Most of us have been there. We find a vehicle that we like, or most likely love, and then go overboard on it, sinking way more money into it than we could ever hope to get out of it. This 1983 Jeep J-10 Honcho can be found listed here on eBay in one of the greatest cities in America: San Antonio, Texas. The current bid price is $12,100 and it’s not surprising that the reserve isn’t met yet.
The problem with vintage vehicles for a lot of us is that we just keep fixing things, thinking that we’ll get the money back if we ever sell it. Who cares, we’re keeping them forever, aren’t we? Most of us sell vehicles to buy other vehicles unless we have an endless supply of money coming in every month. Most of us don’t have that but a few lucky ones do, so it doesn’t matter for them. Lucky!
This Honcho is gorgeous, the underside photos show what a solid example it is. In the era of the worst men’s clothing of all time – 1976 through 1983 – Jeep offered the Honcho trim package. This truck would have had painted spoke wheels originally and there may be other details on the exterior that were modified a bit. Hagerty is at $44,300 for a #2 excellent truck with a 360 V8, an engine that isn’t in this truck but you’ll see what’s under the hood in a bit.
The interior looks like new. Whether it’s original spec or not I’m not sure but one of you may know. You can see the clutch pedal for the four-speed manual transmission and there’s a two-speed transfer case shift lever next to it. Jeep offered fewer than 1,300 Honcho J-10 pickups in both Sportside (“stepside”) and Townside trucks. The seller mentions that over $37,000 has been invested in this truck and even though some sources say that a nicely-restored truck can bring $50,000, I can’t see this one getting even near their restoration costs with the auction sitting at $12,100 right now.
Maybe part of the reason is that the engine isn’t a Jeep product, it’s a Ford 289-cu.in. V8. In a specialized and rare truck like a Honcho, a much better plan may have been to put a 360 in there, one of the available engines, not a Ford 289, but that’s just me thinking out loud. Again, an owner must have restored this one to how they wanted it and that’s what this hobby is all about. Will this one bring $37,000?
Nice truck!
289/302-327/350: common transplant for a lot of trucks with busted motors, really not a big detractor for these in the $12k to $20k range around here. For more $$ than that, it’d better have something much more than just an engine upgrade.
The reason for the Ford was, he wanted the thing to actually run.
FORD…Fix Or Repair Daily…
Cool truck. I remember when these were new. They must have been in a competition with GM for the size of the graphics. Nice that it’s a stick.
If I was a single gal and talked to some guy until closing time, and the guy came around the corner in a truck called “Honcho”, I think I’d run. The Honcho trim was a $700 option. Maybe it’s different in Texas, images of hooligans doing donuts in the dirt and firing pistols in the air,,in a Jeep Honcho with women in the box hanging on to the roll bar, come to mind. Why do I say that? Let’s look at the meaning of “Honcho”, shall we? One might think, as I did, it’s a Spanish word, but it’s actually Japanese for “leader”, or one in control or person who exercises control over others. A poor choice for a truck name, like they need a name anyway, it’s a truck, a J-10, dag nabit, what’s this Honcho schtick?
Anyway, it’s an AMC Jeep that has all the misgivings my ’78 Cherokee had, and I wouldn’t want that again. The Ford transplant doesn’t do a thing for me. AMC motors were top notch, it’s the rest of the truck that was iffy.
I’ve always liked Fords.
I had the most fun and the best luck with AMCs.
I’m just not wild about swaps between them.
I agree with Rick, gotta go home from the dance with the girl you brought.
Always irks me to see all those swaps with Chevy 350’s (great motor) in an old Ford.
I knew someone who had a 1964 J10 that they put a 289 Ford into. JC Wittney use sell adapter for this. The 289 is a good engine, however if you want to ask ridiculous prices, the market does require originality. Unfortunate but true.
That being said, it’s a great looking truck. Wishing for the best here.
Sadly he was mistaken when installing that mill because he rationalized he wanted it to run.
When off road recovery hauled him out of the woods. Off Road Recovery was a Chevy Wrecker.
I had one of these when I was a kid….the Ertl edition, it pulled a bass boat. Had a moon roof that allowed action figures to climb in and drive.
It needs a vanity license plate that says “Mike”.
I agree with Rick, gotta go home from the dance with the girl you brought.
Always irks me to see all those swaps with Chevy 350’s (great motor) in an old Ford.
Auction update: this one ended at $20,400 and that wasn’t enough to meet the seller’s reserve.