I just picked up a jeep. The serial number on the firewall under the hood on driver's side says: 8305017 364216
Kaiser Jeep Corporation, Toledo Ohio. What do I have? What year? It's a very short jeep with fold down windshield. The original had a three speed, but now it has a four speed and a 6 cylinder in it. Any help would be appreciated - Thanks!

All I can tell from that number is that it's a CJ5. That's the 8305 part. The Chilton's doesn't give any other info about the VIN number for those years (CJ5 up to 1970).

If you can locate the VIN number, the following may help. Starting in 1980 the eighth digit from the right denotes the vehicle year. 1980 is A, 1981 is B and so on. Before 1980, i can't help you.

It's a CJ-5, open body (no top), left hand drive, 4WD, with the 225 V-6 engine. That's what the 8305017 decodes. After that it's the serial number.

Unfortunately, the records weren't kept the best in those days (60's), so the best I can do is come up with a range of years.

Based on the data you have given we know Kaiser didn't put their name on jeeps until '63, before that they kept the Willy's name. Also, we know that the first 225 V-6 debuted in '66, and Kaiser ended their era in '70, but the lineup didn't change until '71. Therefore we can conclude it is a '66-'71 CJ-5. If you have a roll bar and electric oil and amp gauges, they debuted in '69, so we can narrow it down further. If not, it tells us nothing as they were an option. If you have front marker lights on the fenders, they came in '70. So, if you have no front marker lights, we can conclude it is a '66-'69 CJ-5. If you do have front fender marker lights, then we know it's a '70-'71 CJ-5, and you need to look at the rear axle. If it is a 2 piece design, then it's a '70, if it's a 1 piece, then it's a late '70 or '71.

Sorry I can't narrow it down any further than that.

All of the able information is assuming the body is mostly original, anything swapped in (like front fenders), will throw off the diagnosis.