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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 .
Steve shared these two videos showing swamp buggy racing from the 1950s and swamp buggy racing today. I remember seeing similar videos on the Wide World of Sports back in the late 1970s.
This first video highlights some crazy looking buggies (and no helmeted-drivers):
This video shows some vintage looking jeeps and how slow they go in the swamp (9:46 mark).
UPDATE II: Am busy, so thought I’d rerun this video. All brackets finished for the eBrake and fuel pump. More wires wired. Solenoids purchased and ready to be installed with new wiring plan. Ann *should* be less busy this week, which will give me more time. Hard to believe we are at the half-way point for 2024!!!
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UPDATE from Dec 12, 2020: According to Jordi, this Spanish language news film describes a jeep race in Belgium.
No helmets, no safety equipment … craziness! This video from Europe shows some gutsy folks running WWII jeeps hard through the mud. (if the video embed doesn’t work, go here).
Rodes i fang 1958 from Peter G Mozzone on Vimeo.
I was looking for an answer to a question when this “HotRod | Race Car | Drift Car Wiring for Beginners” video popped up. It seems like a real useful video and it is making me consider adopting a couple of ideas.
For example, currently there is no solenoid within the electrical system (I was just going to redo what was already there). But, the solenoid makes sense (and maybe two make sense), but now I have to figure out where to put the solenoid(s). My current plan would be to put them on the passenger side of the rear inside the dog house. That would be close to the battery and the starter, so I wouldn’t have to run the starter cables such a long distance. Anyway, still thinking through that ….
Also, in the current electrical design, there was no safety switch (meaning to force the FC to only start in Park or Neutral). This seems like a pretty good idea to have. But, my shifter (late 1960s Dodge A100 shifter) doesn’t have one installed. Nor was there anything installed on the TH350 transmission. However, Lokar makes a solution that can be adapted to a TH350 (and other trannys). The limitation of the Lokar is that you can choose to have a safety switch or a reverse light switch, but not both. That got me on a tangent of wondering if I could also add a backup light switch to that setup.
Another idea I had was to build a custom bracket and install a Chev brake light switch on it that would fit in the front of the shifter. So, when the shifter was in Park, the switch would be pushed in, allowing the ignition voltage to pass through. But, it would only be setup to start in Park (maybe that isn’t a big deal). Then, I’d use the Lokar at the transmission to control the reverse lights.
Anyway, check out the video. I thought it was good. (note that the wire he has going from the alternator to the fuse box via a diode goes, on my set up, to the tach … so I don’t think the feedback he experienced would be an issue??).
Bill shared this video of what I think is a customized tracked vehicle with a vintage jeep body and an inline six possibly from a jeep. I don’t know enough about these to comment on it.
Bill shared this article on MD Juan and some of the recent updates to their product line, along with some infrastructure updates. I know folks mock MD Juan at times, but their ability to manufacture inexpensive bodies means the company can’t invest heavily in additional equipment (chicken and egg situation). Nice to see the company continuing to support the vintage jeep community.
UPDATE: This was first published October 14, 2019. The videos were dated as 1948, but Bill noted that the actual date of release was 1945.
Brendan, who used to run This-old-jeep, posted this 3-part video back in 2010. The video was produced by Willys-Overland to help sell the new CJ-2A. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them.
Part I:
Part II:
Part III:
Blaine shared this MB rebuild video by Al’s Garage. There are a few deviations from stock, but still it’s clear a lot of time was put into saving this old MB. Kudos for documenting this as getting the light and other details correct while focusing on rebuilding is a tedious task!
To view the video, you’ll need to go to Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5XbCjy4nW4
The Jeepsterman shared this video of the McCollum’s recently bought CJ-2A from last year’s Fall Willys Reunion.
https://thejeepsterman.com/blogs/walk-arounds/the-mccollums-1948-cj2a-jeep
UPDATE: My apologies for leaving out Bob’s name from this post! Thanks Barry.
Keith Buckley (aka Joe Friday) and Bob Westerman (aka Bob W.) narrate a video for Klairmont Kollections Automotive Museum showing off the museum’s cutaway jeep. It’s pretty neat setup. The museum is located in Chicago, Illinois.
Some of you may have seen an image of a CJ-2A setup to pull an Airstream trailer that has gone around Facebook. Unfortunately, there was no history attached to that image. So, that’ got me hunting for more information. Below is my quick education on the Airstream history. I’m sure some of. you folks know more, so correct me if need be.
I was able to find a few more images of that CJ-2A and trailer, which has led me to believe that Airstream founder Wally Byam used that jeep, probably purchased in Europe, to pull his trailer around Europe during Wally’s first trip in 1948, which he used to scout various countries for future caravans. However, I have so far been unable to find anyone explicitly saying that Wally did that. But, the jeep is a CJ-2A, so the timeline fits. The top looks similar to other European tops of the late 1940s, and in Europe I suspect there weren’t many vehicle options at that time. Here are the pics I found, the first being the one circulating on Facebook:
Wally Byam sitting in one of his early trailers. A Cj-2A with a European style top appears to be the pull-rig. I believe this would be 1948.
This photo, clearly in Europe, was posted on this site taken in Turkey, from the 1948 trip:
And this photo posted on this site. I assume this is in Europe, but cannot confirm it:
As the Airstream trailer business grew, Wally began encouraging traveling, leading some international caravans himself.
In 1951, he led a trip into Mexico and Central America, using what looks to be an early Jeep Wagon.
I found this example of a wagon pulling a trailer, but can’t determine when or where this occurred.
Eventually, Wally assembled the first around-the-world Airstream caravan that travelled over the course of 1963-1964 30,000 miles through thirty countries with 104 people in 40 Airstream trailers. Here’s a video about one family’s take on the event.
According to the video’s summary, “Journalist Mac Smith was hired to document the trip and brought along his wife Jackie and their three children, Lorie, Judy, and Scott. Mac would go on to write an account of the Around the World Caravan in his 1966 book, Thank You, Marco Polo: The Story of the First Around-the-World Trailer Caravan [which appears to be out of print].”
So, as you can see, I kind of fell down a rabbit hole of Airstream history.
Te eight-page 1964 Jeep News Volume 10 Number 6 begins with a record retail sales announcement. These revenue numbers were primarily driven by the three models shown at the bottom of page one, including the Tux Park CJ-5, the Wagonneer, and the Gladiator. Increasing numbers of dealers also helped. Page two mentioned how the golf partnership was already providing beneficial, with inquiries numbering in the hundreds arriving at dealers. Page three shows three of the new KJC-approved “ad mats” available for dealers to place in local newspapers.
Page four highlights a dealer in Ohio that tries to sell a Meyer plow with every jeep sale, claiming it isn’t that hard to do. Page five provides the results of a dealer contest. Page six shares the news of the National Search and Rescue group and their recent election. Page eight turns international, with pics and captions from around the world. On page eight you’ll find the results of Boulder, Colorado’s, 4th annual Jeep-O-Rama. The winner of a brand new CJ-5 was Donnie Beyer, whose father owned a jeep dealership. Pretty good for a 17-year-old kid! Lower on the page is a DJ-3A with an unusual door and top setup. Finally, on the lower right, is a fairly well-know pic of Barb Eden (right) and Shelley Fabares with a DJ-3A Surrey from the movie “Ride the Wild Surf” (see trailer at bottom).
(yes, a Surrey makes a quick appearance in this trailer):
Thanks to Geoff for pointing this out to us: Kits Great Western Outdoor Adventure Tours. Now, how do I get ahold of one of those brochures? That’s a great bit of history and would make a great Dispatcher Magazine article.
Just a few updates today’s , as we spent the day in Seattle and returned to find one of our dogs having locked herself in our garage (for who knows how long) … she was a bit traumatized …
This British “Baby Buggy Video” is an edited version of the Ford video that introduces the Ford GPs to the world, so much of the video may look familiar:
I can’t find where I have published this 1959 commercial, so here it is.
Thanks to Maury for spotting Nate’s snow video. While he plays in the snow, we are surviving the cold. First, our re-done trough water delivery froze, then our well-water seems to have frozen, which remains a mystery as to why. Anyway, we are dry camping at home for the time being. Temps start trending up today, so hopefully this cold snap will be behind us for the remainder of winter.
Merry Christmas (eve) everyone!
I must have seen this commercial when it aired back in 1983, but I don’t remember it. I guess I had other things on my mind? I graduated in the summer of ’83, for which my parents bought me the first jeep of my own (I’d driven Dad’s CJ-5 for a couple years), a patched together, blue, modified CJ-3A with a Buick V-6 and T-15 for $1500. I spent the summer cruising around in it, then the Fall driving it to my first (and last) quarter at a community college, before pretty much flunking out (I just didn’t care about college at that point).
Instead of college, I traded labor for a rundown, hacked together racer, took that apart, and started building what would become my first project jeep. Too young, dumb, and stubborn to fail, I got a part time job cooking and used those meager funds to cobble together a custom jeep over the subsequent year and a half.
Willys Motors featured this Jeep Frolics film at the 1959 Chicago Autoshow, as explained in the February 1959 Jeep News. It features color clips from the Jeepers Jamboree out of Georgetown, California, ‘Jeep’ Roadeo racing from Yakima, Washington, and the ‘Jeep’ Endurance run staged at Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. According to the Jeep News issue, the film was a popular attraction at the auto show.
This 1959 Jeep commercial was run during the Maverick TV show (and probably other places, too).
Scott spotted a story about Louis Mattar and his amazing Cadillac Fleetwood, which he and friends drove non-stop from the west coast to the west coast and back. Later, he drove it from Alaska to Mexico City, again non-stop. The article is worth a read!
Here’s the article from Haggerty: https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/more-than-70-years-ago-louie-mattar-drove-6320-miles-non-stop-in-his-fantastic-perpetual-motion-machine/
And, I found this video:
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And this earlier video from 1954, which shows them changing the front tire:
Finally, here’s a more modern CBS report about the car’s new home at a San Diego museum:
There were some jeeps at SEMA 2023 this year, but one of the most interesting was a rebuilt FC-170 by Roy. The excerpt starts at 2;27. (I can’t tell what the narrator is saying, because my sound isn’t working tonight for some reason).
Bill shared this quick-assemble jeep video, though this doesn’t quite look as quick as others we’ve seen.
What’s more interesting is that one of the comments under the video shares how some US jeep dealers ran some contests challenging folks to assemble actual jeeps completely taken apart. This is the first I have heard about this type of contest. I wonder if it was ever documented in any news articles or magazines. Here is the full comment:
“My grandfather’s garage did this in the 1950’s. He owned the first Jeep dealership in Manhattan, because he was selling Willy’s before WWII, so automatically became a Jeep dealership after the War. [Willys] did a promotion where they set up this contest in different dealerships, to see how long to assemble an entire Jeep. But it was completely apart, not in sub assemblies like here. My grandfather won with a time under 4 hours, and they presented him with a solid gold Bulova watch. On the back was engraved his name, the date, and the time it took to put the Jeep together.”
With the Philippine government’s decision to modernize public transportation comes the need to make the famous Jeepneys more environmentally friendly. To that end, the 76-year-old Franciso Motors company has partnered with Tembo, who will provide electrification kits to Franciso Motors. Francisco spotted this older Jeepney, noting it was one the company built.
Francisco Jeepney makes both public transportation-sized Jeepneys and smaller, more familiar-sized jeep-like vehicles called Oners (if I understand the site correctly). .
Here is Elmer Francisco describing his goal with electric Jeepneys (takes a about a minute to get to the interview):
Seth, from the Red Eye Cafe Garage interviewed our friend Russ about his modified wagon.
Ann spotted this video by the Jeep Guy. It’s part of a series of videos spoofing high end vehicles vs. not-so-high-end vehicles.
I spent Saturday and part of Sunday working through some fuel system issues. What I thought was a bad fuel pump (I spent a short time on it this spring) seems to have been some kind of blockage in the line. So, I drained the tank (the updated stainless rear tank has a drain at the bottom), blew the line, then refilled with new gas and, viola, it ran. I think it just sat too long at mom and dad’s. I also replaced the old generator (which didn’t work) with one given to me by Joe-in-Mesa during our Feb visit. So far, it seems to be working.
Below is a short video clip. So, that makes 2 of 4 jeeps running! That’s progress!
The downside for me with this jeep is that I don’t fit in it well (too long of legs). it could also use an alignment. Finally, I wish the brakes stopped a little better, but that’s not a priority at the moment.
The body is rust free. You can drive it as is or repaint and restore it. The jeep includes a very rare Allstate window wash spray system and an equally rare Vacuum tank that adds power for operating the windshield wipers (one is missing a blade .. I haven’t needed to use them).
Being a convertible model, it has the original windshield with twist knobs across the top. I have nearly all the convertible top parts that attached to the body. The convertible loop only has the main bar, not the secondary bar that leaned off the back of the main bar. There is not soft top either.
The tow setup includes a towbar (not shown) that connects to a bracket mounted on the front bumper that uses stock holes, so the bumper remains unmolested.
So, if someone wants to buy this from me for $8000, contact me at d @ deilers.com.
I’ll throw in this three axle trailer for another $8000. I bought it along with the FC Tour jeep, but I think this trailer with just be sitting around and not used much. Since we already have a tilt trailer that can handle the FC, I don’t really need this one. I can take more pics or supply more info if anyone is interested. We towed it from Arizona and, once we got the wiring sorted out, it worked great for us.
