1974 Cj5 New Project Jeep.

Hi all,
I just signed up last night and posted in the welcome area and thought I would start a thread on the CJ5 I just acquired. No stranger to Jeeps I have had several over the years but never a CJ. I have pretty much concentrated on restorations of muscle cars for the past 10-15 years or so but just want something different and more fun to do so I just settled in on something I have always wanted and that I could have fun with. I looked at quite a few years of CJ5's, I decided I wanted a pre 1975 since I live in Calif and I didn't want to deal with the confines of smog testing so for various reasons I settled in on wanting an intermediate CJ5. I looked at this one a couple of months ago but it was just a little to "well used" and I passed but not without a price discussion with the PO. Long story short he messaged me a few days ago and told me he just wanted it gone and gave me a great price so here I am. I want to stay away from a restoration type build but at the same time I want to do it right so I can get many more years out of the Jeep. I figure the body will come off and get blasted so I can identify and repair any rust not to mention I want to start fresh. The dents will be taken out but I am not going to spend weeks worrying about how strait it is, just get it reasonable and shoot it, don't want to panic every-time it gets scratched or banged a little out on the trails. At one time it was dialed in pretty well, It was a 304 with a T98/D20 and a D30 front axle (with disc brakes) and a D44 rear. The engine bay sits empty now but I do have the 304 which looks rough. The kid I purchased it from gave me what he thought was a Ford 302 that he envisioned putting in it but the 302 turned out to be a 289 when I ran the numbers not to mention trying to mate a 289/302 to a T98 will create a myriad of problems and even Novak and Advance Adapters sites seem to discourage it. I am thinking maybe a mopar 318 or 360 possibly. I did see an AMC 360 on Marketplace but I am not sure about that yet. Anyway I got it off the trailer and pressure washed it today just to help clean it for disassembly. I will probably start in earnest on it after the first of the year. Here is a link to the welcome thread with a bunch of pics from yesterday and I will also post some from today.

http://www.earlycj5.com/xf_cj5/index.php?threads/154282/#post-1758076

 

Your project reminds me of @johneyboy03 's 1975 project. He is up in Quebec. He has built his CJ5 into a JK killing racing jeep. The color is similar to yours also. Here is his build thread.

http://www.earlycj5.com/xf_cj5/index.php?threads/92331/

Good luck with your project!

 

Nothing wrong with the 304 if you choose to reuse it. The Easy button in my opinion.

 

I agree. The 304 or an AMC 360 would be pretty easy button and everything fits as it is. The 304 he gave me is pretty bad off although the bottom end did look ok when I pulled the pan yesterday but it does have some parts missing so I am keeping an eye out for one now. Still trying to figure the transmission out. The side of the case says T98-1Z WG Div but the top cover says T18-1480. it does have a 10 spline 1 1/6 input shaft about 6 1/2" long. I have been reading about the various T18 and T98 variances on various sites and am still unsure of what I have. The Novak site mentions the "The T98 and AMC eras are anachronistic and the transmission was never joined to an AMC engine. There are neither factory nor aftermarket provisions nor compelling reasons to do so". Yet this one is mated to a 304 and the case has the bump out on the left rear that I have read is typical of the later model T18. The reverse gear is to the right and up also. At some point I am going to have to pull the cover and count teeth. Sorry for no pics of the trans but I still can't post pics in this forum yet.

 

I had t18 and t98 in 2 previous jeeps. Trying to remember the reverse positions. I think the t18 was right/up and the t98 was left/down. I believe the t98 was synchro in all four whereas the t18 was not. The t98 had an "access" plate on both sides were the t18 did not. This is all from foggy memory so feel free to correct.

 

I sure miss that low first...

 

Unless you see an adapter somewhere between the engine and transmission, I'd think you have a T18. This opinion is due to Novak's statement about a T98 never being installed behind an AMC engine.
Buuuuut, who knows? I thought I read that AMC did not install the T18 behind 304's in CJ's either.

 

Wow, brain fart. Everything I said about the t98 above was referring to a T19! Sorry for the off-subject input.

 

Pretty crazy how small the world is. Always looking for info so I posted on a CJ5 FB page and got a great comment today. Hopefully it will lead to more info. I think he is mistaken on the t case but we will see what he finds out for me.

"Pretty sure you bought Grenwitch! That rig has been over Fordyce and Rubicon many times and well known around my parts years ago. Should have power locks FT and RR, Chevy style disc conversion, I think Ford short shaft T-18 and I think Tera-Low 4 to 1 tcase. She is a little rough but you take care of her and she will you the same. This monster was pretty much built by a friend that had her from around ‘88 - ‘18 if I recall. I may be able to get history from previous owner. Sent her pictures to verify but I am certain this is her. And yes, owner builder is a she! Lol. Good bones my friend regardless of price. Love to see it back on the trail."

 

That would make you lucky indeed.

 

Spoke with the PO of the Jeep that actually had it for many years and did most of the modifications. I have the run down now on what she did to it. It is a wide Ratio T18, the D30 front has a Power lock and the rear is a Detroit locker, 4:10 gears, the T case is stock D20. The disc brakes are a 76-78 Chevy Blazer conversion. Great conversation with her about all her adventures, she owned it for 20+ years and actually used it as her daily driver......so she could go straight to the trails after work. Great lady she even sent me a pic of the cover of 4 Wheel Magazine from the 90's with a pic of her and the Jeep on it. Apparently they did a story on the Fordyce Trail and she was in one of the pics. She was pretty happy it is getting some much needed attention. When I start the tear down next month I will post pics if I am able to post pics by then. I figured out how to do pics here is a pretty cool pic the PO sent me.

 

Had a crazy turn of events today. Saw an ad for a AMC 360. Went and looked at it and it turned out to be a 401, picked it up for the price of a 360 core!

 

Score!

 

Most likely a T-19 not a T-98. T-19’s are synchronized in all 4 forward gears and have the two pto ports, T-98’s don’t.

 

Finally have a break in the rain so I figured I would spend an afternoon on disassembly of the Jeep (need to name this thing soon). At some point I will move it to the garage but right now I have my Roadrunner with a leaking rear main so it is next in the garage but for now I wanted to at least get going on the Jeep. Found some interesting mods by the PO as well as some damage and rust.

Speaking of names renaming a boat is considered bad luck what about Jeeps? The PO named it Greenwitch for obvious reasons, maybe I could shorten to the witch?

Here are a few pics of the mods and damage. I understand the rear 4x4 angle mod but not sure if it was a good idea.

 

Am I the only one not seeing pictures?

Edit, I can see the pictures.

 

I don't know that he has permission to do that yet.

 

I see them

 

Not a single pic visible to me

 

Sorry guys I have no idea why the pics are not there. I have read every "how to post picture thread" and did it as per the instructions. I can see the pics on my end but obviously you guys can't. Sort of makes it frustrating.