New Jeepaholic needs help

Hi Folks,

Joe here. Otherwise known as Hubie.

I have a 57 Willys CJ5. Traded it for an old aluminum boat, so you know it's not in GREAT shape. I've had a CJ7 and a 2000 Wrangler, currently driving a 2003 Wrangler as my daily ride.

My son wants to restore this Jeep (the 57) and make it look like an MB (olive paint, some stars and some Army Logos). Questions:

Should I convert this to 12 volt and where is the best place to find the equipment?

Should I stick to the R-134 engine or upgrade to something else? I don't mind my 14, soon to be 16 Year old son being limited to 45 m.p.h. I really don't!

It came with a Koening Hard Top, however the top has square (90 degree) back corners, but the CJ has a rounded rear panel. Otherwise it fits great. My son wants a soft top, with soft doors. Suggestions?

The tub is bad. I mean really, really, really bad. Both floor panels an the rear end are gone! Drivers side fender is shot. Should I weld in new metal or go with fiberglass?

Any ideas, sugggestions, past experience is apprecaited.

Thanks,

Joe

 

Post some pictures if you can, some members here have done awesome things with very little to work with.

 

Well Hubie-- Welcome to the forum. Lots of good info here.

 

This might help, if you can weld. Very good quality.
http://www.classicent.com/

 

Walt, Swede,

Thanks for the response and the link. I haven't learned to weld yet, but I will. Probably the kid will pick it up faster than me, he's 14 and a killer at Playstation.

I can't figure out how to post pics.

 

Swede. Where the hell is Elk Mound? I grew up in Escanaba, which is like 50 miles east of Marinette. Still a Packer Fan after all these years....

 

Between Eau-claire and Menomonie.

 

Welcome to the club!

 

Welcome Hubie,

You asked for opinions so here's mine.
If you can get the motor running good without too much work just keep it. If it's in bad shape I wouldn't spend the time and $ on it. Look for something else like the buick v6 or maybe a ford 2.3. Check the novak site.

It sounds like some of the body is too far gone - look for used parts or buy some new parts. Just about everything is available. I would not go with fiberglass - it really ruins the feel of the rig.

Don't have much experience with 6v stuff. If it was me I would use a modern alternator and go 12 v. I have heard guys advise leaving some stuff 6v but don't know the details.

I'm sure others would have different opinions but the most important thing here may be the father son time. Good Luck.

 

Welcome from Boston.

First, my usual comment on these vehicles is - it's easier and cheaper in the long run to start with a vehicle that's in the best condition that you can afford. Since this Jeep was traded for a boat, I presume you have more time than money, and a big outlay of cash up front is not realistic.

For the electrical stuff, conversion to 12V is pretty common. You'll have to change the gauges, the generator, the regulator, and the bulbs. The wiring and switches will handle 12V just fine. If the original wiring is in good shape, I'd swap out those items and run it. The starter will work fine on 12V if you don't crank it for more than, say, 30s to a minute at a time. Lots of people like the replacement wiring harnesses made for hot rods - the original harness does not have a fuse block, instead using a few fuses strategically distributed in the harness. A nice upgrade, but not required if the existing wiring is in good condition.

<edit>Also, ignition coil, condensor and maybe points? Definitely the coil - check the parts listing to see if the condensor (likely) and points (not likely) changes with voltage.

I presume by fiberglass you mean a complete fiberglass body and not to try and patch the body with fiberglass. Forget patching with fiberglass - that will be a mess and won't last. Cut out the rusty steel and replace with steel.

If you want to go with a fiberglass body, that's fine. Lots of Jeeps out there have fiberglass bodies, and they look just like the steel bodies from a few feet away. I prefer steel, but I can't give you a good hard-and-fast reason why you should not use a fiberglass body. The cheapest route will be to cut out the rusty metal and make your own patch panels. The patch panels from Classic are very nice, but you will pay extra for buying panels that are pre-formed. A Jeep is mostly flat panels and simple curves, so if you are handy with snips and a welder, you can fix a lot of the rusty panels. Also, there's no problem in mixing, say, fiberglass front fenders with a steel tub. In fact, that's likely a better route than the low-quality repop steel fenders. The best choice is OEM fenders, but glass fenders are strong and fit ok.

I put a lot of links to rust repair projects here: http://www.earlycj5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74493 You'll need a welder and some sheet metal tools if you want to follow this route.

I think the only full soft top available is the Bestop Tiger Top. Check the Jeep specialty retailers in the sticky thread at the top of the forum.

 

Also, does the engine run? The F134 is very forgiving of wear and tear, like worn rings, low oil pressure, etc. I suggest that you get the engine running and check out the oil pressure and compression. If there were nothing seriously wrong with it, I'd run it till it has a major problem. If the engine has a cracked block or a broken crank, you may want to consider replacing it with a more modern power plant.

The main problem with the F134 is that it is an old, old design (ca 1930 for its ancestors) and I expect it will be expensive to rebuild if it has some serious problems. But if the block has no cracks and the crank is good, you could overhaul it for comparatively short money. Check for noises and condition of the fluids (oil in the water, water in the oil), compression and oil pressure.

The GM engine adapter for these Jeeps can be found on the used market, and will adapt a lot of different engines to your transmission. If I wanted a cheap and plentiful engine to put in this Jeep, I'd look for the 151 cid GM/Pontiac 4 cylinder, aka the Iron Duke. These were used in lot of GM and AMC cars and trucks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GM_Iron_Duke_engine and easily adapt to the Jeep transmission with the GM adapter. The 4.3L V6 from an Astro van or such is another cheap and plentiful option, but it may be a more powerful engine than you are looking for. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GM_Vortec_engine#4300

 

Everyone will have an opinion on the body. Personally, I like glass. Light, strong, and it does not rust/corrode. The only two downsides are the requirement to run grounds to everything (something I do anyway) and getting star cracks in the paint on the front fenders from gravel coming off the tires. I think a coat of bed liner under the fenders would solve the paint issue.

Just about any steel body can be rehabed,but it is a real time sink and money-wise, you may still end up spending the same amount.

 

Re the body - I had another thought - the OP (Hubie) says that the body is really bad, and writes that the floors are "gone." Doesn't look so bad from his avatar. We really, really need pictures of the body. Replacing the floors is no big deal - the tub comes off easily, and you can buy complete floors from CE, or fab your own. Rotted floors are very common.

Another option is a replacement tub. A tub from any CJ-5, 1954-1975 (or M38A1), can be fitted pretty easily. The exterior sheet metal of a newer tub (76-83?) is the same dimensionally as the earlier tub, and that tub could probably be fitted with some work moving the mounts around.

Without pics, it's too much to cover. We need pics.

 

You guys are AWESOME. Thanks for the advice and info.

Now.... Pics. I'm lost on this. When I hit the little pic avatar above the posting window, it asks for the url: for a webpage. My pics are on the C drive.

What am I missing? :?

 

There is a help forum. If you have a problem like how to add pics, that's a good place to look first. Here's a post there that has links to other threads that may be of help.
http://www.earlycj5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74082

You need to put the pictures somewhere like PhotoBucket, where each picture has a URL. You can't host the pictures from your C: drive.

 

I've got the Bestop Super Top which is the nicer (more $) version - it's a darn nice top. I think the Tiger Top is the low budget version.