The Cherokee Chief myth

[threepiece]

It seems there is some missunderstanding as to what a Cherokee Chief is. Some believe the Indian head emblem found on all Cherokees from 1975 to 1980 (maby later) means it is a Chief. Others believe (as I did at one time)the Chief is a body style characterized by a wide track width and large fender flares. It is actually a trim package found only on the Model 17 (wide track two door). Other Cherokee trim packages include the "S", Golden Eagle and Lerado. I hope some of you find this helpful, Dan.

[KaiserMan]

Actually, the "Chief" package was availible on the 4-door n/t Cherokee as well.

[grand_wag_85]

Actually, the "Chief" package was availible on the 4-door n/t Cherokee as well.

Yes but VERY rare.

I have been kinda wondering about this myself, what exactly did the Chief trim package include besides the stripe and lettering that set it apart from the S and Laredos?

[KaiserMan]

Good link here in our tech library.

http://www.ifsja.org/tech/misc/cheromodel.html

[james1414d]

yea, have owned/parted two 4 door chiefs.

[grand_wag_85]

Thanks for clearing that up...Always wondered why some model 17's had the 4WD and chief head badges flipped arround like that.

[79kp]

My model 18 has four doors, the indian stripe around the body, the indian head badges on the fenders and the glove box, the 4 wheel drive insignia, but is not a Chief. My model 17 only has the indian head badge on the glove box, and the trim is golden eagle, it is not a Chief either.

[Tonka J200]

This has been one of the little things that gets under my skin here, but it is just a little thing and I just roll with it now.

My best deffinition is; Unless it came FROM THE FACTORY with big letters on the side proclaiming "CHEROKEE CHIEF", it aint a Chief..

I've had lots of people come to me asking for decals for their Chief, when they really need decals for their Cherokee "S". Leads to confusion...

Dan (threepiece188)-
It's nice to see you posting some here! I have the '79 Cherokee Chief decals reproduced whenever you're ready for some.

[grand_wag_85]

This has been one of the little things that gets under my skin here, but it is just a little thing and I just roll with it now.

My best deffinition is; Unless it came FROM THE FACTORY with big letters on the side proclaiming "CHEROKEE CHIEF", it aint a Chief..

I've had lots of people come to me asking for decals for their Chief, when they really need decals for their Cherokee "S". Leads to confusion...

Dan (threepiece188)-
It's nice to see you posting some here! I have the '79 Cherokee Chief decals reproduced whenever you're ready for some.

Are these the rocker& tailgate decals or the 'elevated stripe' decals?

[Tonka J200]

Are these the rocker& tailgate decals or the 'elevated stripe' decals?

The '79 is the one that runs through the middle of the door.
I also have the one that goes at the bottom of the door ('75 to '78).
Both versions used the same decal for the tailgate as far as I can tell - and I have those available as well.

[Gambler68]

I saw pix of mine before the repaint, and it had the sw stripe, said Cherokee Chief in fancy script on the top rear quarter, and has the southwest pattern trim package and little chief on the glovebox door. So I'm callin' it a Chief and that's that :P

[RAMBLINFSJ]

Actually, the "Chief" package was availible on the 4-door n/t Cherokee as well.

Very true. I own one (a '77) that I am parting out. It also has denim door panels with "Levi" buttons on them. Was there a Cherokee Chief "Levi Edition"?

[AlsChopShop]

I saw pix of mine before the repaint, and it had the sw stripe, said Cherokee Chief in fancy script on the top rear quarter, and has the southwest pattern trim package and little chief on the glovebox door. So I'm callin' it a Chief and that's that :P

if its a script it doesn't sound factory to me. maybe a dealer did put it on, but just to raise the price a bit. like on a lot of chevy pickups, most running around with the infamous z-71 off-road badges are not factory z-71s at all.

FWIW, my jeep IS a chief. i just removed the decals. pic when i bought it:


wow, i forgot how goofy it looked when i got it!

what drives me a little nuts is people calling their rigs 'chief s' models. its either one or the other, 'chief' OR 's'. not both. darn jeep and their stupid badges. so confusing.

Al

[Tonka J200]

Very true. I own one (a '77) that I am parting out. It also has denim door panels with "Levi" buttons on them. Was there a Cherokee Chief "Levi Edition"?

The Chief package and the Levi's interior were two seperate packages, but were often ordered together.

And I don't mean to nit-pick, but as far as I know, the Chief package wasn't offered on a 4-door until '81. It had the lower body painted matte black and had "Cherokee Chief" on the doors in black lettering. Before '81 you could get a Cherokee "S" in a 4-door with the southwest stripe and the Cherokee head emblem, but that doesn't make it a Chief.

This photo is from a 1981 brochure, and the red and black Jeep in the upper right is the first reference I can find to a 4 door Chief:

[Gambler68]

if its a script it doesn't sound factory to me. maybe a dealer did put it on, but just to raise the price a bit. like on a lot of chevy pickups, most running around with the infamous z-71 off-road badges are not factory z-71s at all.


what drives me a little nuts is people calling their rigs 'chief s' models. its either one or the other, 'chief' OR 's'. not both. darn jeep and their stupid badges. so confusing.

Al

Well its a 79 and has the fancy rear trim in the pile (all was removed). *shrug* Once the black bottom sticker is gone, besides that trim, there's no way to tell, right? (mine was stripped and repainted). Guess I gotta ask the PO