I have always seen them in autoweek for 30k+ for a 25 year old jeep. I don't get what is so special about these things.

 

Don't know but the one I keep seeing in AutoWeek has been in there for at least a year. With advertising rates as they are, the seller needs to ask that much to break even.

I guess the Wagoneer could be viewed as the grandfather of most SUVs- that and the Travelall? from International Harvester were pretty early to the party- before even the Suburban I believe.

 

The Suburban came in the 30s.

 

The Jeep Wagoneer has been around since 1963 and was basically the exact same car until its final run in 1991. Yeah there was 3 different company owners...some aesthetic and engines changes.

Its widely been regarded at the first luxury SUV and it can still off road with the best of them.

Funny you mentioned this thread because I have been looking to replace my Pathfinder with one....but not for a 30g fully restored etc etc etc one.

 

I could tell my mom that a 40 year old Yenko Camaro was $50,000+ (it can be worth a LOT more, I know) and she'd probably give me the weirdest look

 

LOL...you're referring to The Wagon Master, the legendary Leon Miller



Dudes been restoring/fixing Wagoneers for almost 20 years. If you notice most of the Autoweek ads, they're different vehicles (color/options). Sometimes there's some overlap, but Leon sells 'em.

 

And if memory serves it was also the last new car sold in the USA to come with a carburetor instead of fuel injection.

 

Neighbor had one with an eagle on the hood. It was brown with the rims that looked like they were off the General lee.

Didnt really think it was that special then. I cant even remeber what the interior looked like

 

I think you are right.

When Chrysler took over they kept the AMC 360 engine in it (which was carbureted) probably because they wanted to keep production costs down on a vehicle they knew was at the end of its cycle.

 

Chrysler kept using the AMC/Renault engines for even longer than that. I know the 232-based 4.0 was in the Wrangler until 2006.

 

I thought they were always kind of a cool vehicle. In this instance, however, the price may be nothing more than a result of a select few who choose to restore them professionally and assigning a value to them for resale. I still see some offered from time to time that are nowhere near $30 000. There has been instances, especially during the last few years, where an almost artificial value has been placed on lesser known vehicles not really considered collectible. More often than not, this is short lived.



Terry

 

My FiL ( a mechanic) said a few years ago they became very popular to import to China and that was one reason the prices spiked for awhile.

I've found a couple really good restored ones that people have been asking 6-8k...still too much for my tastes. I've got one or two that I'm eyeballing currently. Not necessarily the particular year(s) I would want...but great condition and beggars cant always be choosers.

 

Correction. The Wagoneer was the last American car to be carb'd however Isuzu's base Pickup was sold with a carbureted engine up until 1993.

From the reading I did (it's Wikipedia so obligatory grain of salt), Chrysler didn't want to mess with the Wagoneer because it was still selling well despite being an old design. Why dump a ton of money into something when it still sells and makes you $5,000 to $6,000 per unit? So they left well enough alone and made only minor changes, mostly to the interior.

 

shit, the wranglers around here go for just a couple thousand less than new ones... its rediculous.

if you're looking for a rock climbing toy, you're better off buying new b/c the people with 1995 wrangler's want 20k for them

 

I am hoping to look at a pretty fully restored 89 GW this weekend which is selling for 7800....that is the HIGH spectrum of what I would even consider paying.

Really, I'm hoping to come across a similar deal as I got with my pathfinder and make as little of an investment as possible of front. I missed out on a great one a few weeks ago unfortunately.

 

I went this morning and checked out the wagoneer i had been eyeballing. It was a great car. The guy who owned was super anal and had records and logs of everything he or any one had done to it. Had boxes of spare parts and knew everything about the car.

That said, its still a 20 year old car and Im looking for a daily driver. I think this could be that car..but I would still have to be prepared for things to pop up. The great was in very good shape, but it was perfect either...but probably the closest example you would find.

In the end, sadly, I am going to pass and look for something newer.

But I REALLY liked it and it would have been a great addition to the stable...but more of as a collectable and I dont have the money or space for that at this time.

Bummer, I really liked it a lot.

 

Your market is either an aberration or people in LA are getting high off the oil fumes.

Early TJs go for around 4-5k here.