What's your first Jeep memories

[Gladiator Brad 704]

I learned to drive a stick shift in my aunts 1973 Comando. I drove all over my grandfather's 200 acre dairy farm in North Carolina. I think about it often.

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[guntrust]

Playing war on my dad's 47 Willys.

 

[trust]

Driving my brand new 1974 CJ 5 from Denver home to Monument down I25 with no top no roll bar no free wheeling hubs on January 4 1974... two friends and my brother with me..

My mother never forgave me for taking my 15 yo brother.
.lol

 

[Sandman 4x4]

Mine is from the time I enlisted in The Army. From April 73-76, I was stationed at Ft. Carson, CO. I was 18 and fearless. A couple new Army buddies and I chipped in together and bought a beautiful old CJ2A. That was owned by a retiring Warrant Officer Hellicopter Pilot. One day after leaving Garden Of The Gods, we came to an area we had discovered on our street legal dirt bikes we used to go everywhere. There was what I believe was an old coal mine that had been cleaned out a long time ago, that was empty and big enough to drive a truck in. Just across from the entrance was a hill that was at a 45degree climb that was not an easy walk up. About 200’ up there was a flat clearing at the entrance to an old gold mine, that had a winding switchback trail up the side of the big hill. One day after a couple six packs of 3.2 Coors, we decided to see how far up we could go with the old CJ. So from the foot of the hill we put it in low range and went for it! First gear low range at just over an idle and amazingly that little Jeep walked all the way up! Luckily there was just enough room at the mine to turn around on the flat spot, to then drive down in the same manner, low range 1 st gear, with the brakes to help keep the speed and rpm’s down! To this day I’ve been unable to find that area on Google Maps. Plus have no idea if that was the only Jeep to conquer the hill!

 

[Free2roam]

15 years old driving a 40s flat fender no top no doors no seat belts. Across town using the agriculture clause of if it's for ag then no license needed

 

[Janster]

Back in 1999…. We got our first offroading experiences with my daily driver (Toyota Tacoma). After several years of getting dirty with the rest of the Jeeps ….. it was time to buy a dedicated trail rig. 1992 YJ Islander (hence where the name “Izzy” came from). Spent a lot of time ‘building’ our trail rig. Got a Trailer & towed it around to various places…until 2003 when it was totaled on highway (driving it to work). Bought a 1994 YJ and swapped all the parts over to the new one.
Lots of great memories …. back when we were younger and could ‘turn a wrench’ without aches & pains.

 

[Jeeper44mag]

During hunting season, riding with my Uncle in his (new to him at the time) '76 Tan color Golden Eagle CJ7 (304 V8 w/Headers & dual exhaust, ~3" lift, & 33"x12.5 Mud Tires) in ~'81. IIRC he had some sort of positraction/locker in the back axle at the least, limited slip in the front, and could just idle through mud holes, down trails that nothing else any of us owned could get through. I had other relatives with fairly fancy 4WD pickups but to me, nothing was as cool as my Uncle's CJ7.

 

[Jeeper44mag]

When Jeep and Levi Strauss co-developed a Jeep with a Levi's Blue Jean interior in the mid 1970's just about the time I got my learners permit. It sounded cool then and it still sounds good - to me

I had one of these! My 2nd Jeep... A blue '76 CJ7 with the Levi Blue Jean interior & 304V8. Bought it in ~'86 in near mint condition with ~50k miles for $5k. Sold it around the time we had our first kid ('94), and couldn't afford to get back into a Jeep until '99. Bought a '99 TJ then.

 

[Jeeper44mag]

if you know you know.

One of my FAVORITE movies.

 

[FROADER76]

My best friend's grandfather had a '53 CJ3b with a 383 he took from a corvette, had a minimal lift and 33" tires. It was painted orange as he was an avid hunter and towed it everywhere behind his class C motorhome. The first time I rode in it was on our street, but then I was with them when they went to Anza Borrego State Park and did all of the "hard" trails out there. The squeeze wasn't much of a squeeze in that thing and the heart attack hill after that was a little wild with the huge offset moguls and the short wheelbase of the Jeep. I wish I had some photos of it to share.

It was very similar to the attached photo below.

His family had all kinds of Jeeps, but my current Gladiator is my first personal Jeep.

 

[nukepower87]

My first Jeep around 2006. 2001 TJ Sahara.

 

[DanJT]

Not gonna lie, I miss my 99 TJ, but I love my Gladdy!!

And my first CJ:

And My Rock Crawler CJ:

Crap I better stop or I'll be here all night! And no they are not the same CJ. The crawler is a 76 and the other is a 79.

 

[Mud Pie]

Awesome pics. I remember when the CJ-7 came out, those wide-open doorways just looked so....wrong...so un-Jeep. I was like, "So...no more catching your hip on the doorway while quickly jumping out ? That's what a Jeep IS....are they trying to look like an Toyo J40 ???"

 

[GWolgamott]

I sadly have no pictures of it, but my uncle who was like 50-some years older then I, was a Korean war vet who was a cook in a MASH unit. He often drove M38 Willys over there, sometime in my young childhood he bought himself an old 1952 M38 that he re-built the motor on. He lived next door to us. My brother and I often went trail riding with him usually on some foraging trip for wild mushrooms or berries. I learned to drive a stick on that old jeep.

 

[Sbro2021]

Once upon a time in a place called left hand canyon. I see this thread turning into the CJ/YJ/TJ nostalgia thread.

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