[JEEPN]

This is what happened to a friends '74 CJ-5 when he impacted with a Subaru. He was running a stock setup (304, T-150), 2.5" lift and 33" Swampers. He and his dog were OK, but the dog was thrown from the jeep. He tried to avoid the Subaru, who ran a stopsign at a blind intersection, both were doing about 45 mph.

Needless to say, the jeep handled it very well. The passenger's compartment was completely intact, with the floorboards on the drivers side buckled a little. The steering wheel was completely wrapped around the column and the front end was shifted over considerably. All in all, it made up our minds that Jeeps are VERY safe vehicles, even though they don't look it at times. I'd rather be driving this than the Subaru shown on the next page.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd

 

[JEEPN]

This is the Subaru.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd

 

[JEEPN]

The State Police investigated the accident. Although there were no skid marks, they said from the angle of impact they could tell the jeep tried to avoid the Subaru. They also know he had his brakes on because the filaments in his tail light bulbs were bent, which will only happen when they're on (heated to glowing) and given a sharp blow.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd

 

[JEEPN]

Oh yeah, he was fined $100 for not having an Emergency brake on the jeep. Apparently they do quite a job going over the vehicles.

BTW, he got $3,600 for the accident (minor medical bills). They were going to give him under $1,000, but he had pictures from his frame up restoration, so they had to pay a lot more. Another reason to take those pictures when working on the jeeps. Not worth it though, he's been without a jeep since the accident, which was in 1997.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd

 

[Guest]

Was your friend wearing his seat belt? What a waste of a nice jeep. Jeepn thanks again for the sm465/np205 swap info.

 

[JEEPN]

Sorry, no, he wasn't wearing his seatbelt. Quite lucky, he figured the soft top kept him inside the jeep (and the fact he's 6'4" and wedged under the steering wheel). The front springs had the main leaf broken, otherwise they were OK. Motor still ran as well, he had to turn it off even though it landed on its side. Bellhousing was broken, front axle destroyed, frame gone, but I'm running the Swampers on the Scrambler, they'll take quite a hit, but I had to repair one of them.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd