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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 .
UPDATE: Price dropped to $4500.
(09/17/2022) Some Formula Desert Dog “X” Tires.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/614952540046306
“1946 Willy’s cj2a has a 289 ford engine runs and drives 4×4 works $5500”
UPDATE: Still Available.
(06/28/2022) The Desert Dogs look in pretty good condition.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/761578098627233
“1946 jeep willy’s, PERFECT father son project, i have everything to get it back together, was gonna do with my father but we both have no time, everythings solid no rot, 5500 obo!”
UPDATE: Still Available.
(07/09/2022) This includes a rebuilt frame and a new body kit. The Desert Dogs look a well-worn.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1093841571344649
“1949 Jeep cj2a project. This vehicle is not drivable at this time. What you get: Brand new Omix body, New custom frame, New leaf springs, Chevy 350 motor, Muncie 4 speed adapted to the Jeep TC, Overdrive unit, Blow proof bellhousing, Headers, Roll cage. If it is listed it is available so do I will not respond if you ask. (This is a project not a drivable vehicle)”
UPDATE Still Available.
(07/12/2022) Unclear if this runs, but it does have flat tire.
https://redding.craigslist.org/grd/d/palo-cedro-1947-willys-cj2/7505557581.html
“1947 willys cj2a. Original Kaiser motor . Original black plated vehicle.Clean title .current dmv been on non op for many years .”
The solid-letter Desert Dogs are in surprisingly good shape. I’d guess they are roughly at about 50% tread life.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1020064308602041
“Partly restored 31×10 tires 134 L Head Go Devil. Rebuilt 4 cylinder”
This has some rare Desert Dog PCV tires (in poor shape). The GPW script body appears to be sitting on a CJ chassis, based on the location of the rear shock frame mounts.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/3181197652168945
“1942 Ford Gpw script jeep. Comes with Ford v8 and Bill of sale.. has transfercase and adapter to auto trans.. $2000.00 in Los osos”
UPDATE: Price dropped to $4000.
(12/05/2020) A ran-when-parked specimen (though looks like it was parked many years ago). It includes a set of rare X-Style Desert Dogs which look little used. Unclear how much value is here, but the price seems to overestimate the value.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/888335851749585
“1953 flat head ford v8, Was told it ran when it was parked. The more I put into it the more I will raise the price. Elec front winch, pto rear winch. If your interested i will get it started before I sell”
For you Desert Dog lovers out there, Gordon shared a 1977 magazine ad that showed Chuck Conners pitching Dodge Trucks. Interesting enough, the truck was equipped with Desert Dogs (unmentioned in the ad).Unfortunately, I downloaded the pic a week or so ago and can’t locate it at the moment.
However, I was able to locate a commercial, also featuring Chuck, that has a
shows off a 1977 Dodge Pick Up PowerWagon D-200 with Desert Dogs on it (possibly from the same photo shoot). The tires are given a closeup at the 19 second mark.
The winch is not included, but the Desert Dogs are. They appear in decent shape.
https://seattle.craigslist.org/est/cto/d/issaquah-42-willys-mb-jeep/7341133159.html
“42 MB Willys Jeep needs to go. (I need my garage back.)
Ford 302 (V-8)
Borg-Warner 150T (T-150) 3-Speed trany
Dana 20 transfer case (case marking #C18-15-24)
Front End: Dana 30
Rear End: Dana 44
UPDATE: After spotting an ad I hadn’t published yet (seen below), I realized that there was Desert Dog history that existed among various posts. So, this combines all that into more of a narrative.
==========================
If you have read eWillys for any length of time, you know I’ve been a fan of Desert Dog tires for years. I still have eight desert dogs, some solid lettering and some outlined, as shown in the pic below:
According to Louis Larson, the Desert Dog tire was launched in 1970. He knows this, because in 1970 he became the first person to test out the new style of tires (see the bottom of this CJ-3B Page article). The tires were given to Louis for testing and photographing.
David Maxwell, a former Formula tires salesman, reported that the tires were always made by Armstrong, but marketed through the Formula brand, the president of which was a friend of David’s (see David’s comment and many others on this post). The company made a large number of retreads, so a number of tires also had Firestone on the side, too.
The tires proved popular quickly. Les Schwab was a big fan of them and ran them on his jeep (jeeps?). He also sold both new and retread tires out of his main shop in Prineville (see Les Schwab’s biography here).
For PNW jeepers, the tires were a perfect blend for racing and for jeeping and the varied terrains of the PNW (sand, gravel, rocks, mountain sides, mud, etc … as Joe1148 highlights in his comment here .. though I can attest to it as well). On the downside, their road life was short (some estimate about 10k miles) and they tended to be noisy. The tires’ popularity gained them prominence, and soon they were added to charts showing tire options, such as this January 1972 ad:
By 1973, Desert Dogs were being advertised in Four Wheeler Magazine (ads at the bottom of this post) and sold across the country. This Smith Jeep, Inc. ad from North Franklin, Connecticut, in the July 1973 issue of Four Wheeler Magazine is one example of an East Coast offering:
Eventually, the Formula brand expand its offering. I don’t know when each of these tires was introduced (I think this ad is from 1975, but have to confirm it), but Formula was soon offering more tires choices:
