Sno-Commander: 1977 Dodge Power Wagon
After just getting 20-inches of snow not much longer than a month ago, anything snow-related should give me the shivers. This 1977 Dodge Power Wagon Sno-Commander gives me the shivers but it’s because I would love to have it. This rugged beauty is listed on eBay in beautiful Fort Harrison, Montana and the current bid price is $4,450. There is no reserve so it’ll sell to the highest bidder in the next day!
Dang, what a truck. I’m a big Dodge fan anyway and any special editions like this Sno-Commander are even more appealing to me. The double-edged sword of any 4-wheel drive vehicle for me is that I love to have that option on “classic” or vintage vehicles but I would hate to drive them in areas where they salt the roads. Here in Minnesota this truck would be sitting in a field by now, or would at the very least have flapping sheet metal all the way around it.
Not being a person who would really ever need a full-sized pickup, a short box would be great here but I don’t think the Sno-Commander came in a short box version? Dodge did make different special editions like the Utiline which came in a short box step side and I believe may have been a Canadian model, and a Show Chief and also a Sno-Fiter. You can see what looks like new paint on the passenger side of the bed and the reflective sticker appears to be missing there, too. The seller says that the driver’s side fender and liner were replaced as was the driver’s side of the box. Being from that area it should have much less rust than if it had been pounding the pavement in the upper-Midwest or the Northeast for the last 40 years. Our friends at Phoenix Graphics make replacement decals for what they list as a 1973 to 1976 Sno-Fiter but I don’t know why they wouldn’t work on a 1977 Sno-Commander model?
Yes, a 4-speed! This is one tough truck with nary a latte holder in sight. The interior looks great to me other than maybe some warping on the dash gaps and surface rust here and there on the painted parts – but the passenger floor looks suspect. No radio?! The owner of this truck most likely didn’t get a chance to listen to Ke$ha and/or Jay Z while they were plowing – what a shame..
The seller says that this appears “to be original 360 and no smoke or major leaks. Does have a lifter ticking occasionally, may come out of it with driving. Oil and temp gauges have been added, truck doesn’t overheat and oil pressure when warmed up is about 40 driving and 20 idling.” Have any of you owned a special edition Dodge Power Wagon like a Sno-Commander?
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Comments
The only way this truck could be better would be to drop a cumins diesel in it. More Power not as thirst, And it would increase the cool factor. Nice find though.
I like the truck. This is a well put together ad, good pictures and a thorough description that hits on the points buyers are interested in. He doesn’t obscure the trucks issues with a bunch of open ended wording. I hope he gets a good price for his truck.
Steve R
Perhaps I’m mistaken, but I don’t ever recall seeing a Sno-Commander without a plow package installed. I kinda thought that was the point, and you bought them that way.
The last picture in the ad states it is ready to plow, the plow is included.
Not the plow it originally came with.
Came from the factory with a Meyers Plow.
The Pre 1980 units hydraulic units were belt driven by the engine, Linkages from unit to cab ended with round knobs [Yellow/Black] that were located on lower left of dash under headlight switch.
Nice truck..wish I had it..wouldn’t be for sale..I also like the shorter wheel base power wagon in this year
My father inlaw had one of these when I met my wife for plowing his driveway. A couple years later he traded for a Power Wagon which I ended up with when it would pass inspection since I only used it to plow my 1/4 mile circle drive I neve licensed it. Both of his trucks were beasts and could really plow the snow. This one looks to be a nice well cared for truck.
The truck is unstoppable in the snow. Most were fitted with a Myers plow that wouldn’t work below 32 degrees. Go figure?
3/4 ton suspension on a 1/2 ton chassis.
How so, I had 2 trucks with Meyers plows and 1 with a Western plow in my landscaping business and we plowed in 0 degree weather with no issues and that was in northern Illinois in the 1980’s.
I have a 77 1/2 ton short bed with 90 1 ton springs and matching dana 60 axle assemblies, rides like a lumber wagon.
I have a 77 1/2 ton short bed with 90 1 ton springs and matching dana 60 axle assemblies, rides like a lumber wagon.
not a real 3/4 ton suspension its a 8 lug light 44 and 60 if you got a real 3/4 to it had a 60 and 70 with lock outs
I never had a snow commander but I had a ram charger with the 4 speed and 360. What a great truck. It always felt like it was unstoppable !!
Had a 1977 Ram Charger with a 360 and 4 wheel drive. It would go anywhere, tow anything, always start, and took me places I couldn’t believe. It never failed me one time for as long as I owned it. It’s one flaw was that it got 6-8 mpg no matter what you were doing. Took the top off and put a Super Bee tape accent on its yellow and black body. Everyone knew that “The Bee” was mine. I miss that truck.
This seller seems have the market cornered on these
older trucks in the Helena area.
I wonder how he finds them all?
I owned a 1977 M880 that was outfitted by a fire station in the 80s for use as a brush truck. It had a 440 bb and a 1/2 inch thick brush bumper and grill guard on it.
1st of all, does anybody know what the difference was between the “Sno- Commander” and the “Sno-Fiter” ( don’t you just love the intentional poor spelling, as if to appeal to lesser folks who can’t spell, that may buy and drive these) A “Commander” surely must be better than a lowly “Fighter”. Anyway, the farm I used to live on in N. Wis. had a truck exactly like this ( no side stripe) I believe they bought new. As a testament to it’s ruggedness, I can say without reservation, the best example of neglect and disrepair I’ve come across,,,and I’ve seen LOTS of trucks. Pretty typical farm truck, not a lot of miles, but pretty wasted, no tail gate, so the box sides flapped, no rear brakes, a 1×2 foot hole in the floor by your feet, you had to lift the drivers door to close it, frame rusted, quite possibly the original “Mopar” oil filter,,YET,,,on the coldest day, pump it 9 times, and zoom. These plain Dodge 4×4’s were most popular with municipalities, forestry, farms ( when they couldn’t get IH’s anymore) any kind of off road work. Like the farm truck, they kept going, so no need to get rid of it.
Howard, I believe the only difference was the year. Sno-Fiter was an earlier version. Anyone?
More research shows, in ’77 Dodge had to change the name because of a copyright infringement, and they became the Sno- Commander.
Yep, these were made for plowing…. and it baffles me why Dodge would outfit these with a manual transmission. Anyone who’s plowed anything more than a driveway knows nothing kills a clutch faster than snowplowing. And if you don’t smoke the clutch, then your left leg will surely be macaroni at the end of a 12 hour day in one of these. Of course, the Torque-Flight wasn’t exactly a good choice for plowing either. Get stuck and try to rock your way out, and you lose reverse gear immediately. Good strong truck, beefy suspension and frame, ok engines, terrible transmissions.
I grew up in”snow plow” country, and for years, the standard snow plow was a manual shift CJ Jeep,or an IH Scout, and they never had automatics. Ask any seasoned plow operator, and manual is the way to go. Older automatics, while easier to operate, never could cut the demands of plowing. BTW, you should never “smoke the clutch” while plowing. You pick a gear you know will handle the push, and leave it there, no shifting while pushing snow. I’ve never smoked a clutch while plowing.
Exactly!!!!
It’s funny, I bought a 76 W200 Power Wagon new but I looked at the same in a Snow Commander. It came with a 440 engine and a plow was already on it in the dealer lot while mine was a 360 auto. Thing that gets me mine and that one had the Dana 44 Front end with a Full Time NP transfer case, no hub extensions or locking hubs on it from what I remember. In fact I couldn’t get part time even with a manual tranny from what the dealer told me (mine was an automatic).
Rust devoured mine and it was dealer rust proofed, and I’m sure if that one was in the Midwest it would have suffered the same thing. When it ran it could barrel through almost anything but it didn’t run more than it ran the first year.
It took me a long time before I’d even look at another Dodge, and that was a Caravan.
My 73 Sno-fiter up here in New Hampshire. A real barn find. Original owner bought it new in 73 and passed away in 78 with 10k miles on it. His wife put it in a barn and there it sat for 25 years in a barn. I bought it with 13.8k miles. Currently has 25.5k miles on it.
It’s the same truck featured on Phoenix Graphix website
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8x7mKI9h0c
Folks in my area seemed to prefer three speed manuals for plowing. Just one motion from reverse to first gear.
Had a 1985 ram charger sno commander, nothing stopped it. Mine had extensions on the frame so that the plow mount was behind the bumper
I had a 1986 W250 Sno Commander, all stock, the graphics by then were just a reflective “Sno Commander” decal on the rear fender but it still had the Meyer plow set up from the factory, 318 V8, auto, one owner before me.
Not badged a “Snow Commander” But I’ve pushed a whole lot of snow with this one.
sno commander came a transmission cooler as standard and oversize radiator
autos’n now the minute mount plows R the wayta go (ask Buffalo, NY).
Only liked the mani to avoid gettin stuck. Come offa the gas way B4 the end in auto or mani.
Good income, lousy hrs! Sm vehicle 4 drives, medium for town contracts’n rd tractors for state contracts… White Gold.
That truck is not a sno-commander, it does not have the manual controls on the left inner fender or the control handles coming through the dash on the left side. They also had permanently mounted plow mounts and lights which this truck doesn’t. The power steering pump was also mounted high to make room for the belt driven hydraulic pump for the plow mounted where the steering pump is on normal trucks plus the large half gallon hydraulic oil reservoir also mounted on the left inner fender
Adma, you are right.
I may be mistaken on the axles l said it was from a 1 ton which it is and it does have lockouts I did the swap myself from a wrecked 1 ton.