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About eWillys
Welcome to eWillys.com, a website for vintage jeep enthusiasts. I update this website nearly every day with jeep deals, jeep history, interesting reader projects, jeep related info, and more.
These quick searches can help you find things on eBay. People list in the wrong categories all the time, so don't be surprised to see brochures in the parts area for example. This section used to be split into jeeps, parts and other categories, but recent changes to eBay will require this information to be recoded.
The links to posts below show jeeps grouped by models, condition, and other ways. Some of these jeeps are for sale and others have been sold. If you are unsure whether a vehicle is still for sale or not, email me at d [at] ewillys.com for more info.
Importantly, the allure of buying a project jeep can be romantic. The reality of restoring a jeep can be quite different, expensive and overwhelming without the right tools and resources. So, tread carefully when purchasing a "project". If you have any concerns about buying a vintage jeep, or run across a scam, feel free to contact me for help, comments or concerns .
Jeeps filled magazines in various ways. Some magazines reported on brand new ‘Blitz Buggy’ and other important develops about the jeep during WWII. Others reported on the changing models during its civilian life. Still others showcased how jeeps were used and the modifications done to them.
UPDATE: I obtained a copy of this Kaiser Willys News, Volume 1, Number 4, off of ebay. Previously, all I had was a low resolution copy. This issue includes stories and photos about the Yakima Ridge Runners (last page).
Page 1 covers sales contents. Page two includes a short article about how a jeep won a road race in Las Vegas, but a search of vintage newspapers did not yield any more information. Page three is unusual in its description of the efforts to encourage wives to support their husband’s sales efforts.
Page 4 and 5 covers sales tips. Page 6 has an interesting diagram of an automatic transmission tools board, with enough detail to recreate it for a museum.
Page 7 includes a story with some details that might help someone recreate the 1954 Cavalcade of jeeps. As mentioned before, page 8 covers the Yakima Ridge Runners, among other stories.
This summer’s Dispatcher Magazine included some highlights from the Great Willys Picnic, the Willys Rally, and the Spring Willys Reunion. It also included histories of AM General and the Willy 6×6, plus articles on block crack repairs and the Jeep Guy’s Museum, whose billboard we saw as we drove north through Utah, though we didn’t stop because 1) we were on a time crunch and 2) we didn’t know if the parking lot could accommodate the coach.
UPDATE: This was originally posted back in January of 2020:
This August 1955 article in Popular Mechanics includes 2 CJ-5s. It took a nuclear scientist to locate the article (long story), but it dove tails nicely off yesterday’s Willys News post that included an article on uranium mining (last page of Willys News) about these two prospectors.
UPDATE II: Here’s another, similar ‘streamlined’ jeep posted by Mike Haines on Facebook. Note that this one appears to use a standard windshield and, thus, has a flatter cowl than the ones seen below:
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UPDATE FROM Jan 7, 2021: This post has been updated with a better version of the video:
The photos below are snapshots from the above video. They resemble the jeep shown below that was built by Wayne K. Pike. It was built by members of the 9th Service Squadron at the 13th Army Air Base on the island of Moratai. Note that it has a chrome/stainless trim strip absent from the car featured in the Popular Mechanics article below.
The company company formed in 1953 under Kaiser was called Willys Motors, Inc., not Willys Motor Company.
Yes, W-O produced MBs, then MCs, but I’m pretty sure military production didn’t stop during 1956?? Seems there were some M-170s and M-38A1s produced? And what about the civilian jeeps sold to the military and government?
Besides the military vehicles, I’m pretty sure there were one or two civilian jeeps produced for consumers prior to the introduction of the Maverick Special in 1958.
How is there zero mention that there was an active relationship between the Maverick show, Willys Motors, The Kaiser companies, and the Maverick Special wagon (the late 1950s Jeep News issues certain thought it was a big deal)?
Why was it a slow seller? Was it a lack of 4WD, poor marketing, an underpowered engine, or something else? Why wasn’t the market “ready” for this model?
Barney Goodwin shared this May 1980 issue of Cracked Magazine that features an illustration of M*A*S*H folks riding in a WWII jeep. I was a big fan of Mad Magazine, but don’t remember trying out Cracked.
UPDATE: More information on the goal of Kaiser-Jeep’s 1966 Eastern European Caravan. This article was published on page 7 of the May 14, 1966, issue of International Commerce, a US Department of Commerce Weekly magazine. In it, the Commerce Department’s ostensible goal was as an “imaginative technique to promote U.S. Exports”, as part to the U.S. Government’s continuing effort to promote East-West Trade. It’s possible the trip was underwritten in some form (cash or government favors or both) to encourage Kaiser-Jeep to participate.
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This September 1966 Four Wheeler Magazine article describes the scene when the Kaiser-Jeep sponsored Eastern European Caravan crossed into (then) Czechoslovakia, as a line of restored and refurbed jeeps awaited them. Remember, that no new parts had even available to these die-hard jeep fans since 1946, making their rebuilds even more remarkable. The Prague Jeep Club alone had more than 300 jeeps and 400 members.
The Dispatcher Magazine landed here last week. Bill Norris takes a close look at the Jeepster’s history with an eight-page article, including a nice section on the carryover of parts from the station wagon. I didn’t realize just how much of it was similar to the wagon. Thanks in part to the addition of technical writer Sal Consalvo, the Dispatcher Magazine has expanded an additional four pages. Also, if you are frustrated at some of the current tools available for things like removing transfercase and pinion seals, checkout the article on Joe DeYoung’s jeep tools!
Finally, if you can, please get a subscription and support the magazine’s efforts!
The March 23, 1957, issue of the Saturday Evening Post featured a jeep on the cover. John Clymer illustrated the cover. He was born not far from me in Ellensburg, Washington, where (to my surprise) the Clymer museum features his art. Guess I’ll have to stop in there and check it out sometime.