The complete remodel done in only 10 days.
On Friday the Toledo Jeep Plant unveiled a Willys MB for a Veteran’s display. What makes this story unusual is that from start to finish the team only had five weeks to find a jeep, get it delivered, and rebuild it. That’s a pretty short window! The person tasked with finding the jeep was former plant manager Jerry Huber. Naturally, he turned to eWillys to locate the jeep. He shared his adventure in an email.
Jerry wrote, “I e-mailed you a couple of months ago to congratulate you on the ewillys website and to tell you how much I enjoy it. Well, here’s a short story you’ll enjoy. About five weeks ago, I was contacted by some of my friends at the Toledo Jeep Plant asking if I could help them find a donor Willys Jeep that could be turned into a Memorial Replica for a Veterans display at the Plant. After accepting the challenge, since they wanted it completed for Memorial Day weekend, I scoured your website for potential vehicles and since we were operating on a small budget it was pretty tough.
When I spotted a 42 Willys in Texas with an asking price of $995, the folks at the Plant immediately jumped on it. The seller was so impressed with the intended purpose that he offered to deliver it to the plant in return for a Plant Tour and a couple of Tee-shirts. We rec’d the Willys at the Plant on May, 10th and the mechanics, body and paint crews went to work immediately.
The jeep from Wimberly, Texas, that is now on display in the Toledo Jeep Plant
The Jeep workers and the current Plant Management really got behind the project and gave it their full support. Special kudos to the team from Jeep that pulled of the restoration in such a short time. Finding the donor Willys was a first step and this would not have happened without your ewillys site. Thanks for all your effort to sustain the Willys Jeep heritage.”
World War II veteran and Jeep retiree Lupe Flores, right, looks at the restored Jeep. Behind him is Ron Szymanski, and Bob Kiss, one of the painters on the project. THE BLADE/JETTA FRASER
You can read more about the event in the Toledo Blade:
http://www.toledoblade.com/Automotive/2014/05/24/WWII-vehicle-made-here-marks-holiday.html
