Vehicle Description
1978 Jeep CJ5
An early version initially called the "Willys Overland" morphed
from military GP, (general purpose), vehicle to the mass produced
CJ, short for "civilian Jeep". More than 1.5 million CJ Jeeps were
built, having continued the same basic body style for 45 years
since the Jeep first appeared. Widely regarded as "America's
workhorse", the CJs have been described as "probably the most
successful utility vehicle ever made". The word Jeep is an acronym
of the letters GP.
The call of the wild, the great outdoors, into the great wide open,
getting a little mud on the tires, all representative of this 1978
CJ5 which has undergone a full restoration, a 2.5" suspension lift,
a drivetrain upgrade, and now can take you anywhere, anytime, in
any weather. You decide, the wild is your oyster...(sic.)
Due to modifications of the emissions control devices installed by
the manufacturer, please check your local, state, and federal laws
to determine if this vehicle is applicable for use on public
highways in your area.*
Exterior
All straight and true, all tricked out with extra Hella lighting, a
Champion Power Equipment winch, new bumpers, full black vinyl
Bestop as well as vinyl door and a 2 Bikini tops, 15-inch black
painted wheels and tires in the form of 33x12.5R15LT mudders
including the spare. Midnight blue painted steel and fiberglass is
all good with no rust and just a few war scars, but they are minor.
The existing top includes the full door side panels that can easily
be removed for an airer experience. Black Rhino lining covers the
iconic Jeep grille, leading hood edge and front edges of the
lightweight plastic fenders are bolted onto the blue. On either
side the climb in is aided by small bars bolted to the rockers,
which is a pretty cool idea and interesting way to fabricate a
step! In back a hitch mount is on the bumper along with dual tow
hooks, and now we are hearing the call of the wild! Wahoooo
wahoooo.... wahoooo whaooo whaooo! (Think Mandalorian)
Interior
A swing of the black vinyl exterior and steel tubed famed door
reveals the back side of the vinyl and inner door workings. Plastic
windows abound again for weight loss and give panoramic views from
any seating position on the inside. Speaking of which as we slip
inside on the high back vinyl buckets which are in very nice
condition and have integrated headrests. All covered in smooth
vinyl. In the center is a large lockable storage box topped with a
padded vinyl for the armrest. As we move forward from this box the
floors are finished in black textured matting for easy and quick
clean up. The long arm transmission shifter and the factory 4x4
twin stick shifters reside here just prior to the dash. This dash
is bathed in textured black and is peppered with all the essential
gauges and then some. Toggles and pulls abound as does a bank of
illuminated rocker switches and a CB radio. In front of the
passenger is a black steel "Jesus" bar and a glove box door.
Fronting the dash is a faux carbon fiber rally style steering
wheel. Note the front windshield can be lowered for extra
versatility. In back, the rear seat has been removed and now
resides a black lockbox installed in the factory seat mounting
holes. Also, a roll bar encircles the roofline just in case you are
a bit too ambitious on the vertical climb.
Drivetrain
Under the flip up hood is a gleaming Ford 351ci Windsor V8 from a
1974 Torino. It gleams with its light blue paint, silver intake
manifold and Holley 600cfm 4-barrel carburetor. On the back is a
Borg Warner T18 4-speed manual transmission and turning the tires
out back is a AMC 20 axle with a Detroit TruTraclocker with the
auto lock feature disabled. The front axle remains intact with an
auto locker differential and we note trusses welded on the rear
axle housing for a stronger structure. An aluminum radiator is in
to keep things cool and twin electric fans are on and
thermostatically controlled.
Undercarriage
Patinaed black paint is everywhere for the floor pans and frame
which is rust free and solid with only minor surface rusting
appearing in a few locations. 4-wheel leaf spring suspension with a
2.5" Old Man Emu YJ conversion lift kit installed by Mt. Zion is
providing the ride, and front power disc braking up front works
with power drums on the rear. A full on stainless steel exhaust
with Magnaflow mufflers is climbing its way rearward from the
headers.
Drive-Ability
I just love the ingenuity that goes into some of the CJ mods and
this one does not disappoint. I climbed in over the rocker bar and
was off to the test track. Here it did very well as expected, great
acceleration, solid bias free panic stopping and good handling. I
did go into 4x4 mode, and it worked well, but did not get to
actually climb anything! Speaking of climbing, our consignor states
that the owner before him had taken this Jeep on the Moab along
with a few of the front face trails of the Rockies. All functions
were spot on save for the speedometer reading lower than the actual
speed, the wipers not wiping, the heater not blowing and the CB not
able to raise any trucker chatter.
Grab your groover, mount the kayak and go exploring, climbing,
camping and whatever else we do in the great outdoors. Let's get a
little mud on the tires!
J8F83AH154232
J-Jeep
8-1978
F-3 Speed Manual
83-CJ5
A-3750 GVWR
H-304ci V8 2bbl
154232-Sequential Unit Number
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our
showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just
1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The
website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888)
227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come
see the vehicle in person.