Grand Wagoneers will seemingly always be a truck someone wants to buy, but the restored varieties are well out of reach of mere mortals these days. Fortunately, they made a good number of them, so you can still find average-to-decent quality drivers for reasonable cash. The 1988 Grand Wagoneer seen here stands out for having a rare factory moonroof and for the aftermarket wheels, the latter of which I very rarely see on this model because so many owners are concerned about preservation. That said, there’s nothing wrong with swapping on a new set of rollers and tires, and the Grand Wagoneer looks pretty clean on them, in my opinion. Find the Jeep here on eBay where bidding is at $5,100 with the reserve unmet.
The Wagoneer looks sharp up and down the sides, with the wood paneling still in good shape and the lower sills appearing to be rust-free. The aftermarket wheels, upon closer inspection, may not be the best look for a “stately” Wagoneer, but it’s still a nice change of pace. Glass looks clean and clear and the chrome/polished finishes don’t reveal any flaws from a few feet away. The seller claims it is an accident-free truck and that the body panels are original, along with the paint. The mileage on the odometer is 131,172 at the time of posting, and the seller doesn’t affirm or deny whether it has previously rolled over – but the truck certainly looks clean enough for that to be accurate.
The interior is likewise all-original, save for some patched areas noted on the front seats. If you are buying a Wagoneer – now or in 1986 – you likely sought it out for its opulent interior and sense of style that went well beyond what other trucks were offering. That still holds true today, as Jeep recently introduced the Grand Wagoneer nameplate as a new-for-2o22 model and it continues the tradition of luxury. The original is still the best, however, and I haven’t seen a wood paneling option for the new model. The door panels and seating surfaces all look to be in great shape, especially considering the mileage. The power seats and windows still work, too.
The drivetrain is perhaps the easiest aspect of the truck to live with, as this is a tried and proven powerplant. The seller reports no issues with the engine or transmission and notes that a new exhaust manifold was recently installed. The engine bay itself could stand to be detailed, and the truck would likely present even better as a result. The seller claims he just purchased a 1991 “Final Edition” for his restoration project, so this one is for sale as a result. Jeep Grand Wagoneers are seemingly always in style and I doubt you can go wrong with a clean, driver-quality example like this.
The sun roof is not factory. I used to work for a trim shop in the Chicagoland area and p/u these and other cars to install sunroofs in them. Jeep never offered “Factory sunroofs”
ASC was mostly the brand we used.
Oil Slick……………You’re absolutely correct!
Looks like the body has been lifted a few inches to clear the oversized wheels and tires. That probably also explains why so much of the exhaust system is visible at the rear of the vehicle. If it were mine, I’d either put it back to stock or replace the body lift with a proper suspension lift.
No that’s stock height
Not very well presented imo. The pics are all at weird angles, not much in the description about the details like the missing carpeting in the cargo area and tailgate, the trashed headliner, the weird yellow thing on the inner fender under the hood…onboard air? Who knows. The duct tape on the sunroof means it either leaks or the glass is gone. The surface rust on the interior roof is troubling. Current bid is probably on-point but based on the seller’s wording, he thinks he has gold (no pun intended) in this Waggy
Compare the position of the bumpers relative to the body to a stock Grand Wagoneer. The body on this one is sitting about 3″ above where it belongs.
That wide angle lens on the camera makes the stance look off, but definitely no lift on this rig.
Not to belabor it, this is definitely on a stock height suspension with slightly taller sidewall tires like BFG T/A’s or something
This is a 2-1/2″ lift and you can see how much higher the bumper is when you draw a line to the tire height
https://www.bjsoffroad.com/BJs-25-inch-Lift-Springs-with-U-bolts_p_1296.html
He didn’t mention which engine it has,304 or 360 and maybe 401 ?
It will be a 360
I don’t think I have ever seen a lift that was done to the body, not the suspension. Seems to distort everything. You can see the big rubber spacer in the rocker panel picture.
Replacing the headliner looks like a big and expensive job.
A vehicle that should have been in production as long as the in-line 6-cylinder Jeep Cherokee was. Just like the Commanche pickup another screw up Jeep.
Chrysler killed the GW. They had zero plans of keeping the FSJ line because they didn’t want to invest one nickel into the tooling and technology to get this 60’s era vehicle into the 1990’s. This was a carbureted engine that was an emissions nightmare, that got 10mpg, had no SRS or antilock brake technology.
They had their own problems with their Ramcharger and didn’t need another
Got that right ✅ my buddy had a Ramcharger thing was parked As much as it was on the road Left him stranded more times than any other vehicle ive known. Not nuch good for exploring in 4wd. Total Lemon 🍋
I’m not sure this is original paint and faux wood trim either. The screws in the trim pieces don’t seem correct and the beautiful paint on the outside and heartache corner when you lift the hood. Caveat Emptor.
Agreed…. The body color paint seems shades off the underhood paint also, which affects the original paint claim….
Buy this at your peril. If used in winter in snow country it WIILL rust and disappear before your eyes despite your best efforts at prevention. I had 3 of them.
130k on an 88 AMC is old. Nice shape but will need suspension upgrades, bushings, etc. Someone will save it.
Yep. These are basically gen-1 60’s v8 engines and those are pretty tired after 120k. This kind of mileage is not the same as 130k on a new gen powerplant where that’s just half-life (or less on some)
At minimum this will need a top end refresh
Oil Slick……………You’re absolutely correct!