LS-Powered 1981 Jeep CJ-8 Scrambler With 960 Miles Asks $139,000

Most Jeep CJ-8 Scramblers are remembered as quirky, hard-working pickups. This one, listed on eBay Motors by seller matt-garrett of GM-Classics.com in the Dallas area, is something else entirely: a 1981 Scrambler rebuilt around a trophy-truck-style chassis, an LS-based 5.3-liter V8 and a manual gearbox, with just 960 miles showing and a $139,000 or best offer asking price.

The seller is upfront that this is a show truck first. It has collected best Jeep, best 4x4 and best truck awards at ISCA Autorama events, and he describes it as a parade-and-car-show machine that is "too over the top" to see mud. That framing matters when you look at the number on the listing.

A Scrambler Built Like a Race Truck

According to the description, the project started when a professional welder who builds trophy trucks took apart a family-owned CJ-8 and reworked the frame using lessons from his Baja racing experience. Roll cage, engine mounts, shock mounts and seat mounts were all part of that work. The original body was restored separately by a show car shop, and the current seller says the build was roughly 85 percent complete when he bought it.

Power comes from an LS-family 5.3-liter Vortec V8, listed as an LM7, with 706 heads and a mild cam, installed with an ECU and wiring harness. It is backed by an NV4500 five-speed and a twin-stick Dana 300 transfer case modified by TDS. The seller describes the engine as "indestructible" and says it idles like a stock Chevy pickup with the air conditioning running, thanks to the Vintage Air system.

The hardware underneath is where the money went. The listing details 57-inch Dana 44 axles from East Coast Gear with 4.56 gears and air lockers, one-ton steering, GM 800-series six-lug four-wheel disc brakes, Warn locking hubs and Tom Woods driveshafts. Inside you get a full competition roll cage, five-point harnesses, tan leather seats, cruise control and a tilt wheel, plus a trailer hitch out back. The title is clean, there are two previous owners, service history is available and the seller notes an independent inspection is welcome.

Performance claims are modest and refreshingly honest. The seller says it cruises at 60 to 75 mph and has been tested to 100 mph, can handle trails and light crawling, but is best suited to cruises and shows. Motorious readers who like their Jeeps loud and over-built will recognize the formula from other LS-powered Scramblers we have covered, including this LS-swapped 1981 Jeep Scrambler.

What Hagerty Says the Market Looks Like

To put a $139,000 ask in context, it helps to look at Hagerty's Valuation Tools entry for the 1981 CJ-8 Scrambler. As of July 2026, Hagerty's Price Guide puts a stock 1981 CJ-8 in #3 (Good) condition at about $18,800, with values down roughly 6 percent over the past year. Hagerty counted 15 CJ-8 sales across the 1981 to 1986 model years in the last 12 months, at an average price near $20,800, and the highest auction result for a 1981 model over the past three years was $57,750. The most recent 1981 sale Hagerty lists was $32,000 in late July 2026.

The CJ-8 is a genuinely scarce vehicle. It rode on a wheelbase 10 inches longer than the CJ-7 and arrived before the Chevrolet S-10 and Ford Ranger, but sales were small and it was dropped after 1986 when the Comanche arrived. Our look at a fully restored 1985 CJ-8 notes that only about 27,800 were built in total.

Compare that with the more common 1981 Jeep CJ-7, which Hagerty values at about $14,700 in Good condition as of October 2026. Hagerty also notes that modifications can add value when the work is high quality, but that heavily customized vehicles may appeal to a narrower group of buyers. For a sense of how far built Jeeps can climb, Hagerty reports a high auction result of $425,000 for a 1981 CJ-7 over the last three years, and we have seen a 1983 CJ-7 restomod that leans in the same direction.

By those numbers, the asking price is more than seven times Hagerty's Good-condition figure for a stock CJ-8 and well above the highest recent auction result Hagerty lists. That does not make it unreasonable for a one-off build with this much fabrication, but it does mean the right buyer is someone who values the chassis work and show record rather than traditional Scrambler originality.

Is There Another Way to Buy a Scrambler?

Anyone who loves the idea but not the price tag has options. We recently featured a 1982 CJ-8 Scrambler restomod as a Gladiator alternative, and plenty of stock and lightly modified examples trade at a fraction of this one's ask. This blue show truck sits at the opposite end of the spectrum: low miles, high build quality and a price that will test how much the market will pay for the best-dressed Scrambler around.

You can see the full listing, photos and videos on eBay Motors. Lead photo courtesy of eBay seller matt-garrett.