OT: 1970 Jeep J-3000???

Can anybody tell much about these old things?? I"ve found a 1970 model, just over 100,000 miles, 350 buick V-8(original engine, maybe rebuilt), 3-speed manual, 4-wd. I"ve just saw pictures of it and as you can tell, it looks pretty good. Anybody know how I can tell if it"s a 1/2 ton or 3/4? It"s suppose to have Dana 44"s front and rear, but again, I"ve not actually seen them, so who knows. Any guess as to what trailer towing capacity would be on this thing??

good looking truck and hard to find, it should be a heavy half/light 3/4 ton, jeep was kind of weird when it came to classification on these and about the only real way to tell is to look on the cab tag and see what the gvw is, those things are tough as a old boot if given reasonable care, as nice as this one is id like to have it myself, like i need another truck lol

The 350 Buick engine is a carry over from the Kaiser period and 1970 was the last year for it - in 1971 they started using all AMC V8s.

1971 marked the end of the 3000 series and in 1972 the "Gladiator" name was dropped and the J trucks were simply called Jeep trucks. In 1974 the model designations were changed to only reflect vehicle load capacity rather than load capacity and wheel base J10 to J30.




Engines in the J series pickups
Kaiser 230 OHC I6 "Tornado"(63-66)
AMC 327 V8 "Vigilante" (65-66)
AMC 232 I6 (67-70)
Buick 350 V8 "Dauntless" (67-70)
AMC 258 I6 (71-end of J truck production)
AMC 304 V8 (71-73)
AMC 360 V8 2 bbl. (71-end)
AMC 360 V8 4 bbl. (74-end J-xx models)
AMC 401 V8 4 bbl. (74-end J-xx models)

They ride like truck used to, handle like trucks used to, are just as uncomfortable as trucks used to be. They were stout, got lousy mileage and 60 mph felt like 100 mph! If you're used to modern vehicles and like you creature comforts you may be irritated with the Jeep.

I"ve got one of the later "78 Model J10"s with the AMC 360 engine, the same Dana 44"s, and a 3 speed xmission with a manual tansfer case. I"ve had the "ole girl for nearly 20 years and have never had any problems out of it until a bearing in the xfer case went out on the front output shaft. As a result it"s currently sidelined, and for the first time since I owned it untagged, til the economy picks back up and I can afford to give it some TLC. As far as the Buick engine I don"t have any knowledge of that since mine has the AMC, but the rest of the truck is basically the same and all I can say is it"s downright tough. Like another post said it rides and handles like a truck so if your looking for smooth riding and comfort it"s not what you want. However if your looking for a vehicle that will get you where you want to go reliably then you can"t go wrong. I would suggest going ahead and putting a winch on it if you plan to go offroad as you will eventually get overconfident in it"s abilities and get stuck somewhere. Too they didn"t come with locking differentials so you might want to go that route also. Personally I never put locking diff"s on mine and it was only an issue a couple of times but that"s what the winch was for.

All that said the one your looking at is a great looking truck and appears to be in great shape so if you want a real truck and don"t mind paying for a little extra gas then by all means go for it and enjoy it.

I have owned several of the j10 and 20s. the j20s were 3/4 ton and had 60 series rear axle and 44 in the front. the j10s had 44s front and rear. so if they are base the same I would guess that if it has 44s front and rear, It is probably a half ton. It looks like a really nice truck.

I used to have one like that - with fuel-pump powered windshield-wipers instead of electric. Every time I stomped on the gas pedal, the wipers would stop. Fuel pump also was a vacuum pump, and the wipers worked with a vacuum motor. Open the throttle, vacuum goes to zero, and no wipers.

Six-lug wheels are on the half-ton...eight-lug wheels on the 3/4 ton. Just like Chevy 4x4's.

Six-lug wheels are on the half-ton...eight-lug wheels on the 3/4 ton. Just like Chevy 4x4's.

Neat truck. My parents had one 1977-80. It was a workhorse. I would like to have one, but I cannot figure out how it would be practical...

Maybe soon.

Aaron