1979 Jeep CJ5 Golden Eagle V8 (Mechanical Restoration) 4 inch lift 35 inch tires

Description for Jeep CJ 1979

You are bidding on a genuine 1 owner. AMC Jeep CJ5 American Eagle V8 survivor bought in Southern California back in 1979 where it lived and never left the State until 2012 when it was shipped to Southern Arizona for professional mechanical restoration. It runs perfect on regular gasoline with the original 304 V8. 4 bbl Edelbrock carb. aluminum intake. restored 3 speed manual transmission with new clutch. new 4. 56 gears front & rear. new Detroit lockers front & rear. fresh 4 inch lift and brand new 35 inch BFG Mud Terrain tires. Here's the history of this beautiful machine named "Goldie". The original owner who bought it near Torrance. CA maintained it exceptionally well. changing the oil every 3000 miles. He never wrecked or abused it and kept it completely stock except for a repaint in the mid 90's. Since it has only been driven 100 miles from the complete mechanical restoration I'm calling it a "1 owner" Jeep even though technically it has been issued a clean new Arizona title to the second owner/restorer Dan Drager. a professional Jeep builder since 1995 with a reputable Jeep restoration & repair shop "Desert Dog Automotive" in Tucson. who just retired and closed his shop as of March. 1st. 2015. Dan Drager served in Vietnam while stationed in Da'Nang in the late 60's as a Jet Fighter mechanic. After his service he was the Chief Technician at Delta Airlines in Atlanta running a crew that serviced commercial passenger jets through the late 70's. 80's and early 90's until he moved to Tucson to open his own shop in 1995. Dan's late Brother from San Louis Obispo. CA. . who tragically passed away last year. knew the original owner of this Jeep from Torrance. CA. and introduced in 2012 Dan to him who bought it with the expressed intent to restore it to the NINES for his wife Toni as a trail companion to his 2 other built competition Jeeps. one called the "Black Bastard". which is a stretched Wrangler rock crawler with 1 ton Chevy axles. Detroit Lockers. Coilovers and a late model Corvette LS motor. The other is an old 50's flat fender Willy's with a SBC 383 Stroker motor named "Bobaloo" that's run crazy fast without a hiccup on the trails. dunes and drag strip for the 16 years that I've known Dan. Upon delivery of Goldie the 1st thing Dan had in mind is that this Jeep would be his wife's rig so no expenses were spared in the mechanical restoration. The stock 304 CID AMC V8 engine with 147k original miles had exceptional compression for its age so upon tearing it down and inspecting everything with a micrometer & gauges only the timing chain components were out of spec -- so those were replaced with new timing chain & tensioner. cover gasket. & all OEM parts along with new water pump. rebuilt alternator. rebuilt starter and new distributor seal. cap. rotor. plugs. wires. fuel pump and misc. tune up parts. The cast iron intake was replaced with an aluminum Offenhauser intake and rebuilt Edelbrock 4 bbl carb with spring loaded needle & seat for ease of tuning & reliability off road. The gas tank was removed and sent to Performance Radiator in Tucson for professional restoration which amounts to boiling in a hot tank and coating. The stock 3 speed manual transmission & transfer case were removed and resealed plus new OEM clutch. pressure plate. throwout bearing & pilot bearing was mated to the freshly machined OEM flywheel. The powering steering pump and steering gear box were removed. resealed & replaced with new drop pitman arm & belts. All worn ball joints & steering linkages were replaced. The oil pan was removed to replace the 2 pc. rear main crank seal which was weeping. The factory radiator was leak tested. purged and flushed. New hoses. clamps & coolant were installed. The entire 2 pc. AMC 25 rear axle assembly was torn down & replaced with the superior 1 pc rear axle assembly with chrome molly axle shafts. new 4. 56 G2 ring & pinion with master bearing and seal install kit plus new Full Carrier Detroit Locker. new gear oil. new wheel seals. bearings. brake drums & shoes. New 4 Inch Pro Comp lift leaf springs and long travel shocks along with stainless steel extended brake lines were added to the rear end which still retains the factory "spring under" design. Next the the entire Dana 30 front end was torn down with new chrome molly axles. u-loints. brake pads. rotors. wheel bearings and axle seals installed. hubs lubed. in addition to brand new 4. 56 G2 gears. master bearing install kit. & Full Carrier Detroit True Track Positraction unit. New 4 Inch Pro Comp lift leaf springs and long travel shocks along with stainless steel extended brake lines were added to the front end which still retains the factory "spring under" design. Next the Jeep was sent to Kenny at "Exhaust Works" in Tucson for complete new 3 inch crossover exhaust with Flow Master mufflers. Surprisingly quiet with a nice snarl when you step on the gas. Not too loud for the neighborhood. Next brand new 35 x 12. 5 x 15 BFG Mud Tires were mounted & balanced on brand new 10 inch wide black Rock Crusher steel rims with the stock 5 on 5-1/2 lug pattern all from 4Wheel Parts. 4 Wheel Alignment was then performed by Embassy Tire & Wheel in Tucson. Finally steel rock skis known as steel rock sliders or steel rocker protectors with steel step rails were added along with aluminum diamond plate corner guards to the rear corners of the tub for protection. Upon delivery from CA the Jeep's frame was 100% rust free. It was steam pressure washed then dried and coated with epoxy coat rust inhibitor. The Jeep's body was 97% rust free with 1% being a spot on the driver's side front fender. 1% being on the passenger side by the door. and 1% being on the driver's side windshield frame. 2 out of these 3 areas were professionally eliminated by cutting out the small area & welding in new sheet metal & grinding with finish & then thin coat of filler. These 2 areas are shown in the pictures with primer near the left and right door area. They have since been lightly resprayed with a Duplicolor spray paint that is far from a perfect match but is hard to notice until you get close. The 1% of rust left on this Jeep is the small area near the driver's side windshield hinge shown in pictures. The Jeep is now 99% rust free. The interior is super clean & original except for where original owner installed a good working Kenwood deck and some dash mount speakers that managed to cut into the glove box door. The floor pans are immaculate and all rust free original. Seats were recovered with the mid 90's repaint and look great. The Jeep comes with a bikini top only. There is no top nor doors. They were ditched long ago. That's just the way we roll in the South West. The numbers matching 304 V8 engine starts every time with a click of the key. Smooth. quiet & powerful. Reliable as the day is long. No smoke. no knocks. no noises. no leaks. no issues. If it's been sitting for more than a day it needs only a couple pumps of the pedal & fires right up. Will pass emissions in all 50 States guaranteed since everything smog related is factory. Everything's fresh under hood so it won't need anything in the engine bay for years & years except regular oil changes & air filters. Note that if your smart upon purchase contact "Grundy Worldwide" for Collector Car Insurance. Google them. They're cheaper than Haggerty with identical coverage. With a simple phone call they will provide a Full Coverage insurance policy on this rig (that means theft. fire. collision. etc) for only about $10 a month -- and that means no yearly emissions tests in any State! You'll need to snap a couple pictures of it in a garage is all. The original numbers matching 3 speed transmission shifts smooth and precise as designed as it should with a fresh clutch. No leaks. No issues. The 4x4 actuation and transfer case all work as designed. No leaks. No issues. Everything works. All the gauges and signal electrics work as designed. There's some corrosion on some of the chrome gauge bezels. This Jeep drives down the road smooth with no rattles or issues as perfectly as one would expect for a CJ5 with a 4 inch lift on 35 inch tires. It stops quick and normal with no issues. Originally there would have been a swing out tailgate in the back but for some inexplicable reason the original owner decided to weld it shut with some light filler making the tub look like it never had a tailgate back when it was repainted in the mid 90's. There is a spare Goodyear mud tire 33 x 12. 5 x 15 holding air out back. There's not one of these CJ V8 Jeeps better equipped for sale in the entire World. Clean AZ title. Never been wrecked. Passed every AZ emissions test (which is same as CA. ) Complete mechanical restoration. 99% rust free. Built to the NINES with all the best off road parts. I've known Dan Drager for 16 years and have all the documentation for this build as I've agreed to help him liquidate his assets for his retirement move. Email or call 52O-977-O112 for any questions not answered here. Winning bidder is expected to pay $1000 PayPal deposit within 24 hrs. of auction close and then balance in FULL within 72 hrs. of PayPal deposit. Balance if paid by PayPal will be subject to 2. 5% additional PayPal fee. This vehicle can reliably drive from New York to Seattle but we are not responsible for shipping. We will. however. help within reason with all shipping arrangements. A $15 per day storage fee will be charged upon 15th day of auction closing.