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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.
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 .
This August 17th, 1948, ad for the Jeepster was published in the Sullivan Daily Times, out of Sullivan, Indiana.
Both of these ads from the Sullivan Daily Times, out of Sullivan, Indiana, cover the features of the jeep, but do so in slightly different ways. The March 18, 1947, ad focuses on the job-task utility aspects of the jeep, how consumers can use the jeep. The July 13, 1948, ad is less about what the jeep can do task-wise and more about what it can bring consumers beyond specific tasks, such as great mileage, physical comfort, and convenience. I have not studied other ads to see if this was a general trend in Jeep advertising (in other words, I do not know if this shift directed by Willys-Overland or something Citizen’s Garage did on their own).
This July 08, 1947, article from the Sullivan Daily Times announced the upcoming arrival of the Jeep Caravan to the town of Sullivan, Indiana. It was one of four Jeep Caravans traveling the United State at the time.
The caravan consisted of eight jeeps. One was the CJ-2A fire jeep. Four other CJ-2As sported attachments, including an arc welder, a generator, a compressor, and a line of hydraulic lift implements. Based on the pic below, it looks like 2 wagons and a truck, brand new to the line-up in the summer of 1947, rounded out the caravan.
This July 09, 1947, article from the Sullivan Daily Times announcement was published the next day and featured the CJ-2A fire jeep.
This photo and caption appeared on the second page of the Daily Nebraskan on February 24, 1943.
This December 1954 Volume I, Issue I was the first issue of the ‘new’ KW Booster News, a monthly newspaper designed to inform employees. Updates would include the newest announcements, company updates, employee updates (such as the new profit sharing model), and intra-company events (such as intramural bowling teams). This first issue introduces the brand new CJ-5, among other announcements.
I’m not sure how many issues of the KW Booster were published. The only other issue of this newspaper on eWillys is the June 1958, Vol. 2, No. 1.
Mario shared this article, published on March 25, 1944, in the Courier-Journal out of Louisville, Kentucky. a while ago on Facebook. It shares the news about a Bantam BRC-60 that was sent to the Smithsonian.
Here’s a curiously early newspaper ad for the Willys Jeep in the August 18, 1944, page 3, of the Healdsburg Tribute and Enterprise out of California. It’s a small, one-column, straight to the point ad without any credit as to what company placed the ad. This may be the earliest ad for the jeep I’ve seen in a newspaper. This would have been placed during Willys-Overland’s fight with the FTC over W-O’s use of the term “Jeep” in its marketing.
The ad was again published the following month in Monterey, Virginia, on September 29, 1944, in the Highland Recorder: https://virginiachronicle.com/cgi-bin/virginia?a=d&d=HR19440929.2.28.1&e=——-en-20–1–txt-txIN-willys+jeep——-
UPDATE: This photo of Jimmy Crabtree resides in the Free Library of Philadelphia Digital Collections (see bottom image).
PHOTO CREDIT: Free Library of Philadelphia Digital Collections ; PHOTO CAPTION: San Francisco: Jimmy Crabtree, 3, does some repair work on his miniature Jeep, with some aid from a helper. Jimmy’s father, a race car aid from a helper. Jimmy’s father, a race car mechanic, and his uncle made the Jeep for him. It is powered by an electric motor like those used in invalid chairs. Two batteries, one under the hood and one under the rear seat, furnish enough juice for 10 hours driving at 14 mph. Mr. Crabtree estimates it cost about $75 in parts and $2,000 in labor. February 21st, 1948
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Originally posted in November of 2014: The Chicago Tribune featured two kids driving jeeps. The first was about a boy named Richard Aulerich who built a soap box entry and then turned it into a drivable vehicle.
Boy from Detroit turns Soap Box Jeep into drivable vehicle.
A year later Jimmy Crabtree proved a little smarter than Richard. Three-year-old Jimmy had his father make him a drivable jeep, but it seems ladies-man Jimmy made sure it was a two-seater. He wasted no time picking up Susan Spitzer and taking her for a ride.
This article comes from the 1963 issue of Four Wheeler Magazine. Perhaps more interesting to me than the table, which is utilized for sleeping or as a table is the top. The top was modified to accommodate the table, but I’ve not seen a top that also had the rhombus-shaped rear windows. I believe the bumpers may be from Con-Ferr (or were later sold by Con-Ferr).
This news clipping from the December 30, 1942, issue of Yank: The Army Weekly shares the story of a Bantam (no 1687) that was pieced together by the Ordinance Depot.
This October 14, 1954, advertisement from the Heppner Gazette out of Heppner, Oregon, by the Farley Motor Company included a CJ-3B. You can see that the WILLYS ‘Jeep’ branding made a comeback not too long after Kaiser took over. KW also appears in the ad, along with Kaiser Willys Sale Division and Willys Motors.
This newspaper was featured in the August 11, 1949, issue of the North Carolina Marion Progress Newspaper. Bristol’s Auto Service published several jeep-related ads, including this one.
