We’re big fans of the Jeep CJ models around here. Those classic open-top off-roaders helped establish the Jeep legacy and are a big reason why the brand is still around today. Over the decades, Jeep CJs have been described as reliable, rugged, and extremely capable four-wheel drive vehicles.
One adjective that probably won’t be used to describe a Jeep CJ though, is luxurious.
Indeed, aside from padded seats and few paint colors, early CJs weren’t big on the old razzle-dazzle. But in the 1960s, Kaiser-Willys tried to fix that by adding a little-known options package to help the trusty CJ line appeal to a larger market of automobile buyers.
The package was called the “Tuxedo Park”.
The Tuxedo Park trim initially launched as an options package, offering some cosmetic upgrades over the spartan CJ series. But in 1964 the Tuxedo Park Mark IV broke off into a distinct submodel of both the CJ-5 and long wheelbase CJ-6 Jeeps.
In any flavor, the Tuxedo Park Jeeps were not strong sellers across the Kaiser (nee Kaiser-Willys) lineup.
That means spotting one is a special treat—so when we came across this delightfully original 1966 Jeep CJ-5 Tuxedo Park Mark IV, we had to track down its owner for the full scoop.
“You can’t find them this original,” quips Dave Lee Potts. “It’s never been repainted.”
Dave’s a diehard classic car guy who’s also got a Squarebody Chevy in his garage, but when he helped rescue this CJ-5 from a barn, it had to come home with him.
We asked him to describe some of the luxury upgrades that came on the Mark IV spec Tuxedo Park package, and he began walking us around the Jeep to point them out.
“So it has chrome bumpers, of course, and it has chrome hinges,” Dave explains. “Out back there are chrome taillights.”
He also shows us a nifty fold-out chrome license plate bracket that allows the plate to be displayed even when the tailgate is down—a nice little reminder that, despite the luxury flair, this Jeep is designed for work duty.
Dave continues by showing us the split 60/40 bench seat (as opposed to a pair of buckets), chrome grab bar, and padded covers atop each fender—all components of the Tuxedo Park suite of upgrades.
Another feature unique to the Tuxedo Park Jeeps is the column shifter and, as Dave tells us, that’s pretty rare in itself. “Most people would rip that out and put the floor shift in,” he says.
There were some other mechanical tweaks for the Tuxedo Park too. “Jeep actually took a leaf out of the spring in the rear. It was supposed to make it ride smoother,” he laughs. “But it doesn’t.”
Starting in 1965, the Buick-sourced Odd-Fire V6 was added to the CJ-5 powerplant options sheet, but Dave’s Jeep carries the venerable 134ci Willys Hurricane four.
The Hurricane itself was an evolution of the L134 Go Devil four that powered the iconic military Jeeps during World War II. The new F134 Hurricane used the same bore and stroke of the L134, only it ditched the flathead layout for an “F-Head” design. Sort of a hybrid between flathead and modern overhead valve architecture, the F-head configuration placed the intake valve over the top of the piston, while the exhaust valve remained to the side.
All told, the F-Head Willys Hurricane made around 75 horsepower—a 15 hp bump from the old flathead Go Devil.
While the Tuxedo Park isn’t exactly dripping with luxuries, it’s a good reminder that, even 60+ years ago, Jeep execs saw potential in a more refined, upscale off-roader. In fact, pretty soon after the Tuxedo Park trim debuted, the Wagoneer launched in 1963—which has since become a popular rig for many well-to-do off-roaders.
Nowadays, the upscale 4×4 market is crammed full of luxury SUV models, with pretty much every major manufacturer offering its own posh-roader for the segment.
And it could be said that the Tuxedo Park is what started it all.
Sadly, the Tuxedo Park CJ line didn’t last too long, and the last Mark IV variants like Dave’s Jeep here faded away after 1968.
Over the decades, many of these luxury-trimmed Jeeps succumbed to the one-two punch of rust and off-road shenanigans, which makes this tuxedo-trimmed 4×4 a rare bird…
…Or should we say penguin?
***
You may also enjoy this article: A Quick Rundown of the Jeep CJ Generations
Comments