solidly built frame under them. Much more bouncy, I wouldn't like that myself when skidding a tree out, I want stiff for a work truck.

The CJ's also have heavier duty trannys and transfer cases than the Wranglers too. The wranglers have a chain drive in the transfer case and a really shaky when it gets old Peugeot tranny, the CJ's have a gear drive and mine anyway is a borg warner T5, the same as they use still in Mustang V8's.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's

Richard and Michelle wrote:

Reply to
Mike Romain

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