(By Loren Krussow) – The common Jeep Wagoneer, as produced from 1963 to 1991, could quite possibly be one of the homeliest vehicles on the road (or sitting in backyards, or lined up in the junkyard), which seems ironic, since they come from the neat-looking fullsize family of  tough-rep J-series pickups and even the battle-ready M-715 military truck from the Vietnam war era. Fullsize Jeeps have been discussed a little here at BS, and in a thread a few weeks ago where members were counting off all the cars they’d ever owned, the ol’ Wag was well represented among the lists. There are lots of folks out there who still love ‘em with their faults, or have had one anyhow.

This ’69 was purchased from in front of a junkyard where it was destined for scrap. The previous owner had removed the original Buick 350 for rebuilding, then after it sat in the driveway for years waiting for the motor to come back, the lady of the house got tired of looking at it and called the yard to haul it off.  It was still in good shape body-wise but gosh was it ugly. Selling price? $200. These things are cheap.

There’s no sense trying to make an old 4×4 pretty. Making it tough is a better idea. The original tiny axles were pulled in favor of a front Dana 44 from a ’78 Wagoneer with Chevy 8-lug ends bolted on, and a rear truck 14-bolt with the track narrowed via dually hubs. A trashed Army 5/4-ton M-715 contributed the springs (with a few leaves removed) which were re-arched up a bit before going in. Wheel choice is rusty ‘70s-era 16.5×9.5 chrome spokes with used 33-inch tires.  A core Chevy 350 is in place for mockup purposes along with an SM465 four-speed and a 205 cast-iron, gear-drive transfer case. The best motor for this would probably be a late-‘80s throttle-body injected small-block in front of that truck trans. TBIs are simple, cheap, and able to run at odd angles on hillsides.

The spring-donor ’67 M-715, which had been rolled down a hillside in the ‘90s while working an avocado grove and was also acquired for $200, contributed some front sheetmetal as well as the instrument panel.  The brush-bar and blackout lights say “This ain’t yer momma’s Wagoneer (maggot!)” and the cool military dash was adapted after severe straightening work. It was necessary to fabricate a new top panel going up to the windshield due to cowl differences between the two vehicles. Painted metal door panels replace the wussy vinyl originals.
Wagoneer frames are a bit thin, and this one will require some bracing. A rigid engine crossmember, among other things, should help. It also needs a more-protected fuel tank and then the hundred other things any old project needs before it fires the first time.

You can see about how the Wag is going to look, the black paint around the fender openings indicates where they’ll be cut to. Paint will be rattle-can tan, camo flat. Olive drab would be good, but this one’s destined for the desert.