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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.
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.
There are plenty of interesting, unusual, historic and surprising stories related to Jeeps and their owners. In addition, some of these features have nothing to do with jeeps. This link will display all featured stories starting from the latest.
Looking for parts and not sure where to go? There are a variety of large and small new and used parts sellers both online and offline.
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 .
Here’s a rare floating jeep mechanical pencil with an engraving of Archer Motor Company from Burlington, Iowa.
View all the information on eBay
“RARE!!WILLY’S OVERLAND*Archer Motor Co.*Burlington,IA”FLOATING JEEP”Pencil/Works. This is very close to mint if not. I didn’t find anything really wrong with it.This is for the most discriminating collector or someone looking for a center piece for a Jeep display, it’s the origin of the JEEP.”
I don’t remember seeing this brochure previously. It is 12 pages, but unclear how many cover the jeep line. I didn’t know Mitsubishi did a Fire Jeep.
View all the information on eBay
“1958 Mitsubishi sales brochure with Willys Jeep, Jupiter Trucks & 500 Sedan. Size is 8.25 x 11.5 with 12 pages. Bent corner, creased.”
UPDATE: **SOLD** For $90.79 on eBay
This is a cool, retro lighter featuring Time and Life and a CJ-5. Why would it feature both Life and Time logos?
“Good working condition with good plunger seal, clean chimney, good printed display.”
UPDATE: It’s been 9 years since this post has run, which just shows you how rare it is to see one of these for sale (see next post)
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Craig Brockhaus saw the Boyertown Economy Delivery Comparison Post (see below) and forwarded both Boyertown and Montpelier Delivery Truck designs. Cool Stuff!
MONTPELIER DELIVERY TRUCK ARTICLE:
BOYERTOWN DELIVERY TRUCK INFORMATION:
UPDATE: Several instances of newspapers carrying the ad have been found across the US. They include, Page 5 of the Atlanta Constitution’s American Weekly Magazine Page 3 (thanks John), The San francisco Examiner Sun’s American Weekly Magazine Page 3, and The Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph’s American Weekly Magazine Page 3. So, it was the American Weekly Magazine that printed the ad. Thanks for everyone’s help!
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Barry is investigating how a Farm Aide Lift (or what appears to be one) ended up on page 3 in an April 6, 1947, Willys-Overland ad for the Universal Jeep. The biggest question is [ed note: now answered], in what magazine did the ad appear? My guess was that it is some kind of newspaper-related Sunday periodical (such as Parade or The Week). It might have even been a western-US only periodical or ad.
Well, I was right about the Sunday periodical, it was the American Weekly Magazine Page 3, but I was wrong about the regional aspect; it’s clear it was nationwide.
You can Barry’s full post about the topic here: https://www.farmjeep.com/2022/02/16/april-1947-mystery-ad-is-that-a-non-jeep-approved-lift/
Here is a closeup of part of the ad (compare it with the Farm Aide Lift).
Photo Credit: Farm Jeep and the Mysteries 1947 ad post
This whole ad appeared in the Atlanta Consititution:
Here is the cover of the magazine:
I snagged this rare postal jeep FJ-3 brochure off of ebay; It is rare enough that I didn’t know these existed! One thing that caught my eye was the Civil Defense sticker. I off handedly mentioned it to Ann and she quickly found the reason for the sticker. From this page at the USPS website:
Each year from 1954 to 1961, civil defense authorities coordinated a drill called Operation Alert.6 Cities across the country conducted civil defense exercises on the same day. Postal participation in Operation Alert 1956 was described in a West Virginia newspaper:
A civil defense drill was held Tuesday afternoon in the Beckley Post Office. This drill was one of a series of simultaneous drills held in 38 key postal installations of the Washington Region….
These training drills are required by the government since keeping the mails moving plays an important part in the communications system that must be maintained during national emergencies. Four feder- al trucks operated by the Beckley Post Office have been designated Civil Defense units, and bear that insignia.
Including the four vehicles at the Beckley Post Office, 25,000 postal trucks were designated as emergency civil defense vehicles and fitted with Civil Defense de- cals in 1956. It was believed that “postal trucks would be valuable as emergency ambulances, rescue vehicles, and for local emergency transportation in the event of an enemy attack.”
Starting in 1956, many postal vehicles bore decals indicating their potential use as ambulances, rescue vehicles, and for other transportation during emergencies.
In December 1964, the Civil Defense Program was expanded to include even the smallest postal-owned motor vehicles, the three-wheeled Mailsters. Vehicle maintenance facilities provided Civil Defense decals so that each of these smaller deliver could be identified. Civil Defense decals were required on postal-owned vehicles until March 1971.
Now for the brochure:
I spotted this brochure on eBay. It’s not jeep specific, but does depict a CJ-2A using the sprayer. Given the model of jeep, I imagine this was a late 1940s brochure. The brochure came from Canada and the company is from Winnipeg, so the brochure was likely meant for the Canadian market.
I’m showing the order of this 4-page brochure backwards, as the jeep is on the last page, not the first.
Barry spotted a 1943 trademark application for the term Jeepmobile. The application may have been denied, as the USPTO does not have a record of that term being awarded a registered trademark status.
So, why trademark the term? My guess is that W-O had noticed that the term was, at times, being used to describe the jeep. For example, the third paragraph in this 1941 article that appeared in a variety of newspapers describes the jeep as “jeep-mobiles” or “blitz buggies”:
September 09, 1941, The Daily Reporter out of Greenfield, IN.
The application claims the term was first used by the company on March 01, 1943, which likely means it should appear in some ad some where, but I couldn’t find any ad with that term.
Perhaps securing the term was a defensive measure against others using it (especially Ford)? We’ll likely never know.
After the war, the term pops up several times in newspaper articles as well. So, in some form, the term was used by the public most likely in casual conversation rather than as a formal description by W-O.
UPDATE II: This sold for $455.
UPDATE: This topper has reached $229.83 with several hours to go. There’s some concern that this plate topper is not really vintage. Read through the comments to see some valid issues with this topper. There are certainly fakes on eBay, indicated by the comments of some buyers of these toppers.
One of my concerns about the topper is that no dealer is mentioned. I would expect a dealer name to be included if this were a dealer-created topper. But, then, if the seller went to all this trouble to create this topper, you’d think they would have added the dealer associated with the ad below.
I spent some time looking at other 1940s era license plate toppers. The shape and design of the one below seems consistent to me with some others shown on Google Images. But, then, are the ones shown on Google also fakes? I just don’t know.
Still, I like the piece. If you purchase it, but then determine it is fake, complain to eBay:
“If the merchandise is fake, report the listing to eBay and let them take action to enforce their policies. … Your purchase is covered by the eBay Guarantee, which entitles you to receive your money back if the item you receive doesn’t match what is listed. The seller has three days to respond”
Since the seller is claiming this topper is vintage, if they lied, they have no recourse. eBay will likely refund your money and not expect you to return the item (Unfortunately, some buyers are scammers themselves and use this very tactic to get free stuff).
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Maury spotted this CJ-2A topper eBay a few days ago. It’s already at $122.50 (and will likely go higher) with just over a day to go (as of this writing). It’s a really neat piece. I expect this will hit several hundred dollars.
The “Truck Utility Plus Tractor Power” wasn’t a tag line that was used very often. In fact, the only documentation that I can find for it was on an ad for Willys-Overland dealer Caver-Wiggens on May 23, 1947. I have found other ads from that dealer from 1947, but can find no evidence that phrase was ever used again. Whether Caver-Wiggens was responsible for the plate topper or not I can’t say for sure, but it is a possibility. Below is the 1947 ad (from this page):
View all the information for the plate topper on eBay
“The Universal Jeep Metal License Plate Topper Sign. Nice topper some wear but great condition overall.”
Here’s the license topper itself. you can see the design is the same that appears in the ad, including the square bolt heads on the windshield.
A few years ago Barry finally solved the riddle of which hydraulic lift offered by Newgren used a dash control. You can read about it here:
https://www.farmjeep.com/2020/05/27/the-old-newgren-control-on-the-dash-mystery-finally-solved/
UPDATE: I’ve added information to the bottom of the post which discusses the shift of employees from the Transport Motor Company to the Kurland Motor Company in late 1948.
Unfortunately, I don’t have time to export this topic further, but Barry Thomas is doing research into California’s Transport Motor Company, which was the earliest supplier of Willys farm equipment in California. If anyone has more info about the company, Barry of would like to know about it. Comment below or email me at d@deilers.com and I’ll connect you.
Transport Motor was already a strong Willys reseller by the time WWII started, so they were were well positioned for post-war sales and service. This ad was published in the October 19, 1941, issue of the Oakland Tribune as part of a larger article:
After the war, the company pushed Willys Jeeps and the associated farm equipment, though it is unclear which specific models/manufacturers of the equipment was being sold, as evidenced by this October 27, 1946, classified ad in the Oakland Tribune:
This article from the March 28, 1947, issue of the Ventura County Star claims that Transport was the first company to make farm equipment especially for the jeep (I would need to see more evidence to believe that):
For unknown reasons, in late 1948 many key personnel from the Transport company left Transport for a new Willys dealer, Kurland Motors. Whether Transport survived this event is unclear (perhaps the Transport company was already defunct by this time).
Maury shared a pic of four of his lighters. I don’t know the exact dates, but made my best guess as to the order they might have been manufactured. Maybe someone else has a better guess?
My guesses:
1) The Willys Motors is likely the earliest, possibly not long after the merger with Kaiser. It didn’t take long after the merger for “Willys” to take a back seat to ‘Jeep’, so my guess is 1953/1954.
2) The 4 Wheel Drive one is my guess for second, maybe 1954-56. Kaiser was ramping up the advertising and “4 Wheel Drive” was definitely a prominent element of that.
3) The yellow-blue logo is from 1957ish. That logo appeared on a number of brochures of that era, including this one from 1957.
4) I can’t tell if the red ‘Jeep’ light is plastic/glass or a combination, but I will guess that one is the newest one? It kind of feels like late 1950s or early 1960s to me.
It lacks a back panel, but otherwise looks good.
https://saltlakecity.craigslist.org/atd/d/grantsdale-rare-old-jeep-sign/7421635365.html
“This is a super hard to find Lightup Jeep sign from the late 50s. It also has Authorized Willys Dealer on it! Lites up and has no cracks or fading to the lens. The back was broken and removed some time ago. Has the original hanging bracket and all original electronics. Been stored indoors for the last 50 years! This sign is aprox. 3ft x 4ft w/o the arms”
UPDATE IV: Barney sent a photo of his rare Whitco Bikini Top attached to a 1971 CJ-5 (with his dog Manny smiling in the back). While not exactly like the bikini tops we saw in the later 1970s, it likely represents the first production example of what became the bikini top (if defined by attached to the windshield in the front and held in place by straps in the back)
UPDATE III: It appears the definition of the Bimini top is that it is open in the front, which isn’t consistent with the tops we’re discussing below …. I’m trying to determine when/where the top cover originated that, in the front, connects to the windshield, then goes over a mid-bar (usually a roll bar), and, in the back, is held in place by two straps from either side of the top.
Here’s a DIY Bikini top made from a 4-by-4-foot canvas tarp via Four Wheeler Mag: https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/diy-bikini-top-willys-jeep/
UPDATE II: This Whitco brochure shows that the company was advertising a “Bikini” top during the 1960s, though it isn’t the design of top (like the one below) I was hoping to document. This top is closer to a Surrey top design.
UPDATE: Vernon notes that these were also called Bimini tops, a term I think came from the boating world?
Maury asked me if I knew when bikini tops were first produced. I don’t have any information on this. My guess is they arrived for jeeps in the mid-1970s as none of my earlier parts catalogs show the bikini top as an option. Anyone remember when they first started seeing them?
Pic for reference:
Micah shared this ebay auction of a War Bond Poster. The price has already hit $183.49 as of this post with just four hours to go.
View all the information on eBay
“Great original WW2 poster sent to schools for bond or stamp drives to buy jeeps. It measures approximately 35 by 45 inches. Some condition issues, but a great vintage poster. See other auctions for more WW2 posters.”
Here’s a neat matchbook featuring a jeep with a post hole digger. It still has matches.
View all the information on Ebay
“Post WWII vintage matchbook for Jeep – Fort Worth Willys Overland Co., Fort Worth, Texas. Willys Overland Motors, Inc. Toledo Ohio. Great image is very similar to the 1945 press release of the CJ-2A Post-hole digger demo.”
Adam shared this ebay auction for another Quackpot poster. The image below is from a 2013 auction (it’s a better quality image than the one posted to eBay).
View all the information on ebay
“THIS AUCTION IS FOR ONE VINTAGE, ORIGINAL “QUACKPOT MAINTENANCE” U.S. ARMY CONSERVATION PROGRAM POSTER
DATED – 1944, 20X14 INCHES IN SIZE
VERY GOOD SHAPE OVERALL. SOME SMALL TEARS ON EDGES. THE POSTER WAS FOLDED IN THE MIDDLE SO IT HAS A CREASE.
PRINTED ON POSTER: U.S. GOVERMENT PRINTING OFFICE -1944- 0-612414
ARMY CONSERVATION PROJECT NO. 121-021
SHIPPED ROLLED
RARE,VINTAGE JEEP/WW11 POSTER”
UPDATE: This video is making the rounds on FB, again, so, I figured I’d repost it.
Original Post March 2017: Listed as a 1940s promotional film, the inclusion of CJ-5s and the exclusion of DJs and FCs suggests to me it was created in 1955. There’s an extended look at a cargo personnel carrier near the end of the video There are also a variety of specialized equipment and hardtops shown.
I snagged one of these 1956 Willys Export Wagon Brochures Form W-253-6X from eBay.
This is a rare matchbook cover of an early jeep pulling logs with a chain. The matchbook was for the Kansas Willys-Overland, INC, dealership.
View all the information on eBay
UPDATE: Donald was kind enough to share example pics of the Kelly/Braden data tag and serial number tag.
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Originally Posted July 16, 2016: I never knew Kelly private labeled Braden PTO winches. Here’s a rare brochure that covers the products.
Chris has this Jeep sign up for auction on eBay.
View all the information on eBay
“Vintage AMC Jeep Dealership Sign 10ft X 2ft Good Color Displays Well No Reserve.
This sign is an original dealership piece. It has been repurposed. If you look closely at pictures you will notice older letters that once spelled out “Shafers Exxon PH 392-5646 Jeep”. Obviously it was used once as this advertisement but was repurposed to what you see now. As you can see it displays well either outside or inside. The photo of it on top of white table is backlit and displays good. It does not have a lightning element. I simply placed a flashlight behind it for photo. The ghost letters do appear in direct sunlight as shown by photos. Also the aluminum frame around the sign is in good condition but is missing an end cap on the left end. Please look closely at the pictures and if you need to see more please let me know. This is a rare one off for any Jeep sign collection!
As for the history, it came out of rural WV and was on display at a dealership near Rupert WV according to previous owner. I have attempted to do research on the phone number and dealership with no success. This is a local pickup only auction. Sign is located approximately six miles off of I-81 in SW Virginia. No reserve auction. Please do not ask me to end the auction for some ridiculous offer. If you’re that interested in the sign simply place your max bid and let the auction play out.”
In 1954, as part of the newly developed marketing campaign following Kaiser’s purchase of the Willys assets in 1953, Willys Motors created ‘Jeep’ Fire engine brochure SX-229-4, the front page of which is seen below (thanks to the CJ-3B page):
This is the front page of brochure Form SX-229-4. The other pages can be found on the CJ-3B Page.
I was able to finally purchase the subsequent version of the ‘Fire Engine’ brochure, Form # W-229-5. It’s essentially the same brochure as the 1954 version, accept they’ve replaced the 3B with a CJ-5 Fire Jeep. The rest of the art work uses the same CJ-3B images from the 1954 brochure.
I finally obtained a 1954 CJ-3B brochure, Form # SD-201-4. There is also a version of this brochure with showing a CJ-3B fire engine, but I haven’t gotten that one yet.
UPDATE: This was relisted on eBay and ended up selling yesterday for $26.95.
This print block depicting a Willys-Overland jeep with attached sprayer was on eBay. It’s pretty small, but the grille and tool indents suggest it’s an Agrijeep to me. This and similar small blocks were used to create newspaper ads illustrations. Below the block is an example of it used in an October 03, 1945, advertisement.
Here’s the ad example:
![Evening Star. (Washington, D.C.). 1945-10-03 [p A-17].](http://www.ewillys.com/wp-content/uploads2/2021/10/1945-cj2a-printing-block-wood-ebay1-example1.jpg)
![Evening Star. (Washington, D.C.). 1945-10-03 [p A-17].](http://www.ewillys.com/wp-content/uploads2/2021/10/1945-cj2a-printing-block-wood-ebay1-example2.jpg)
