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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. 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.
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.
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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 .
This “See How Much More You Get” advertisement appeared in the February 1948 issue of the Farm Journal. It measures 8.5″ x 11″. Both the half and full version of the top appear to be Worman tops.
This same ad appeared in the February 1948 issue of Successful Farming. It also likely appeared in the February or March 1948 issue of Country Gentleman.
UPDATE: This post has been merged and reworked after I figured out that the two tops were actually related.
In July of 1963, Fresno-based Automotive Fiberglass Company placed an advertisement in Four Wheeler magazine for its new fiberglass hardtop. I wonder if the builder of this top was also a member of the Fresno Jeep Club?
This is the 1963 ad:
July 1963 Ad from Automotive Fiberglass
This Automotive Fiberglass top appeared on a CJ-5 for sale in Fresno in 2010. It is the only jeep I’ve seen with an Automotive Fiberglass Top:
CJ-5 with 1963 fiberglass hardtop from Automotive Fiberglass.
TIMELINE —
July 1963: Automotive Fiberglass places ad in Four Wheeler Magazine;
November 1963: Top King Manufacturing files design patent for an altered version of the Automotive Fiberglass top;
February 1964: Top King top is advertised in the Four Wheeler Magazine;
September 1964: A more detailed ad is placed in Four Wheeler Magazine.
A few months after the Automotive Fiberglass advertisement, two design patents were filed and assigned to Top King Manufacturing. You’ll note that the rear side-angle has been reversed. The mid-section insert piece for the side was also changed, altered from a triangle shape to a rhombus shape. Here’s the design patent information from the Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office:
November 1963 Design Patent filing for Top King. Note that I haven’t had the time to investigate the designers mentioned in the patent.
By February 1964, King Top was advertising the newly redesigned top in Four Wheeler Magazine. Curiously, the company listed its name as the Top King Fiberglass Company rather than Top King Manufacturing (could be a relic from the Automotive Fiberglass company days):
February 1964 Ad from Top King.
Seven months later, this second ad was placed in the September 1964 issue of Four Wheeler Magazine. The company had corrected its name for the ad back to Top King Manufacturing. Additionally, Top King announced it would soon have flatfender versions of the top available, along with a half cab version. Have any of these survived?
September 1964 Ad from Top King Manufacturing.
These two slightly different luggage-plus-people-wagon ads were published in different magazines.
This first was appeared in a 1946 issue of the New Yorker. This family is planning their first post-war vacation. You can view all the information on eBay:
This second one is from 1946, but the publisher is unknown. This ad includes less luggage for the group’s trip to the ‘big game’. You can view all the information on eBay:
This ad for Jack Gray’s “Jeep City” for his Jeep Sale-O-Rama was published in the Akron Beacon on February 26, 1961. Anyone old enough to remember Jack? Was it truly the largest jeep parts supplier in Ohio?
This 1948 Willys Truck brochure is dated October 01, 1948, and highlighted the five different models of trucks available for purchase. These scans were posted to the oldcarmanualprobject.com website by Eddy Jeijer.
This “4-Wheel-Drive Power” advertisement appeared in the March 1948 issue of the Farm Journal.
This April 1948 “Put Jeep Power to Work on Your Farm” advertisement appeared in the Country Gentleman magazine. It also appeared in the May 1948 issue of the Farm Journal.
There’s one of these ads for sale on eBay
In 1951 Willys-Overland launched a “4-Wheel Drive Takes You There brochure” for the Willys Wagon. Subsequently, there appear to have been two additional versions of the brochure, numbered differently, but with seemingly no additional substantive text changes. Each form folds out to a 17″x11″ large format brochure.
The first example of this brochure is burdened with an unusually long form identifier: Form 4X4735W-M1-100M, a number which leverages the wagon-model-type (4x473SW) as part of the numbering system.
This second version of the brochure is available on eBay. Given the grille style doesn’t change for this iteration, I can only assume that this version of the brochure was also printed in 1951. It has the updated form name of 4X4735W-M2-100M-251. It is possible the “251” at the end of the form number means it was printed in February of 1951.
The July 1948 issue of the Country Gentleman included this “Get more jobs done at lower cost with Jeep–Engine Power” advertisement.
UPDATE II: This poster was based on the 1956 W-25X-6 brochures. This also seems to confirm that there was never any Form W-251-6 brochure (which had been a lingering question of mine).
Original Post From Feb 17, 2020 (but with all new text): Below are the front pages from a series of 1956 brochures. I think I’ve got everything sorted out …
UPDATE: There were two different Form W-250-6’s produced during 1956. The first one shown below is version one I believe. Making the one at the bottom version two. Both differ significantly from the export version of the form, which is Form W-250-6X.
What’s the difference between them? Both forms open up to 11″x17″, so the sizes are the same. However, the front page is completely different. In version #2 of the brochure (at the bottom) you can see that the front page is more harmonious with the Wagon (Form W-253-6) and the Truck (Form W-252-6) brochures. The second page, reached by opening the brochure horizontally, shows part of the vehicle line in version #1, while the vehicle line is absent from version #2 at bottom. Maybe version #1 of this brochure was pulled because Willys Motors’ management wasn’t ready to introduce the FC-170? I can’t say for sure. Finally, you’ll also notice that “WILLYS” is absent from the front of version #1, while “BY WILLYS” is prominent on the front of the bottom brochure.
Because that reasoning, I believe this is Version #1 of Form W-250-6 …
This shows the back of the brochure when opened fully:
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This 1956 CJ-5/CJ-6 brochure Form W-250-6 is the domestic version of Form W-250-6X.
xUPDATE: There were actually two different Form W-252-6’s produced during 1956. This green one shown below and the one at the bottom. Both differ significantly from the export version of the form, which is Form W-252-6X.
What’s the difference between them? Well, the text, the fonts, and the font sizes are nearly identical. Both forms open up to 11″x17″. Obviously the front of the bottom version is more colorful and the front color image is certainly different. But, what might be the biggest change and the reason for the alternative version is that the green-themed brochure is printed with the word ‘Jeep’ in a san-serif font in numerous places, while the brochure at the bottom uses the much more standard jeep font. Finally, you’ll also notice that “WILLYS” is absent from the front of the green brochure, while “BY WILLYS” is prominent on the front of the colorful brochure.
Because that reasoning, I believe this is Version #1 of Form W-252-6 …
This is how the back of the brochure looks fully opened…
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