J10 Buying Advice

[Biff]

I need some advice on which truck i should buy....I have two j10's I'm looking at right now (haven't seen in person) but need some advice as to which you would buy.
both run and drive
First truck has asking price of 1500 (he keeps rollbar and brush guard) 1979 J10 shortbed 360, 4 speed (i assume the t-18), dana 20 (i think) has low (41k) original miles and original window sticker, needs fuel gauge sending unit and the fuel tank was patched.

or
1976 J10 401, turbo 400, and QT, camper shell with like 135k miles asking $1500,

I like the one with the 401 but am really scared of the QT, and i like the granny low of the automatic in the other truck. I will be daily driving it. Just looking for some advice on which would be better.
Thanks for the help.

[seventynine]

What is the rust situation on the two?

I wouldnt let the QT scare you.

Dean

[Biff]

I think they are both about the same on the rust. couple of small floor holes, and maybe a little around the fenders, rust wasn't bad on either of them i was more concerned with the engine/driveline combos

[orangebike]

Buy both..swap the 4 speed dana 20 on the 401 put the others on the 360 then sell it for 1500 :thumbsup: the second one is my vote....a rig that old with that low of miles on the first one i would be more scared of then the one with higher miles

[seventynine]

The T-18 4 speed is nice...I have one in each of my CJs. However, For a daily driver it's not the most convenient trans. With the granny gear it's essentially a 3 speed for regular driving. THe granny gear is nice for wheeling and heavy duty use but as a daily driver you won't use it. It's also not exactly a short throw shifter...and niether of mine shift real easily. Bullet proof trans though and great for a lot of things but commuting wouldn't be one of them if you ask me.

I love my TH400/QT combo in my '77 Chief. I've had three different FSJ's with that set up and I never had a problem with any of the QT transfer cases....though I guess some folks do. I've probably racked up 200k miles between all three of my QTs.

Dean

[Pavementsux91XJ]

Mine's got the same drivetrain as the first one. As mentioned before, you won't use 1st gear unless your towing or wheeling and you can eat lunch between the shifts. Also, I've been DD mine for about a week (tranny went boom on my Dodge) and when I get to work or home, my clutch leg is tired.

[Biff]

thanks for the advice, it will be my daily driver now, but hopefully some wheeling and or towing in the future, do votes still stay the same? and i wish i could afford to buy both:)

[rmorit01]

I would go with the one with the 401...if you really ever wanted to go with a D20 to replace the QT you could do that if necessary. Of course you have to swap the tailshaft but the more I drive a QT rig...the more I like them.

For a daily driver a 401 would be very sweet.

Bob

[fireman91186]

I wouldn't worry about the T-18 as your daily driver. My 79 Cherokee has it and it has been my daily driver off and on a lot with never a problem. Yes there is along way in between shifts but I don't even notice mine anymore.

I wouldn't be scared of the quadratrac either my first Cherokee was a 78 with a 360 th400 and quadratrac and never had a problem with until I (stupid teenager at the time) didn't do the maintenance on it and it grenaded on me. But that was after the jeep had 200,000 miles on it and my father had only changed the fluid up until that point as well.
I would just pick the one that ran better and had the better body and interior.

[Biff]

thanks again. any trouble spots i need to look for in particular on the j10? I know to check the frame near the spring mounts for cracks and that basics like that but just wondering if the J10 had and quirks to check for.

[tgreese]

Certainly you'll have less trouble reselling the T-18 truck, should you go that way. They can be a pain to row in stop-and-go traffic, and it's unlikely your wife or girlfriend will want to drive it. But the T-18 is really bulletproof in these applications.

Bed seam rust is a bad problem for all these trucks. Rust-out in the body is their main issue. The AMC V8s tend to suffer from low hot-idle oil pressure at high mileage; low OP puts the rod bearings in jeopardy, usually. The 401 is a great engine, with a forged steel crank and rods, and special alloy block. Many of them cannot be bored out beyond 30-40 thou without creating hot spots in the cylinder walls and subsequent overheating. If the engine has never been rebuilt, you're golden, but most of them have been rebuilt once by now.

The Quadratrac can be problematic if its been abused and/or neglected. Some important parts are no longer available, and if your case has serious problems, your alternatives are to collect enough used transfer cases to put together one good one, or install a part-time conversion kit. Check Flint's page for good info on the QT: http://jubileejeeps.org/quadratrac/index.htm

The Dana 20 paired with the T-18 is strong, common and both new and used parts are still plentiful.

[Biff]

Thanks tgreese, my wife can't drive a stick anyway so that's not an issue, i daily drive a t-15 3 speed in my cj5 now so long shifts don't bother me, not knowing the history of the QT really scares me and i know that the dana 20 t18 combo is pretty good whether or not it was taken care of, but then again the low miles could be an issue if it sat for a while....guess i got some serious thinking to do, maybe someone will buy one of them before me and make the decision easy, lol, there is also a 401 waggy with the th400 but the guy is asking 2k and i think i want the truck bed

[seventynine]

Does the '76 have a low range unit on the QT? Something to consider as it was optional. It's an easy bolt on upgrade though. The Low range reduction on the QT is respectible at 2.57:1 versus the lousy 2:1 on the Dana 20. However the the T-18's 6.32:1 first gear will more than make up for the 20's gearing shortcomings.

Drivetrain parts for these rigs are cheap and plentiful (though you may have to do so rebuilding)...nice interiors and non-rusted bodies are harder to come by.

As Tim said...the bed seams are the biggest rust problem area on J Trucks. Also...a nice tailgate is a plus:thumbsup:

Utility wise...I prefer the 8' bed myself.


Dean

[tgreese]

The T-18 isn't terrible once you get the hang of it, but the T-15 is much lighter and shorter than a T-18. The T-18 gears are heavy, and you have both longer throws and need more muscle. A '79 should have the later shift top, with reverse down by 4th. This arrangement makes shifting easier than the earlier tops that put reverse by 3rd, since you don't have to worry about clipping reverse on a 2-3 upshift.

[Bill Moore]

I agree, buy both, put together the one you want, and sell whats left

[1974FSJ]

I have a 74 J10 with Q-trac and have had no problems goes where other only dream of. If it has low range only makes it better eather way good luck and welcome to the club

[dan1488]

first of I can't believe no one has said this.:worthless: But I vote also for buying both of the trucks.

[Songman]

Buy em all! I bought one a couple of months ago. I had a guy e-mail me pictures of one last week I am thinking about picking up and I just had a guy e-mail me with an old one that he can't identify but said it had a Kaiser data plate and that 'little grill'... Don't know if I can pass either of these up!