Originally posted by Barry Sotham:
I'm thinking of buying an older CJ with a 304V8...What can you tell me about these engines? Reliability, fuel consumption, etc...or should I stick with a I6?
Sigh... OK I'm going to avoid the obvious opportunity for humour here and stick to the topic.
I had the 6cyl in my Jeep when I bought it. Good power, ok fuel economy (when the carb worked right), and it was reliable. I swapped a Chev 350 in and got better fuel mileage (less carb problems), much more power, and better low end grunt. The swap cost me less than it would have cost to rebuild the 6cyl.
Lynn's CJ has the 304. You've seen it work on the trail. Lots of power, good mileage now that the carb is set up correctly. In stock form her drivetrain (304/T176/AMC20/D30) is good for 33" tires. With the T18 in the shop and my D44/D60 combo she could run up to 38's comfortably.
I like her setup because it uses all stock CJ parts. A little more expensive to work on than my Chev/Jeep combo but still cheaper than toyota stuff

.
If I was going to buy a stockish CJ my first choice would be a CJ8 (more space). Second choice would be '77-79 CJ7 with the 304/T18/D20. Swap in some lower gears in the D20, add one piece rear shafts and a rear locker. It would handle all the local trails.
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Jon B.
'82 CJ7 Some mods (Hers)
'82 CJ7 More mods (His)
'02 Chev 3500 LT D/A
[This message has been edited by jeeponrock (edited February 19, 2002).]