This one is listed today on E-bay. I have seen this seller sell quite a few items that were very good. I don't know him however. It seems there may be a celebrity connection here. Anyone know if the VIN is legitimate? Nice interior and fairly new paint. No! I'm full up at my house![:D]
Hi Herb! I thought you might be connected with this one. I know that you have sold some great cars there. I am now the Central Region for MBCA and have made some new friends in Memphis. Best wishes from Nashville. [:D]
I would say that the price paid looks about right. It was a clean, Europa imported truck. Sounds like it was well maintained with records. Those are the kinds of things I looked for in an old G. If you can find one like that they are worth the extra $2-3,000 over a not so pristine model.
I think Amy (peppy pea) was able to get about that much for her very nice 280 as well.
So, I'm just saying that $18k seems like the going rate for a NICE 280GE. I think they have been in that range for a year or so now, and I do not recall seeing them go much lower, not for nice ones anyway.
I think that you could even rationalize it fiscally. A new Jeep Wrangler is well over 20 grand these days. That would be comparably equipped to old G's with a six cyl and a few comforts. How long is that Jeep honestly going to hold up? They rattle pretty good after only 10k miles in my experience[:0] What are they like at 100k miles?
I can buy a 100k mile G for less than the new Jeep and STILL outlast it. I also have the military toughness built in. It is safer, stronger, more capable, and longer lasting even with a 100k mile penalty. The 280's are actually a really good value IMO. You might want to be a little mechanically inclined but, the trucks are very simple.
I suspect that when they sell for much less, there is a problem, either with legality, condition or sellers desperation.
The only Jeep with diff locks front and rear the Wrangler "Rubicon" is $27,000. Even though the engine is a dream come true - I get only 13 mpg out of it.Now that the Wranglers have coil springs they handle decent on pavement.
The G beats even the new (stronger) Wrangler in durability and reliability by a very wide margin.
Wrangler and SWB G are similar in many respects and I love the Rubicon's 4:1 low range but the G provides much more cargo space and is simply the cooler vehicle. Definitely a much better investment.
Harold, Have you seen one of these Rubicons up close or driven one? I have yet to figure out how exactly they work. I read that the rear locker is under 10mph only, not a big deal, but that the front is toggled on and only a momentary deal. Just doesn't seem like a very good system.
I have seen the Wrangler "Rubicon" on the Rubicon the last two seasons. They are very popular. Their owners glow - the best Jeep they ever owned.
I drove a few. Strong SWB G contender. Very capable. Pretty solid. Jeep learned a few lessons.
The guts of the differentials are very interesting. It is a combination of a mechanical limited slip and air operated diff locks.
The diff locks can be operated at all times and work identical to the G. Not quite as strong since they are internal and have smaller components - whereas the G has external lockers with stronger components.
Activation is a little weird and not very practical for off road use. A tip switch on the dash needs to activated once to engage the rear, a second time to engage the front in addition to the rear, a thirtd time to disengage the previous.
I created separate switches in the center console (same position as in 460) of my Wrangler TJ to activate front and rear independently. In may occasions off-road use of the rear locker can be detrimental and the activation of the front is in order. I have enough examples to fill a small book about that.
For serious use a 463 owner would need to do the same thing - separate the wiring of the dash switches to allow independent activation. Engineers of the 460 had a pretty good idea why they offered two independent hydraulic levers in the center console.
The position is well chosen. It is where your hand drops after leaving the steering wheel. In difficult driving situations or at night you don't want to take your eyes off the trail and look for your lockers. You have to find them blind and activate them. The old style push pull levers had another advantage - you could feel whether they were on or off. Electric push switches never provide that information.
On/off lights are not the solution. Electric can fail and will fail in rough environments. Plus for soldiers with night vision the use of any light source is out of the question - it would blind them.
....On/off lights are not the solution. Electric can fail and will fail in rough environments....
There's another fine point to be made here. Positive feedback of actuation verified by independent systems.
I too love the levers on the 460. But I have to admit they go only so far. Yes the lever is up. But there are plenty of things that can come between. "Lever is up" and "Locker is engaged".
For me, the first line of defense against all of those things is proper maintenance and periodic inspction. BUT - there is a certain ammount of confidence inspired by a feedback system that is as close as possible to the actual locking components that verifies and reports to me the condition of the actual locking components.
The G is also set up pretty well in this regard. The light confirms that the hydraulic system has functioned properly, taking a bunch of potential failure modes out of the picture. Once the light is on, all you have left in the loop is the actuator pin, locker sleeve, and dog teeth.
What I guess I'm getting to is that, even if some of these modern 4x4s DO have a light, where does the light COME from? And does the light REMOVE potential failure modes or ADD them? A light that's turned on by the locker switch is useless. It says nothing about the condition of any of the components in the locking system other than the switch, and not even that one is definitive. A light that is turned on by some computer system brings a hundred more little electronic bits into the picture between the locker components and the feedback confirming light.
I think the 460 engineers had it best of all. Keep everything as simple as possible. The component that is not there can not fail.
The human brain is one of the most important key components in any vehicular operating system. Develop a FEEL for what that locker feels like when it's engaged so you don't have to trust the light. This is just as important when we talk about the locker RELEASE than it's engagement. Also keeping up to date with maintenance and systems inspections to be sure the mechanical components are able to work as designed when called upon.
While the lights could give you false info, I think it is unlikely. The first light activates upon selection, the second upon engagement. I have never experienced a failure on three different 463's over five years of ownership, and plenty of wheelin[:)]
Dave makes a good point. I actually had a front locker that would not engage. The first light would come on upon selection but it was not locked, and the second light confirmed this by remaining off. It was nothing more than a loose vacuum line but those lights actually helped in that situation.
One thing about the 463 system that I do not care for is that if you stop the engine, the lockers disengage after about 30 seconds. If you pull the lever on a 460 will the locker stay locked even if the engine is not running?
Thanks Harold! That reminds me, I still have to modify my switches on the 463 for independant operation.
Linear Mode
