Do I have a rare jtruck???

[nylajean44]

Hi guys I’ve recently bought a J10 and I’ve heard from the previous owner that it was some sort of special edition. He sent me an ad about it but it’s old and blurry and I can’t find any other information about it. Anybody heard about it and know any info?

[tgreese]

Ok, this package was offered to dealerships as what we called the "shop truck." Dealerships usually have one or two vehicles that they use for business-related chores, like pickup/delivery. Jeep/AMC is adding the aluminum cap as an incentive to buy this truck with the AMC-themed colors and graphics. Rolling advertising for AMC Corp. That cap - not exclusive to this truck - could be bought in a box by the dealership parts department and assembled/installed on any Jeep truck by the dealership or customer. Not with the big AMC sticker though, which seems likely to have been available through other channels at the time.

In terms of "rare" it's up to you to define that. Aside from the appearance package (color scheme, big AMC stickers) there is nothing I see that is different from thousands of '74 Jeep trucks that were sold that year. IMO any rarity would depend on those appearance items still being present and in good condition. The way it's equipped (aside from the appearance package) is 100% ordinary. If you were to sell it, and found a buyer that wanted this appearance, you could raise the price due to "rarity." If the colors and stickers were close to perfect condition, you could take it to your local car show and it could be of interest to the attendees because of its story. Unlikely it would win any awards though.

[nylajean44]

Ok, this looks like something that was offered to dealerships as what we called the "shop truck." Dealerships usually have one or two vehicles that they use for business-related chores, like pickup/delivery. Jeep/AMC is adding the aluminum cap as an incentive to buy this truck with the AMC-themed colors and graphics. Rolling advertising for AMC Corp. That cap - not exclusive to this truck - could be bought in a box by the dealership parts department and assembled/installed on any Jeep truck by the dealership or customer. Not with the big AMC sticker though, which seems likely to have been available through other channels at the time.

In terms of "rare" it's up to you to define that. Aside from the appearance package (color scheme, big AMC stickers) there is nothing I see that is different from thousands of '74 Jeep trucks that were sold that year. IMO any rarity would depend on those appearance items still being present and in good condition. The way it's equipped (aside from the appearance package) is 100% ordinary. If you were to sell it, and found a buyer that wanted this appearance, you could raise the price due to "rarity." If the colors and stickers were close to perfect condition, you could take it to your local car show and it could be of interest to the attendees because of its story. Unlikely it would win any awards though.

Thanks for your reply. The sticker still remains but sadly all the red has been faded off of it. It did come with a cap on it but it isn’t the same one in the photo. I’m planning on keeping that paint scheme but once i peel off that sticker it’ll just be any other jtruck. There is a sticker on the glove box from the original AMC dealership in Saskatchewan that owned it though so that’s pretty cool.

[Stuka]

Sadly FSJ's don't have the types of collectors that seek out these types of things. So their value is pretty much the same as any other J Truck. And it typically means no special care was given to them. They were worked just as hard as every other J Truck.

But its still really cool. Too bad it has a modern cap on it. Those original aluminum ones are mighty rare these days. Though not saying they are valuable.

[tgreese]

Yeah, cool no doubt.

That aluminum cap from the factory was "Jeep Approved Special Equipment" and came as a kit in a box about 2'x6"x8' as I recall. The aluminum exterior panels interlocked lengthwise to make the solid roof. I expect it was not as strong as the aftermarket fiberglass tops, but a nice cap otherwise. This truck would have come from the factory with the cap installed and assembled I presume, and stickers in place. They are pretty low - the dealership might have changed to the fiberglass cap to get some more door and interior height for their own purpose.

Generally light trucks, especially oddballs like Jeep, are much less collectible than their contemporary passenger cars. The wood-side Grand Wagoneers seem to be an exception. The most favored old trucks are the "half ton" short bed, step side models. Adding higher GVWR or a long bed or the wide box decreases the "collectible" or "hot rod" value.

You also have aftermarket wheels. Originally the truck would have had plain 15"x6" steel wheels with hub caps, as shown in the picture. There were some white spoke wheels for these models from Jeep; that could be them but they were not available until '77.

[devildog80]

Hope you did not pay for the "Special Edition" status, above what the market has for all other J trucks, but nice rig to work with either way.