When it comes to special edition trim packages, finding a specimen with the unique cosmetic tweaks still intact is hard to do when dealing in barn finds. Sure, you may discover a vehicle that was one of the limited production few, but all the graphics will be burned off by the sun or the interior trashed. Despite being found in a Texas barn after years of storage, this 1979 Jeep Cherokee Golden Eagle here on eBay still retains many of the details that made the trim package an upscale offering, and bidders have pushed the offer price to just over $2K with the reserve unmet.
The brush guard was one part of the Golden Eagle package offering; the giant, angry bird on the hood was the other. I had to cross-reference the design with Google, as the graphics look slightly askew and somewhat amateurish; the web confirms this was how they left the factory. You can tell this Cherokee has some other add-ons over the years, including what looks like a sun visor over the windshield; gigantic side-view mirrors; and possibly air horns mounted to the roof. Perhaps these were factory add-ons, but I haven’t seen them on every Golden Eagle.
The interior featured the upgraded Levi’s interior, which did include denim cloth and seat “buttons” that looked like they belonged on a pair of pants. Impressively, despite surely spending some time in the Texas sun, the dashboard remains uncracked. The interior isn’t bad overall, and it looks to remain largely unmodified with the exception of a CB radio added at some point. The lack of wiring dangling beneath the dash or tacky aftermarket gauges added to the A-pillars or dashboard gives me some confidence the Golden Eagle was never put through its paces as a trail rig.
While the reserve remains unmet on the Golden Eagle, here’s a friendly reminder some cheaper projects reside at the Barn Finds Exclusive listing for a large batch of projects in Georgia. This includes several Cherokees, including the “S”-trim two-door model and two Wagoneers. All have 360 V8s like this Golden Eagle does, and are ripe for serving as excellent parts trucks or for restoration. Click here for more information, and feel free to reach out to me about any of the projects shown in the Exclusive posting.
The seller states “original and unmolested” but the hole in the drivers door (speaker?), aftermarket wiring strewn throughout inside and out etc. dictates otherwise.
It is definitely a period machine however when people everywhere wanted to be a truck driver with CB’s in their “rigs” replete with trucker horns, big beefy/burly brush guards, semi-truck style sunguards over the windshield. Driving attire was always Levi’s, cowboy boots, pearl looking snap button shirts and a pinch-front style cowboy hat.
A bygone era but not altogether forgotten when a flash from the past like this one comes back around while showing its age today.
These mirrors were called junior West Coast mirrors. My father installed them on his 67 F100. They were perfect to mount my Hustler Twin Huskies co-phased CB antennas on.
This Jeep comes from the early 40 channel era, which began in 1977. The whole Urban Cowboy thing was retaliation to the disco era and lasted about as long .
Jeep sold tons of Golden Eagles here in western Pennsylvania, and most were junked by the end of the Reagan administration.
As much trouble as I had with my ’78 Cherokee,(old story), I still like these, it’s why I bought the Cherokee in the 1st place. Like Dave sez, Jeep sold a ton of these. The thing that makes it rare today, is most of them, like mine, folded in half. I think this was the nicest rendition of the full size Cherokee, but knowing what I know about late 70’s Jeep Cherokee’s and looking at this, I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole. Nicer Cherokees come up from time to time, might not be a “Golden Eagle”, but it’s all graphics, and a Jeep Cherokee is a Jeep Cherokee. I wouldn’t waste a penny on this one. And what is that hose running along the frame, aux. rear heat?
I think the only reason there are so few on the road is because of RUST depending on where you lived you could just about pull up a chair and watch the metal turn!
Look this one over really good , I think it was under water at one point in its life time !!! Had one of these Loved it , wife got it in the divorse !!
Another Saved from the Crusher story restoring old vechl4s to showroom condition