When I reviewed the 2025 Jeep Wrangler a few weeks ago, I learned that the Jeep has one of the largest, most enthusiastic, inclusive, and friendliest vehicle communities in the entire car hobby. I honestly did not know this before I spent my week with the car, but I now completely understand why people love these vehicles. It’s not just the ducks (sadly I did not receive one), but it is the community around these cars that makes them so special and loved by so many. With that in mind I decided to search for and found a nice example of the original YJ series Jeep Wrangler for this pick. You see the Jeep community, unlike some car enthusiast communities, does not just love the newest, rarest, and most expensive models, but all Jeeps. My Pick of the Day is one of these great vehicles, a 1988 Jeep Wrangler Sahara on ClassicCars.com located in Cadillac, Michigan.
The YJ series was the replacement for the long running CJ Jeeps. It was introduced in 1986 as a 1987 model and was the last Jeep developed by American Motors. These first-series Wranglers are different from all the others in that they featured rectangular headlights (hey, it was the 1980s and round headlights were thought of as old). This was a new design that had a wider track, a little less ground clearance, and lots of improvements in comfort. It still incorporated the CJ features including part-time 4WD, live rigid axles front and rear, leaf springs, and a body-on-frame construction. All of these improvements—despite classic Jeep enthusiasts complaining about the square headlights—were the things that opened up the Jeep market to a broader audience, making the YJ a huge sales hit.
The seller describes this Wrangler as being equipped with a 4.2L AMC 258 inline-six backed by a five-speed manual transmission. It also features a factory hardtop and has a total mileage of 134,000.
The photos of this Jeep show a vehicle that looks to be in very original condition. It is painted in the color Coffee with the optional black hardtop. The body and the condition of the paint both look to be in excellent condition. This Jeep somehow still has its original wheels that look great and are clad with Kuhmo Venture tires.
The interior parts, still in the original Sahara Trailcloth fabric, also look to be in terrific shape. I am guessing that it is original, as I am pretty sure that finding an interior kit in the original Trailcloth would be difficult. Everything looks clean and stock, which is also interesting as Jeep Wranglers tend to be modified by their owners over the years.
The underside of this Wrangler also shows no evidence of rust, with everything looking pretty tidy. This appears to be a Jeep that has been well cared for over the years and not been beaten up by its owner.
This 1988 Jeep Wrangler Sahara is a great way to enter the Jeep community, especially with a price of only $13,795. What you get is an interesting Jeep model in original condition. I am sure you would receive lots of compliments from other Jeep drivers, and you might even get Ducked! (If you want to learn about the duck thing, read about it here).
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
