A September 2, 1953, article in the Toledo Blade relayed the news that Willys Motors and Mobile Fire Apparatus, Inc., were planning to produce a Willys mobile fire jeep called the Ranger. According to Four Wheeler Magazine, the1952 truck shown below is an example of the Ranger. However, it’s a little puzzling that the truck is a 1952, when the announcement wasn’t made until late 1953? Maybe Mobile Fire Apparatus used an older chassis? Anyone have an insight on this?
A second article shared the news that Brede Products was planning to sell a snow plow, powered by its own jeep engine. Below is one of two photos from Four Wheeler you can view the front of the rotary snow plow here. Anyone have a brochure for this?
A third article announced an agreement between Mitsubishi and the Willys Overland Export, Inc.
that snowblower would cool to have. There has to be stuff like this around somewhere!
Info here. Added 2,000 lbs to the jeep!
http://www.fourwheeler.com/features/1406-vintage-jeep-accessories-and-conversions-old-tool/
Lots of other interesting ideas there.
Now I have some info on the snowblower the was on my 62 CJ5. It was the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion snow removal jeep in the 1960s. They beefed the rear springs, had a granny gear 4 speed and that auxiliary power plant mounted there. It’s wasn’t there when I got it. The beauty is the low mile, hardly broken in
I have looked at many snowblower jeeps , all I have seen had 4 speed tranys .
That announcement was the start of a Jeep – Mitsubishi partnership that lasted until 1998 when the last MitsuJeep rolled off the line. My J53 is a 1987 but it looks like a CJ3B from decades earlier. I think Mitsubishi was a good custodian of the brand, but it’s too bad they never sold them in the US.