1981 Jeep Gladiator J-10 Honcho

Jeep Other 1981 Description

Jeep Honcho

Selling my 1981 Jeep Honcho, fully restored. The honcho was a variant of the Jeep Truck or Jeep J10 as most know it. The J10 was previously named the Gladiator. The J10 was the top of the line trim offered to the public, characterized by thick roll bars and (cheesy) vinyl stickers down the sides. This Honcho received a major overhaul!

First and foremost, it PAINS me to sell this baby! I have loved driving it. By far one of the best driving and most comfortable classic cars I’ve ever had the pleasure of driving. If I could, I would keep it forever! But I built it with the intention of selling it, and it’s time to go to make room for more projects!

Exterior: The exterior on this truck is immaculate! I would argue that this is one of the best looking Jeep trucks out there! The paint is near perfect, with only a few nicks in the tail gate. This truck gets attention everywhere it goes, but yet you still feel comfortable enough to drive it to the grocery store. The J10 originally had a square front grill fascia, but many would agree that two round headlights and shield shaped grill of the gladiator was much more attractive, so I opted to go back to this more retro look! The roll cage was custom built, and is made of 4” tube. It has warn steel front and rear bumpers. The truck is RUST FREE. All of the doors and the hood are aligned perfectly. All of the lights work great. The step side bed is a great feature and highly sought after. I sold one of these trucks, absolutely trashed, but because it had a step side it went for nearly 10k. The bed is bedlinen and is completely utilitarian.

Wheels: It is rolling on 35” Grabber General Tires, all 4 are brand new and in great shape. 17” M/D black wheels.

Chassis: Original chassis, on rough country shocks. 4WD is completely functional!

Interior: I would give the interior a 9/10. The only issue with the interior is there is a chunk of the original cardboard missing from the drivers side. You can see it in the pictures. I had the upholstery completely redone and it is beautiful! Hand stitched baseball glove leather seats and shag carpet for insulation! The interior is stunning. Feels like a million bucks. I replaced the original steering wheel and opted for a smaller, higher quality forever sharp steering wheel. Truck has the original radio deck with cassette player! All of the interior lights work, as well as all of the gauges are functional.

Drivetrain: I put a lot of time and effort into keeping this truck’s original 360 AMC V8 while still making it functional. We added fuel injection, power steering and power brakes. This thing drives like a dream! Leave it sitting for a few weeks, even months and it’ll start right up every time! The power steering makes this a dream to steer down the road, you could keep it straight with one finger and the brakes inspire confidence. The 360 V* is mated to the original 4 speed manual. I just rebuilt the transmission and clutch so this thing shifts like a dream. And don’t get me started on the exhaust note!! Absolutely perfect! I know the engine bay looks chaotic with all the tubes, but that was necessary to get that fuel injection system right.

Creature Comforts: I drove this truck about as often as I drive my new car, so I wanted it to be comfortable! The truck has factory air and it runs COLD!!! I also installed a back up camera for safety and hid the little LCD screen inside the glove box. The truck has two sets of keys, each with its own remote to open and lock the doors. Let’s be honest, who likes scratching their paint to open the door then leaning over the seat to open it for someone else?! It also has an alarm! This car is about every bit as comfortable as a modern car.

I have a clean title for this truck.

All in all, I have loved this truck and hope it finds a good owner! I hope someone will appreciate it as much as I have.