Jeep J-2000 Pickup 327 Vigilante Serial Number 3
Vehicle Description
Serial Number
This Jeep is serial number 3 for 5,000 GVW Gladiator trucks with V-8s. It was one of the first Jeep trucks to leave the production line with a V-8.
Wiring
When I got it, it would not start. The starters on these are garbage and when they fail, they tend to melt the wiring harness. That’s what had happened to this Jeep. The guy had run another wire to the starter, but because of the failure mode, you had to do a strange dance to start it. First, the key had to be turned on, then turned to start. Next, a momentary push button had to be pushed to turn the starter over. Once the engine had started both had to be released.
I didn’t like that set up so I bought a time delay relay and added it to the circuit so that the starter which could be used as normal. The problem was that sending current to the starter made it run continuously before the drive gear was engaged. The delay, I put in allowed the drive gear to engage before the starter motor ran.
Anyway, a previous owner had also wired in a trailer brake and trailer lights using wire nuts from the hardware store. I didn’t like that either so I ripped all that out.
The lighting harness for the bed was really cobbled up, so I built a new one. When I got it, most of the lights didn’t work but correcting the ground and installing the new bed harness fixed them.
Water
Whenever it rained the floor got wet. It’s a common problem and you hear lots of different ideas about why it happens. The real answer is that the door hinge penetrations through the a pillar are wide open and the outer rubber seals for the doors are always absent. Nobody is reproducing them and everybody assumes it’s fine to just go without. It’s not. It lets water come pouring and running down the pillar, jumping through the hole where the hinges come in and running onto your Floor. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to reproduce the outer seals, but ended up deciding it was probably best just to divert the water away above the hinge penetrations.
Another issue was that whenever I drove it in the rain, my pants got wet. I decided there must’ve been rust through under the windshield gasket. Fortunately, I guess, I got a rock chip on the freeway and decided to replace the windshield after that my feet stay dry.
Rust
This Jeep is virtually rust free. Having said that, it had some sunburned paint on the bed and surface. Rust was starting. As I tend to do, I wanted it to stop so I painted it with POR – 15. I know the bitcoin boys on bring a trailer love the patina, but I prefer stopping rust.
The underside of the bed also had some angry looking rust so I cleaned sanded and painted with POR-15 up to a point. Painting over your head while laying on the ground is very unpleasant.
The bed sides showed paint cracking and some rust stains. I took a grinder wheel and ground out the surface rust that was starting and shoved in some short strand fiberglass Bondo to stop the rust. I don’t care if you don’t like it. There is no significant rust. It was just surface rust under the paint
Gas tank
Gas tank fell out on the road while I was driving. It got scuffed up pretty bad. I replaced it with a plastic one, but it’s still installed using the single strap. I painted red underneath as a tell tale in case the bolt shifts again. It has a new sending unit.
I had already replaced the filler hoses. When I did that, I found that the flange the cap goes on was not an original Jeep part. I don’t know what kind of car it’s from but no Jeep gas cap will work on it.
Paint
This truck was born blue, but was repainted by some old farmer at some point. The paint he used appears to be made from vanilla yogurt. If this truck is kept outside in the wet it immediately starts to mildew. Another bad attribute of this paint is that it’s gasoline soluble. When I got it, all the paint below the filler neck had been washed away. I took it upon myself to touch up the paint with satin white spray paint. It looks OK from across the street.
It’s possible to get a shine on this paint, but it only lasts about 10 minutes. It all needs to be removed and have a proper repaint back to the right color.
Tailgate
The tailgate looks like it was severely abused and has some farmer repairs. It looks like they split it open and welded it back together with a stick welder. The panel in the middle appears to have been cut into pieces and welded back together. There is no Bondo and it looks OK from across the street. I bought a good original tailgate with less damage and stripped all the paint off it. I can provide that with the truck for extra money.
Engine
The engine in this truck is the original engine. I don’t see any indication that it was ever removed. It starts every time and runs great. Makes OK power and does not make visible smoke. It drinks oil and leaks. What do you want? It's an old Jeep.
These engines are overbuilt and are legendary for living forever. I keep waiting for it to die so I can put a new engine into it, but it won’t die.
I have an engine that was rebuilt by S and J Engines available if you're interested. It won't be cheap.
Starter
The original Prestolite starter finally gave up the ghost. I replaced it with a mini gear reduction starter. The starter is still too close to the exhaust and will probably get cooked over time. In the meantime, it works perfectly and spins the engine effortlessly.
Trans
This Jeep has the original T 85 transmission and left the factory with. The joint between the transmission and the transfer case leaks like a rusty bucket. The transmission and transfer case operate perfectly.
It is a column shift and the linkage inside the column is a little sloppy. The linkage at the base of the column and at the Transmission are tight as a drum.
Wheels
I got this truck with some ugly rusted chrome wheels. I replaced them with some AMC era CJ wheels. I had them powder coated and found some AMC era J truck hubcaps. They look pretty cool, but they have the wrong logo and colors. There is a full size spare. I replaced the tires with new ones.
Interior
The interior of this truck is in pretty good shape. The farmer repainted the interior as well. The carpet appears to be original and is in pretty good shape. The seated upholstery and door panels were reupholstered in a 1950s Rambler fabric. The door panels were floppy and a little moldy. I bought ABS panels and had them recovered with the exact same fabric, which I was lucky enough to find on the Internet. I have enough to reupholster the bottom of the seat I think. The bottom of the seat has a cigarette burn on the driver side. The back of the seat is in good condition.
The headliner is in good condition, but is not perfect. New headliners cost a small fortune.
Bed
This is a "Short Bed" (6 foot)
Mirrors
This truck came with some ugly plastic mirrors. I took them off and bought some reproduction, Jeep CJ mirrors which are period correct and could easily have been installed by the dealer in the old days. They are tiny and they vibrate. Sorry about that.
Safety equipment
Somebody installed lap belts at some point. They seem pretty safe for lap belts. This truck was manufactured without seatbelts.
Back up lights
This truck does not have back up lights. It never did. People aren’t used to that so you have to be careful.
Brakes
I had the brakes serviced with new hardlines, rubber lines, linings and actuators. They work really well.
The front axle was serviced and filled with gear oil and knuckle pudding. It doesn't drip. Rear axle was also serviced and doesn't drip.
Canopy
I bought a SofTopper convertible canopy which is the best thing I ever did. It's amazing. If you don't want or need it for a minute, you just fold it down. Amazing.
Things That Don't Work.I bought a NOS kilometer instrument panel from Turkey. Everything worked. I put the same parts in the original panel (with a NOS spedometer) and now they don't work. You can have all the parts and figure it out.More Picshttps://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipOBdQOub7VN8m1E7imIK0Sl2uGxbd8CBIpmgwyE-KT1DDftP7fF8T4yLMjRYLYUpQ?key=N2pLajJ1ZmNNVV9kaFFqOFoteTVaV2tVTndneXRn
