Well, there’s no denying it, I like green! I lock up on that exterior hue before I even notice the rest of the car. But in this case, this 1974 Jeep Cherokee has much more to offer than its beautiful finish; its overall condition, attention to detail, and what makes it go are what really push it over the finish line. Looking beautiful in Burbank, this old-school SUV is listed here on eBay with an opening bid of $20,000 and none tendered so far.
Jeep’s SJ platform-based Cherokee, in two-door form only, was introduced in ’74. A four-door variant came along in ’77, and different trim levels such as the Chief, Laredo, and Limited would eventually follow. Production numbers for the Cherokee are hard to come by, but the prevailing estimate is that between 178K and 200K copies were built in its initial ten-year run (’74-’83), with 14K leaving the Toledo assembly line in its inaugural year. The seller tells us that he’s been working on this rig for ten years and, specifically, the “Vehicle was stripped to the frame, sandblasted, and painted. We built the Jeep from the ground up. Bottom of body was treated with POR15 and undercoated.” Well, it looks marvelous! The body is nice and straight, though there is a crease and a small dent on the lower passenger side; the finish has nice depth, and the chrome sparkles. There are included images of the underside, and it all shows as being sound.
The interior is a complete redo, and there are no demerits to be noted. The seller adds, “Leather and Vinyl custom interior by Ishmael, formerly of WCC, using a 3-tone plaid stitching. Front seats are TMI; back seat is stock. Suede headliner and sun visors. Modified dash with Speed Hut gauges with a handmade steel gauge bezel.” Even the wayback deck has been recovered in a beautiful emerald green fabric and framed with nicely reupholstered side panels. I’d sum it up as expensive! Yes, this is an A/C equipped Jeep.
I did a VIN decode, and if I’ve interpreted the “Z” engine code correctly, this Cherokee left the assembly line with an AMC 401 CI V8 engine. Well, you can forget about that, as the engine room now harbors a 2013-vintage Mopar 5.7-liter Hemi V8 coupled to a 545RFE five-speed automatic transmission, which utilizes an NP231DHD transfer case for the 4X4 feature. The seller got it all to work with a Hotwire auto harness, and a spare computer is included in the sale. There’s a long list of mechanical details to review, so please check the listing. Curiously, there’s no comment made about this Jeep’s running and/or driving characteristics, but there is an operational video included.
Way cool! And I have to admit, I’m surprised no one has stepped up to the bid plate yet. This Jeep’s modifications are nothing less than superb, and this had to be an expensive build. Time is almost up; any takers out there?
Wait! What? Yes I need this jeep! It’s got everything I like! I just placed bid.
Good luck! Please advise if you are successful.
JO
Will do!
Auction ended, did you get it?
The reserve was not met.
It looks like a nice built, I’d have thought there would be more bids.
Steve R
No, I bailed out at the last minute. I couldn’t have pulled off financially. Plus my brother donated a Toyota pick up to me. I think it’s an awesome Jeep. I hope someone has a great time with it.
Love it, but it is way too nice for me.
This Jeep is HOT!!! I would love this Jeep next to mine 2016 Grand Cherokee Hemi also. Only two things that bother me. The steering column could have been done better. The interior is great looking then you look at the steering column!🤦♂️. Also why single exhaust? Duals would work better. Oh yeah its on the West coast i am in the Northeast. I bet the reserve is close to $50,000… But what a beautiful job done on the wiring!! We seen too many botch jobs on wiring here. I wish the seller good luck. 🇺🇸🐻
The no bids makes sense to me. Why? It’s not very attractive. And with the modifications, just get something newer. I just don’t get it I guess.
It’s real decent & engine is modern & programmable can easily switch from TOW to Economy/highway.
Can be cam swapped & was a good idea to replace the AMC 401 – parts are Nil esp secondary parts hoses pumps etc.
I kinda agree with TRUTH. I am a Mopar fan, but I just don’t care for the color green . It has to look good on the vehicle and I just don’t think it works on this Cherokee, especially the interior. I think it would have at least looked better in a darker green.
While the color is highly subjective, I too like green vehicles, probably dates us to when everything from the terlet to moms oven mitts were green.( thanks SG) This truck is what limits someone would go to, to make this everything it wasn’t from the factory. Naturally, I’d prefer stock, although the palm tree gauges are a nice touch, when the cold wind blowin’.Someone did an incredible job here, and am shocked, with over 350 viewers, only 1 bid. Why is that? Now, being a purist, I’d take the 401 over the 5.7 anyday. 5.7, I heard, not the best motor, but again proper care does wonders. I only hope the builder got some use out of it, because they’ll never regroup their losses. Probably the nicest Cherokee I’ve seen.
Love it ,I had one just like it in stock AMC form 360 quadatrac 3 speed auto , wife ended up with it in the divorce ! to bad this one is on the west coast and I live in the great Northeast !
Boss Jeep bigtime J.O 😎 👍
Wow.. I love this! Either Thames bought it outside of eBay or someone else did though because the seller ended the auction due to “item is no longer being available”.
When I read the header, thought someone had resurrected an old Jeep Tornado OHC six cylinder. Weren’t those hemi-headed?
Ha! Good catch, and yes, the “Tornado 6” was a true hemi head, but made no claim to the Chrysler hemi. What made it different, was it used one OHC lobe to operate both intake and exhaust valves. By ’74 however, it was almost 10 years out of production in the US, but 1982 in foreign appplications.