Can I find a decent rig for $15k? (1 Viewer)

[Living in the Past]

They do pop up in the panhandle. Bought mine locally and considered 2 others that were in various stages of frame off resto. Be patient, do your due diligence. Check craigslist / Facebook market place in and around the area. You might come across someone from Eglin AFB who is PCSing and needs to get rid of one.

Being in your location have to ask the one you bought and the two you considered are these US imports or from south of the border?

 

[FJBen]

@FJBen if you come across another 45 for a deal. please let me know! lol. Nice collection!

Yeah I wish I had all those back...classic case of shouldn't have sold and/or rolled
That 45 was a once in a liftetime find, was in a backyard for years and somehow they got it only a few years old, dealer swap back in the day. THey said somehow they got it in 78. I have no idea how but the elderly parents had it sitting for over 5 years after the son/owner passed away. Earliest picture I have of it was from 1996 here in Colorado.
Either way wadesters on here has it and completely restored it and it's fantactic.

There are still quite a few "barn finds" out there, it's just getting out and finding or hearing about them.

 

[Catching Neutral]

@Living in the Past
Mine is a 5/78 US Cali spec. I have traced it via this forum to a PO in Cali. Not sure how long it has been in Florida.
What I can recall regarding the other 2. Can’t answer if they were from US or SA. Both had completed rolling chassis, one with an LS-?, one with a rebuilt 2F. Both needed to be finished from the frame up but all parts were present. One was in Panama City (he wanted 13k) The other was near Tallahassee and the owner had suffered major home damage due to Hurricane Michael therefore he needed to unload it. He was asking 15k. I considered because my brother has done paint and body his whole life so I had an ace up my sleeve there.

 

[thatcabledude]

@Living in the Past
Mine is a 5/78 US Cali spec. I have traced it via this forum to a PO in Cali. Not sure how long it has been in Florida.
What I can recall regarding the other 2. Can’t answer if they were from US or SA. Both had completed rolling chassis, one with an LS-?, one with a rebuilt 2F. Both needed to be finished from the frame up but all parts were present. One was in Panama City (he wanted 13k) The other was near Tallahassee and the owner had suffered major home damage due to Hurricane Michael therefore he needed to unload it. He was asking 15k. I considered because my brother has done paint and body his whole life so I had an ace up my sleeve there.

Was the one in Panama the one with the LS motor? And red?

 

[Rusto]

Sometimes you can look on CL or FB marketplace under Jeep or 4x4 or even antique. I've found a few listed incorrectly by the owner that I came very close to buying. Bonus if they are listed incorrectly there isn't as much interest and the owner doesn't know that they have.

Good luck! I got mine for $16k this summer. It's a BJ40 that needs some work, but I overpaid for the diesel and the frame and underside are spotless. Top has some rust and needs heat (almost have everything of that, finally) but I'm glad I bought it. I looked for about a year, but got serious and found one in about two months

 

[Catching Neutral]

Was the one in Panama the one with the LS motor? And red?

I remember the one in Panama City was the one with the LS but can’t remember the color.

 

[thatcabledude]

I remember the one in Panama City was the one with the LS but can’t remember the color.

I’m sure it’s the same one. I watched it for a long time. Looked like everything would be plug n play, but I wasn’t ready to plug 15k

 

[Orange76Cruiser]

I just got my 76 a few months ago. I went to KC Mo from Nebraska, north of Omaha because we had found a 77 for sale there. The engine seemed fine but shifting in and out of 4WD was tough and the body had a lot more rust than showed in the pictures posted. It was going to be a project, maybe not huge but the entire body needed work. We went to eat lunch to talk and my wife found a posting on Facebook Marketplace for a FJ40 in Minneapolis. This had lots of detailed pictures and the body looked great. I called and talked to the seller in Minneapolis for an hour or better and asked a lot more questions this time. We said no to the KC cruiser (asking $18,000) and I made plans to drive up to Minnesota the following weekend. The seller agreed to give me first dibs even if someone else was interested. I bought it for about the same money as the Cruiser in KC. No rust anywhere. You have to be in the right place, willing to travel, and willing to buy it quickly. Engine runs nice, body IS in great shape (took it to a body shop and had them check) and I just put a new exhaust system on it.

I would have never thought to look on Facebook and don't even have a Facebook account so I owe my wife on this one. I guess the lesson here is look anyplace that sells general goods including cars no matter what it is.

 

[Catching Neutral]

I am not nor will I ever be on Facebook, A coworker who knew I loved 40s spotted the one I own on Facebook Marketplace. I had him send the guy my number. And that’s how we connected

 

[85roktoy]

The response to this thread has been more than I’ve expected so I wanted to thank you guys. It’s been very insightful. I don’t really get on here much but get the updates when you post. If you run across something worth looking at please post here if you can. Thanks again

 

[Catching Neutral]

You will not find a better group of people. Good luck