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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 .
The Camp Croft mechanics explored creating a submersible jeep.
View all the information on eBay
“1943 Press Photo Army Mechanics at Camp Croft Make Army Jeep Submersible. This is an original press photo. The Army Jeep is a “submarine.” Army mechanics at Camp Croft, South Carolina, waterproof the motor and other vital parts and then traveled along the bottom of a shallow lake. The tube in front is an elongated exhaust pipe. Photo measures 9 x 8.25 inches. Photo is dated 07-03-1943.”
This guy provides rides along the beach in Fortaleza, Brazil. Maybe’ he’s a jeep lover? Thanks to Tom for sharing this cool pic.
These two pics featuring multiple jeeps in Tunisia appeared in the May 29, 1943, issue of the Saturday Evening Post, pages 20-21.
This Wilsonite sun glasses ad included an illustrated Ford GP. It was published in the October 02, 1943, issue of the Saturday Evening Post.
I was able to purchase this old jeep club jacket patch. The Boondockers was a club based out of the south sound area, mostly Auburn (minutes from where I grew up). As of 1972 they had 11 members, most of whom had CJ-5s. I can’t remember ever seeing the club logo ever, but the group is documented in the PNW4WDA Region 1 book from 1972.
I now have jacket patches from several PNW clubs. I hope to secure some more.
UPDATE: (if the video below is incorrect, here’s the original story with video)
This news video shares the story of Steven Ward and his MB getting ready for the trip to France. There were a quite a few jeep community folks who were there, including Ron Fitzgerald and Scott Schiller, both of whom did a variety of videos on Facebook like this one.
This photo has been floating around Facebook the last few days and, not surprisingly, folks are all freaked out about it. Of course, most never bothered to read the whys, the hows, and the exclusions surrounding it.
First off, am I thrilled about this law? Not at all, but what the heck is the state of California supposed to do?
The Problem: California has a big problem with less-than-honorable parts resellers buying, stealing, obtaining vehicles, stripping them for some or all parts, and dumping the rest. An average of 1.2 million vehicles are abandoned every year (that is more than 3000 per day, though of course they aren’t all the result of illegal parts resellers).
That means the state has to deal with identifying, moving, and disposing tons of vehicles daily, along with any related hazardous waste. Let’s say it costs $100 to tow/handle/dispose of each vehicle (a low estimate in my opinion). That’s $120M each year. Thus, it’s not a trivial operations or budget issue.
How does this affect hobbyists?: There are exclusions for said hobbyists. For example, “Any person engaged in the restoration of vehicles of the type described in Vehicle Code Section 5004 or in the restoration of other vehicles having historic or classic significance” is excluded.
“The owner of any premises or property used in conjunction with any agricultural, farming, mining, ranching, or motor vehicle repair business” is excluded.
“The owner of any premises on which two or more unregistered and inoperable vehicles are held or stored, if the vehicles are used, or intended to be used, for restoration or as replacement parts or otherwise in conjunction with any business of a licensed dealer, manufacturer, or transporter, or in conjunction with the operation and maintenance of any fleet of motor vehicles used for the transportation of persons or property” is excluded.
If you’ve got a better idea? Then contact your state and suggest it; because, your state will likely be doing something similar, as this issue is a national problem. Look at these stats from the early 00s:
“Among U.S. cities, Seattle police received about 4,200 reports each month in 2002, the New York City Sanitation Department picked up over 9,200 vehicles in 2006, while Philadelphia police towed over 32,000 abandoned cars in a 40-day period in 2000. One year after Michigan implemented a statewide data system for tracking towed vehicles, over 92,000 abandoned vehicles were removed.”
Given also that pretty much every town has some section of the law that discusses abandoned and junk vehicles, it’s seems obvious there are car abandonment issues everywhere.
So, in my opinion, this California law is specifically focused on shifting the cost of vehicle disposal away from the public and back onto parts resellers who are trying to skirt disposal costs. However, the marketing of this law clearly has to be rethought, as it sounds draconian to hobbyists everywhere (based on the Facebook responses).
Speaking of disposing with vehicles, Gayland shared this lighter looks at jeep disposal.
UPDATE: **SOLD** … may have been relisted here: http://www.ewillys.com/2022/12/12/1957-blitz-buggy…oneonta-ny-14500/
(06/1/2019) This has a working pump and a freshly rebuilt flathead 6. The Blitz Buggy Fire Truck’s I’ve seen (one from 2014 & CJ-3B Page) didn’t have the pump on the front. So, I’m not sure if this is a hybrid Blitz Buggy or something else.
“Nice Willy’s fire truck. Working 500 gallon a minute pump with brush gun. Fresh rebuilt flat 6 .”
These 1958 Jeepers Jamboree photos reside in the UC David digital archives. They were taken by Jervie Henry Eastman.
Eastman also shot this photo of Ted Corder’s Willys dealership, located in Susanville, California. I’d say this was taken in the late 1940s?
Roger Martin spotted this jeep sculpture on Facebook. I don’t see it as being “Authentic down to the last detail”, but still a neat little item. The price isn’t so neat though.
https://www.facebook.com/commerce/products/1472356579484727/
“Authentic down to the last detail a jeep is ready for off-road adventure. Armando Ramirez transforms recycled bicycle and automobile parts into a realistic miniature replica. His creativity is fascinating. Ramirez does not give his sculptures a fine polished finish therefore smudges and scratches may be present.”
As I’ve mentioned, I once made the ‘mistake’ of buying three Austin Champ fixer-uppers to save them from being crushed. Despite that experience, I joined the Austin Champ group, as sometimes I find Champs for sale and post the links on the site.
The other day someone posted a 1955 ad for the Champ Firefly, which was a type of fire engine built on the Champ chassis. I’d never heard of them, so thought folks might find these ads interesting.
Here’s a an actual Austin Champ NSL 418 Firefly Fire Engine:
Found this on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/buzzer999/7609146360
The next three ads were all listed on this site: https://www.aviationancestry.co.uk/?searchQuery=Fire+Armour&startYear=1909&endYear=1980
The first two ads, from 1954, are for Champ Firefly Airfield Crash Trucks:
This 1955 ad is for Fire-fighting. I’ve yet to see pics of one of these restored.
Generally, my interactions with ebay sellers have been excellent. But, of course, it was only a matter of time before I received some damaged goods.
Recently, I got a good price on three Willys-Overland Progressive Farmer Magazine Ads from the late 1940s off of eBay. However, the packaging was less than stellar; in fact, it was so poor that the package arrived like this:
Inside, each of the ads was torn in the same spot, meaning the USPS was a little too rough with the package (though I do think the seller’s poor packaging is really the primary issue).
Worse, the ads were wrapped in cellophane, without any kind of backing, making them difficult to remove without tearing the pages worse:
The good news is that upon being notified the seller refunded my money in its entirety and let me keep the fairly worthless ads. Still, I can eventually scan them and repair them in photoshop, some day.
And now for the Ads: This ad does not have a date on it, but given the “J” logo, I’d say it was December of 1945 or January of 1946, page 11:
This next one is from July of 1946, page 19:
This one is from May of 1947, page 49 (it also appeared in the May 1947 issue of the Country Gentleman Magazine):
Maybe this bit of nostalgia will appeal to someone?
View all the information on eBay
“PENNSYLVANIA 1980 JOHNSTOWN ALLEGHENY HIGHLANDERS FOUR WHEEL DRIVE CLUB BOOSTER LICENSE PLATE. AS SHOWN.”
UPDATE: Here’s a Thor PTO winch for sale. See the brochure for it at the bottom of the post. (Thor also made hubs).
https://bakersfield.craigslist.org/pts/d/bakersfield-1960s-thor-pto-lb-winch/6912177380.html
“A late 1960’s Thor T-100 Pto 8000lb winch. Popular on old Willys and jeeps,
Very hard to find, in Excellent condition as far as running properly.
Hasn’t been used since the late 70’s always been stored in a dry place no rust, has some paint missing from being moved around over the years.
Asking 650$ Obo
I have no use for this but I’m sure someone restoring a project Jeep or Bronco would love to have an original winch from the era.’
==========================
Original Post from December 2016:
The Thor line of winches. Thor also had a line of hubs.
R. H. Carroll took the time to create a website displaying a wide array of off-road and dune buggy magazines. His plan included posting images of early Four Wheeler magazine covers, as seen here: http://99wspeedshop.com.s3-website-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/fourwheeler01.html (This helps me as I’m still looking for 1962 and 1963 Four Wheeler magazines).
This link shows you the Home page for the entire site. As you click through, you’ll begin to see that he spent a good amount of time creating this. Another neat feature are the timelines for the various magazine genres. Just the Go-Karts/Karting section alone is unique and interesting.
Below is one timeline example. Check out the Hot Rod/Street Rod/ Custom Magazine timeline here: http://99wspeedshop.com.s3-website-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/menu03.html
This handy timeline was published here: http://99wspeedshop.com.s3-website-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/menu04.html
Most of you probably know Ernie Pyle from his wartime articles and books. However, prior to WWII Ernie Pyle had already made a name for himself as a widely traveled columnist under the title “Hoosier Vagabond”. Between 1935-1942 he and his wife traveled extensively across the US, north into Canada and south into Mexico. In 1947, after his death, some of his articles from this pre-war time were bundled into a book called Home Country.
In his homespun style, Ernie shares his experience climbing to the top of the newly build Golden Gate bridge, learns the challenges of being a white professional wrestler in heavily hispanic Laredo, Texas, and tells the tales of some regionally famous (at that time) folks like Rufus Woods, a local Washington State character who had a significant impact on Eastern Washington, yet was a name I didn’t know.
Near the end of the book he interviews the inventor of the Ross Steering box, David Ross. Matriculating with an engineering degree from Purdue University in 1893, Ross contracted Typhoid shortly after leaving college. A doctor advised him to be outdoors to regain health, so he returned to his family farm and began tinkering. He developed the box and other inventions that made him wealthy. Ernie Pyle’s description and stories of the Ross provide some great insights into who he was.
That looks like an uphill slog!
View all the information on eBay
“1951 Press Photo United Nations troops push jeep over hill during Korean War. This is an original press photo. The powerful jeep was unable to negotiate a muddy hill, so manpower took over. United Nations troops pushed the jeep and a trailer up the hill. About two dozen men helped. — Korean War – Troops U.S. – Living & Weather conditions Photo measures 9 x 6.5 inches. Photo is dated 11-08-1951.”
Happy Father’s Day! Just a few updates today.
This story hit the news over the weekend. It’s a heartwarming, yet sad story.
My German cousin Heinz shared this story of the 98 year-old “Candy Bomber” returning to Wiesbaden.
https://www.dvidshub.net/news/326606/halvorsen-children-berlin-valued-freedom-above-all
Brandon bought this cool, vintage jeep club patch from the late 1960s/early 1970s at an estate sale. I can’t remember ever seeing the club logo before, but the group is documented in the PNW4WDA Region One roster booklet from 1972.
As the image suggests, the Boondockers was a club based out of the south Puget Sound area of Washington, mostly Auburn. As of 1972 the club had 11 members, most of whom had CJ-5s.
UPDATE II: See more scans from this catalog here: http://www.ewillys.com/2019/07/27/brian-chuchua-catalog-pages/
UPDATE: More Scans from Brian Chuchua’s Catalog (the ones from the previous post are also included.
The back cover notes that Brian Chuchua’s is a charter member of SEMA.
A rare McCain Hub sighting:
This may be the earliest ad I’ve seen for fiberglass bodies. 
This photo was on eBay and posted to the G503 Facebook page. It’s got an unusual hardtop. Some good headroom!
John spotted this article on some unusual engine installations! Lawnmower engines in M-38A1s. Were these jeeps at the Great Willys Picnic?
https://jalopnik.com/this-wrenching-genius-installed-lawnmower-engines-into-1835417201
Here’s one example:
FROM THE ARTICLE ON JALOPNIK: The [lawnmower] engine has been mounted onto some sort of platform, which is mounted to the frame. The 670cc unit sends power from its output shaft via two belts to an intermediate jackshaft, which then transfers power via two other belts to pulleys on the input shaft of the original T-90 three-speed manual transmission.
