Jeeps and rust go hand-in-hand and it’s often a slippery slope once the first rust bubble makes its appearance. Was this a beach Jeep? There are a bunch of spots where rust abatement will need to occur, most notably on the rear of the Jeep. It is, after all, a Northeast truck and according to Google Maps Little Silver, NJ is only a hop, skip, and jump away from the brine of the ocean and bay. The seller acknowledges damage to the front left fender but says it is “easily replaceable.” I’m wondering about this vehicle’s true mileage and if I was a potential buyer I’d want to get a good look underneath to check things out and see what the frame looks like. Recent work performed includes a new starter, master cylinder, front brake hose and pads, rear spring shackles, clutch linkage, wiring, and body mount repair.
He says a new clutch is on the to-do list as well as replacing the flywheel.
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Under the hood is an AMC 304 V8 with 11,161 miles although the seller mentions he’s “not sure how many times it rolled over.” Could this thing really have over 200K on it? Claiming to be a rare combo, the seller mentions the V8 is mated to a manual 3-speed transmission. In old Jeep fashion, this CJ comes with its fair share of gouged paint on the floors and wheel wells, an indication that it hasn’t been overly pampered throughout the years. Bolt holes in the rear floor reveal a backseat was present at one time.
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If this CJ came with brown carpeted floor coverings, it’s long gone and the appearance of significant rust can be seen beginning to eat its way through the tub in both the driver and passenger side floor. It’s difficult to tell how well the replacement seats match the original color scheme but by looking at the upholstered door panel in the photo above, it appears they are quite a bit lighter in color than the original material. The seller of this Jeep mentions the original seats have been replaced. Golden Eagles came with different upholstery options, including Levi’s denim. Present and intact, however, is the rear mounted swing-away spare tire carrier. The original rear bumper has also been replaced. This CJ probably wore the traditional black rectangular front bumper but it’s now gone, having been replaced with a modified tube-shaped bumper. Some Golden Eagles came with chrome bumpers, but many did not. Nevertheless, this Jeep wears fender flares which were a feature included in the Golden Eagle package as were tinted windows, also present on this truck. Perhaps I’m wrong and some Golden Eagles did, in fact, come with chrome wheels? Or maybe someone simply swapped the gold painted steel wheels for chrome because they preferred the look. The rims on this CJ look more Laredo-ish, but their presence certainly doesn’t discount it being a Golden Eagle. To my knowledge and from what I’ve researched, the Golden Eagle package notoriously featured gold painted 8-spoked steel wheels. The first thing that jumps out at me is the chrome rims. Located in Little Silver, New Jersey and claimed to be “vintage,” there are other features unique to the Golden Eagle trim package, so upon closer examination, perhaps we can confirm this Jeep’s true identity. Voila! Instant Golden Eagle! Is this CJ-7, available here on eBay, a real Golden Eagle? Bidding is currently at $2,550 with the reserve price not met but plenty of time left in the auction.
Not so fast! For better or worse, a good number of CJ-7 owners simply went out and bought aftermarket eagle stickers and slapped them on the hood of their Jeeps. The signature feature of the Golden Eagle Jeep, of course, is a giant eagle emblazoned on the hood, making it impossible to incorrectly identify one. From 1977-1983 Jeep offered the Golden Eagle trim package for the CJ-7 (this package was also offered for the Cherokee and J-10 pick-up truck from ’76-’83).