UPDATE: Was $4500. **SOLD**
This may be a good price. Might not take much to make it look even better.
“1953 M38A1 Military Jeep in nice condition.
I have owned this Jeep for around 20 years. Around 4 years ago, I had the dents and dings taken out, primed and painted by a local auto-body shop. I did not have them fully disassemble the jeep as that would have been a little too pricey for me. As such, the more hidden areas (like under the fuel tank) are not painted in Army green, nor was the underside of the vehicle. The paint was researched by the Surplus outfit in Oroville and that is where I purchased it. I have a gallon of it left for touch-ups or doing what was not done before.
There are several military gizmos still on the Jeep: It has a pintle hitch, the small black-out lights below the headlights, the canvas-bow brackets mounted on the side, several placards (in brass) showing the serial number, etc, several tie downs for a top and the shovel bracket under the hood.
The floors are (amazingly) rust free and the tool chest beneath the passenger seat is intact with only a small bit of rust. There is a bullet hole in the floor of the tool chest (?) that was there when I purchased it, but not in the lid. It’s something you can ponder over with your friends.
The Jeep needs a thorough ‘going-through’ to check and replace seals where necessary.
The bottom canvas on both front seats need to be replaced but the remainder is quite serviceable.
There is a rear seat bench, painted-to-match of the correct type and the canvas is there.
All 4 tires are military-type and show very little (if any) wear. There is a spare wheel and military-type tire or serviceable but older vintage. There is a painted-to-match roll that just hasn’t been re-installed after the painting.
The jeep starts, idles, runs and drives. I believe the engine (a 4 cylinder) is original and has a new fuel pump and tune-up around 3 years ago. The battery is old, but it starts and the lights work. It has been converted to 12V. The battery well is funky and could use some protective coating.
The speedometer, water temp and oil pressure appear to work. The fuel gauge does not.
As seen in the photos, there are no stars or other markings on the Jeep. The buyer can pick their unit and finish it to their liking.
The only non-original item is the windshield. I believe it to be of another vintage (but still military) Jeep, but I guess that was common during the time. It does not latch well in the upright position and needs another gasket between the top of the frame and under the windshield to be secure.
Overall, this is a very clean Jeep but it needs to be gone through thoroughly before being driven any kind of distance. To whomever buys this, I will throw in a cool, hand-crank phone in a leather case. It is also of 50’s vintage.
I have title in hand and our non-op has been kept up to date.”
What is the current status on your jeep?
Sold? Not sold? Still available?
Best regards,
chip
Hi Chip. Looks like this sold. I’ve updated the post.
– Dave