BJ TRUCK CHASIN'
OUR MISSION:
FIND ANY OF THE
"BJ and the Bear"
Kenworths used on the series
UPDATED: 7/25/05
We here at the club have decided to try and chase down the BJ trucks. This is going to be a very difficult and exhausting search which may end up in failure. Due to the increased interest in where these trucks are by club member Blaze, we are going to give it a hell of a shot! If you have any suggestions or ideas or anything that may help in this search please e-mail any of us.
Over the years I have been chasin' down pictures of BJ's truck, and have come up with some interesting photos and information that may or may not help our search.
This is a black and white magazine ad of a truck that has been wrecked that is painted just like BJ's. This was back in 1982 I believe. Being the BJ fan I am, I called the junkyard which was located in Georgia. They did confirm that it was indeed red and white and had been used in BJ and the Bear. Poor Doe, don't cry too much. I also have another picture from back in the 80's of a truck painted like BJ's that was traded in at a Kenworth dealer in Ohio. I was unable to find anything out about that one.
Click on Photo to see larger pics of this truck!
I also found in my hometown the truck that was used in the final season. It was leased to a company called Chaparral (photo above) out of Oklahoma. Photo taken in 1982.
Think I'm done? Nope, have another photo of a BJ look alike truck that passed me on the interstate pulling for a company called National Carriers. I have a photo of this truck but the quality is poor (below)
Not done yet, Have a good friend of mine who is a salesman at a Kenworth dealer in Indianapolis. Back around 1995 or 96 their dealership repainted a truck that was used on BJ and the Bear. The way I understood it, the owner brought the truck in to be repainted (same BJ color) and had some sort of form that showed it was one of the actual trucks used on the series in 1980.
The picture above is from a magazine ad when this one was for sale at a dealer called Cofer Bros. somewhere in Georgia. We also know from what Greg Evigan said that the truck was on the back lot of Universal Studios being used for storage and moving equipment around back in 2000.
We also know that Kenworth Truck Co. gave one of these Kenworths away in a contest at the end of the series. That truck could be any of the ones described above. Kenworth does not know anything about the truck other than it was given away in their contest. Who won? Don't even know that. So where does this leave us? Confused to say the least!!!!!
We also know that a Senator from Georgia purchased one of the trucks to use on a state-wide re-election campaign. The reality of what I have stated in all of this is...We may never find one. There are very few of these types of Kenworth Aerodynes left, alot are sitting in junkyards, people's backyards rusting away, and with the number of these types of cabovers that are shipped to foreign countries...It could be an impossible answer. But we will persevere until we have exhausted every avenue.
However bleak the situation may be, We are going to continue to search for these trucks and we'll take all the luck you can offer!!
From Club Member "Kenworth"!
You are right, there was more than three of the B.J trucks, there were five of them in all. I talked to a friend of mine at the Kenworth dealer here in St. Louis, and he called the factory, and I have the serial # of the first truck made for the show, and even have the microfiche file for that exact truck which is basically a blue print of everything that went into the truck right down to the nuts, and bolts, I got it for my restoration project of my Aerodyne so I could match all the parts to what that truck had. Anyway, the serial # is 277592, which is the last six digits of the VIN.
UPDATE... 8/25/02 Blaze found a photo of a BJ and the Bear truck parked next to Hank Good's Beautiful 1981 Kenworth K100 Aerodyne Show Truck.. "Highway Hilton" This photo shows the BJ name on the door, stripes are perfect, tho it has some differences...BJ's trucks were plain jane from the factory..However most owners would deck them out with more chrome, Lights and other accesories. Thanks for the use of the photo Hank! Hank is also a major BJ and the Bear fan!
UPDATE...12/2/03 The BJ rig pictured next to Hank's belonged to Kari Paloka who purchased the truck after the series ended. He owned it for 19 years before finally giving it up to our club member Lee Dixon.
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