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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 .
Strangely, the cover of the jeep has GPW with a M-38 windshield on the front.
“About the Book: Illustrated operation, maintenance & repair guide for owners of the Willys Model MB Jeep and Ford Model GPW military vehicles. This is comprehensive and filled with lots of diagrams/drawings (including lubrication charts) to help you along the way.
Condition: In overall good condition with relatively light shelf wear – only major blemish is label taped to spine side of cover. Interior pages nice. Binding firm.”
In 1960, Helen and Frank began a new adventure in India. For unknown reasons, Tortuga was replaced by the Tortuga II (Amphibious Vehicle website has a great comparison information between Tortuga I and Tortuga II). Perhaps the original Tortuga was too damaged to undertake another long trek. The goal of their Indian adventure was to explore the Ganges river plain and write an article for National Geographic (which appeared in the October 1960 issue). I have the article, but have yet to read it.
In 1961, following their India adventure, the pair undertook an even longer expedition. They wanted to explore Indonesia’s Lesser Sundas, a chain of islands stretching 3000 miles from Bali to Timor. Their adventure filled two large articles for National Geographic (Indonesia: Young and Troubled Nation in the May 1961 issue and East from Bali by Seagoing Jeep in the August 1962 issue). They also published a book in 1963 called the Drums of Tonkin: An Adventure in Indonesia.
Both the National Geographic articles about Indonesia and their Drums of Tonkin book are dense with cultural references and photographs. Unfortunately, both the articles and the book over-burdened me with local references to such a degree that for me the story was less compelling than their 20,000 Miles book. This likely reflects a larger emphasis on anthropology, geography, and biology, a result of their funding by National Geographic.
Despite the compelling prose, there were plenty of photographs to enjoy. Here’s just a few. This first one is pretty self-explanatory.
According to the New York Times obituary for Frank, who died in 1994 in Crete, the couple joined National Geographic in 1967 and continued to have additional adventures by vehicle, foot and boat. However, there is no record that they ever traveled by GPA.
UPDATE: The winner is Anonymous at $200. Thanks for the unexpected response everyone and a special thanks to Steve Vogelzang for making it happen!
Steve sent me this original 1960 FC-170 manual in the hopes its sale would raise a little money for eWillys. One of the unique things about this brochure is that it appears to have been in a Chevrolet engineering library. There was one of these available on eBay for $45, but that one is now gone. I’ll start the bidding at $30.
Along with the brochure is an FC-170 brochure. These run between $5 and $10 on eBay.
There can’t be many of these available for purchase.
“This auction is for a original Operators Manual for the M676, M677, M678 & M679. Thes are the military versions of the FC170 Jeep that was printed in May of 1964 by Kaiser Jeep Corporation.”
Over the holidays I discovered several volumes of a book titled “Pictoral History of the Second World War”. Here’s an example of one of them at archive.org. The series is full of amazing photos, including some vintage jeeps photos. Most of the photos were taken by various news services. I’ll be sharing these on occasion. Here are a couple:
UPDATE II: Not only did they publish a book, but they also filmed a documentary in color, called We Made the “Impossible” Tour, that was part of a lecture tour. In addition, their adventure was serialized in the Saturday Evening Post in 1957:
January 12, 1957, We Made the “Impossible” Tour, Part One: How We Motored Through the Jungle
January 19, 1957, We Made the “Impossible” Tour: Part Two: How We Went to Sea in a Jeep
January 26, 1957, We Made the “Impossible” Tour, Part Three: Island-Hopping the Spanish Main
February 2, 1957, We Made the “Impossible” Tour: Part Four: Trigger-Happy Territory
February 9, 1957, We Made the “Impossible” Tour: Conclusion:The Land of Fire – three agonizing miles of travel in southern Argentina.
UPDATE: This same book is published under a different name with some different photos: “La Tortuga an amphibious journey from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego”. I could not find a copy for sale when I last looked.
“20,000 Miles South: A Pan-American Adventure in a Seagoing Jeep from the Arctic Circle” by Helen and Frank Schreider is a great read. In the book they relate their first failed attempt to travel south in a Willys Wagon, which leads to their decision to try it in a SEEP (named La Tortuga). In 1954, they started their journey south, sharing in the book their struggles, successes and failure. At one point they try to drive down a railroad track, but are forced to give up the effort due to the damage the track inflicted on the SEEP. At another point they enter the country of Colombia by water, only to be told when they attempt to exit the country that they didn’t get the proper stamp (because they entered via the water). These are just some of the challenges they face.
I’d have to say this is one of my favorite jeep related books that I have read. After the “20,000 Miles” book they wrote the “Drums of Tonkin“, which is about a trip through Indonesia, and “Exploring the Amazon.” They also joined National Geographic as photographers and authors.
Frank died in 1974 at the age of 70. He suffered a heart attack in the cabin of his sail boat, Sassafras, while anchored off the island of Crete. I suspect that’s the way he would have wanted it. Helen was still alive and living in New Mexico at last report.
It appears you can borrow a copy of the book through the open library project. Learn more here. Here are some photos. This is a shot of the inside cover which shows the path they drove/boated:
This photo was taken after the maiden voyage in Balboa Bay, California. Helen is holding onto their dog, Dinah, who could often be found riding on top of the cabin.
“You are bidding on a great vintage paperback entitled Poker According To Maverick Written by the Suggestion of Willys Motors Inc.Kaiser Industries – Dell Books #B142 Original Price .35¢ Copyright 1959 October First Printing – A Dell First Edition – Illustrated by Leon Gregori – featuring ABC-TV James Garner and Jack Kelly. Front and back covers show discoloration, creasing , slight tears, spine is straight, pages are firmly attached, no creasing, dings at the top and toe, some paper loss, inside front and back covers show browning around the edges, ink writing and stamp from a car dealership in VA on the inside front cover, pages are browned, some ink writing throughout, no creases, some small tears, pages edges are green with discoloration, no writing. I’ll be glad to provide additional pictures if you are interested.”
Steve at G503.com got his hands on a copy of a very rare book produced by Willys Overland called “The Mighty Jeep”. He’s been kind enough to make and bind copies that he’s selling for $45 (plus shipping). He has a limited supply of the reproduced books. You can learn more there.
UPDATE: I just finished reading this book. I was hooked from page 1. It’s an amazing tale about a man who starts the war in Norway as a Commando whose team is trying to disrupt Nazi attempts to create an Atomic bomb. Soon, he is fighting in North Africa, where he becomes a POW. Eventually he escapes and becomes a medic at the Russian front for the Russians as they advance westward. Some of the details are surprising and unexpected. While with the Russians he finds a jeep. Commandeering it, he begins a risky trek westward with a questionable priest.
