Healeysince59 said:
According to Anderson/Moment for the (Convertible) BJ7/BJ8:
"...However, overdrive no longer was listed as an option, but was rather standard equipment on all convertibles."
It was standard on all BN1s and BN2s. When I bought a new BN4 it was standard on the "Deluxe" (along with wire wheels) and not included on the "Standard".
I've seen one sidecurtain BJ7 that apparently was delivered without overdrive but I believe that was rare.
If you've seen a "sidecurtain BJ7" you are the first! Was a Sasquatch driving it? :wink:
I have seen a BJ8 without overdrive. I don't know about BJ7s, but it seems as though a few non-optioned cars were sold that way, in the "Home Market" (the UK). They loaded the cars bound for the USA with options, thus it seems to Americans as if all BJ8s had overdrive as standard. Not so, although it may be true that all of them originally sent here did have it.
Also, if you note your BMIHT Certificate for a BJ8 you'll see that items such as wire wheels, overdrive, heater and adjustable steering column were listed as "details of equipment" (read options). If those items were truly standard, there would have been no reason to list them separately.
I know that this may be shocking to some, but the Anderson/Moment book is wrong on this point. There were BJ8s produced without overdrive or wire wheels - I've seen 'em! - and while exceptionally rare and apparently never exported new to the USA that way, overdrive was an option after the BN1/BN2 cars where it was in fact standard.