What a great-looking truck, it sure seems like with a weekend of cleaning and polishing, it would look pretty amazing. This 1974 Jeep J10 Pioneer 4×4 pickup belongs to an 80-year-old gentleman and the seller – I’m not sure if it’s family or friend – refers to it as a barn find. They have it posted here on craigslist in Butte, Montana and they’re asking $5,950 or best offer. Here is the original listing.
Yes, there is some rust peeking out of some of the cracks and crevices, but overall, this appears to be a really nice example of a half-ton Townside 4×4 pickup. For the 1974 model year, Jeep changed its naming convention which had evolved from the Gladiator, which then went to the J2000/J4000, and finally to the J10/J20.
AMC offered the Jeep pickup in a Townside such as this example, but there was also a Thriftside which is commonly known as a stepside. There is surface rust but redoing the rear bumper would be a fairly easy project and inside the bed looks pretty solid, at least until you get toward the back and the tailgate. This is a fancy Pioneer model which mostly shows up inside with nicer materials inside the cab.
This looks positively plush for a Jeep, doesn’t it? I don’t see this fabric listed on SMS Auto Fabric’s website but maybe it’s still available somewhere? The door panels look really nice and a good upholstery shop could probably come up with a match for that worn and ripped seat fabric. And, it has a really nice padded headliner, which looks almost like new. This Jeep has 81,266 miles and it looks like it’s been fairly well-maintained, and we don’t know how long it was in “the barn”.
If you haven’t spent hours on YouTube watching videos of the relatively new technology of dry ice blasting, don’t do it if you have anything that you have to do for the next few hours, it’s addicting. That’s all I think of now when I see an engine that looks like this one. This engine should be a 360 cubic-inch V8, I believe, but one of you will know for sure by looking at it. The seller doesn’t provide a VIN or engine size. It runs and drives great, according to the seller and this would be fun to own. Good buy or goodbye?
If I was in the market for another project I would buy it. I would think this won’t last long at this price range. Love the early grill J series trucks even better is the Gladiator era grills. A great design never gets old.
According to my research, it should be a 360, but a 401 was also available. The 304 wasn’t.
Great buy, IMO. Looks like a very good base for a restoration, but just the right amount of scruff to just use it for weekend Home Depot duty. I know I am a weirdo, but that green interior would seal the deal for me. If I were in Montana I’d be calling about it.
Bingo. Get some kind of blanket for a seat cover, make sure the mechanicals/drivetrain are in good shape. The perfect thing for a few sheets of drywall or 20 bags of topsoil, and something to show at local cruise nights.