emailNeed to contact me and don't have my email? Click on email button.
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.
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 ad from United States Steel promotes the toughness of steel. Unclear where this ad was published.
View all the information on eBay
“Magazine ad size is approximately 8″X11″
Original advertisement, not a copy”
The starting price for this set of Tootsie Jeep, Tractor and farm implements is only $10.99. Seems like a neat little set.
View all the information on eBay
This article and photo appeared in the April 07, 1957, issue of the San Bernardino County Sun. The two jeeps shown are part of the 14-member Rialto Sidewinders Jeep Club. The two men pictured are W. H. Casaday(seated) and Bill Deal.
Its not all that big, but has a pretty good vintage feel.
View all the information on eBay
“Jeep Station Wagon Willys-Overland Sign by AAA Sign Co Coitsville New. Condition is New. Shipped with USPS Priority Mail. Item measures 16″W X 11″H, sign back dated 1994. Sign is embossed. Whether new or used everything is as is.”
Craig shared the news that the FC-150 Mobile Cocktail Bar has been finished! You can view all the information and details on the build here: http://www.thefcconnection.com/fc-150_mobile_cocktail_bar.htm. Below are some highlights
This project began with a rusty FC-150 cab that was found in a field. It was paired with an equally rusty FC-150 bed. Coincidently, their colors matched pretty well. The owner decided it was not worth the money and time to repair the body and cab, so he went a different direction, creating a cocktail bar. Moreover, this contraption can travel as independent single units or be joined together and transported as a four-wheel rig thanks to some clever engineering!
The captions are from theFCConnection.
Believe it or not this cab and bed came from two different vehicles. Most all of the body suffered from severe rust and would take quite a bit to repair. (The bed was found laying in a field)
The idea here was to build a full scale bar that can be easily moved around inside a building and even moved outside for parties. The only real modification to the sheetmetal was the removal of the bed floor which was toast already.
Independent jigs were built under each body part so they can be separated for easy movement. The bartender can serve from inside of the bed with the floor removed and the custom tool box on the right side will make the perfect serving counter. The original look was preserved and all lights function to give it a completely opperational look.
A receiver was also added to the front of the cab so it or the complete truck could be towed.
Here we are with the tow hitch installed for easy transportation. The receiver tubes on the bed can be used as shown above OR the Tongue can be removed and the receivers used to join the bed to the cab..
This French Army poster has a buy-it-now price of 136,50 Euros.
View all the information on ebay
“ORIGINAL FRENCH LITHOGRAPHY POSTER
ORIGINAL FRENCH VINTAGE POSTER IN LITHOGRAPH
LEARN A GOOD CAREER IN THE ARMY (1950)
Format : 60x77cm / size : 23×31 inches”
Doing some random searches, I learned that during the summer of 1946 several jeep races popped up across the country. One of them was very organized (#2), one was more of a performance (#1), one was impromptu (#4), and one provided no additional information (#3)
============================
In unrelated news from 1953, this Yakima Ridgerunners photo hit some newspapers across the country. The example below was published in the June 24, 1953, issue of the Spokesman-Review, out of Spokane, Washington. Chet Thompson and Wally Klingele, both names synonymous with the early days of the Ridgerunners, are shown practice-racing for a July 4th event.
It is only $20 (includes shipping). This Vac-U-Cast VS-105 “Bantam Prototype 2” model tempted me. But then I spotted the “Bantam Prototype 1” Vac-U-Cast model jeep. I went with that instead.
View all the information on eBay
I bought this August 1953 issue of Cars magazine for the jeep article, but it also has all kinds of interesting information in it. The article “The Jeep Goes International” by Evan Jones highlights how various companies in different countries were capitalizing on the demand for jeep vehicles by manufacturing jeep-like vehicles of their own. The story discusses the new Austin Champ, the Fiat Campagnola, the Land Rover, and the Delahaye V.I.R.
The jeep-related story in the August 1953 issue of Cars Magazine was interesting, but what really caught my eye was reading a letter-to-the-editor by someone named Nick Jenin. In his short note, he mentioned that he owned five Tucker Torpedo cars and operated a museum called “The Fabulous Tuckers” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
August 1953 issue of Cars Magazine. Nick Jenin’s letter-to-the-editor.
January 23, 1953, in the Fort Lauderdale News
Jenin purchased a total of ten Tuckers between 1952 and 1957. Jenin loved his Tuckers, enough to operate a traveling Tucker show that was also called the “Fabulous Tuckers”. TheOldMotor.com website has some great vintage photos of the traveling road show.
Photo Credit: http://www.tuckerclub.org/contact/
In 1959, Nick Jenin was interviewed by the Miami Herald:
February 27, 1959, in The Miami Herald.
This “3 of American’s Most Useful Farm Vehicles” ad was published in Cappers Farmers Magazine in February of 1949.
View all the information on eBay
“DESCRIPTION:.. Original magazine ad from 1949. This taken from a magazine called Cappers Farmer so was directed toward the farm community. Shows various uses of the Jeep on the farm. A little bit of natural age tones —the item shown is the item you will receive–please look closely. The size is about 10 x 13.50″ ….”
This April 21, 1943, ad in the Victoria Advocate, out of Victoria, Texas, might just be the first organized ‘jeep club’. Though, to be fair, this was organized to buy a jeep for the military rather than to organized a group of jeep owners.
This Willys Audio-Visual Unit brochure is undated and lacks a form number. I’d guess this was published circa 1956.
This short article appeared in the June 24, 1946, issue of the Daily Times out of New Philadelphia, Ohio. I assume that the 30,000 production number relates to CJ-2As. Interestingly, 35% of jeeps were for ‘agricultural’ uses while 43% were heading to ‘industry’. The remaining 22% fell under the ‘miscellaneous’ category.
This isn’t jeep-related, but can you imagine towing this behind a jeep? Ann spotted this Atomic-themed camper from Alaska. It even has a ‘ray gun’.
Go here for pictures: https://www.motor1.com/news/276837/atomic-camper-crazy-cool-spaceship/
And go here for information on who built it and what he hopes to build next: https://www.motor1.com/news/276837/atomic-camper-crazy-cool-spaceship/
On Monday I received an unexpected and wonderful letter and gift that brightened my day.
A reader named Kerry sent me a box. Inside the box was a letter, some postcards, and a CJ-3B ‘yipao’ toy from Colombia. The letter explained that Kerry, who lives in Wisconsin, had visited Santa Rosa de Cabal, Colombia. While there he discovered some garages that only serviced jeeps; so he began taking photos to share with all of us (sadly, the photos were later lost).
A local man approached Kerry and asked him what he was doing. Kerry responded, telling him that he was taking pics for eWillys. Upon hearing that, the Colombian smiled. He said he reads eWillys every day.
Realizing they had eWillys in common, the Colombian gave Kerry a tour of the area. At the end of it, the Colombian asked Kerry to transport the toy jeep to the US and mail it to me.
So who was this mysterious Colombian? He said he did not want to be named or photographed, which only adds to the mystery of the tale.
A big thanks to Kerry for everything and to my unknown Colombia benefactor; I home I can repay the kindness some day!
In the meantime Kerry, you should watch for a thank you package….
The three postcards:
This first postcard contains several images of the market and plaza in Santurario, Risaralda, Colombia. I most definitely want to visit Colombia, but I’m not sure if I would enjoy the jeeps, the coffee, the people or the markets the most!
Lest you think there are only CJ-3Bs in Colombia, check out these round-fendered jeeps from what I believe is the same square as shown above. They look to be either CJ-6s or a variant of them:
Time Magazine seems to have had some unique ads that only appeared between its covers. Here’s another example. There’s no corresponding ad that appeared in the Saturday Evening Post or Colliers Magazine.
December 09, 1946, Time Magazine.
Gayland shared this do-it-yourself boat project that’s designed around a jeep-engine. It’s called the Chum. Below is the first page. Download the PDF to see all the instructions. There’s even a Willys marine engine for sale right now.
Just this update for Tuesday.
April 22, 1956, Los Angeles Times. Strangely, this photo was published months after arriving in Los Angeles (they were likely here in late December 1955 or early January of 1956). See map below.
The trio began and ended their trip in San Paulo, Brazil. This map shows that they passed Los Angeles on their way home, then headed east towards New Orleans, the trio’s last stop in the United States.
Most folks are already familiar with this trip, but I wanted to add these news reports to the database of Operation Pineapple information. One of the articles noted that the three travelers did not try an American hamburger, because hamburger was fed to dogs in Brazil.
This first article was published shortly after Jan Stekly arrived in New Orleans, because he wasn’t allowed to travel through Mexico. It was published in the August 11, 1955, issue of the Shreveport Journal:
August 11, 1955, issue of the Shreveport Journal. Jan Stekly is shown in the photo.
UPDATE: I’ve got 20 posters of the Better Homes and Gardens ad I posted last month for sale. They are 28″ x 22″, the same size as the poster I sold a two years ago (I also ordered twenty additional 1956 Jeep Family posters that I plan on selling, too).
Posters are $25 each (shipping is included in that for the continental US). Two posters are $45 (shipping included). EMAIL me at d@deilers.com if you’d like one or more. I will accept a check or PayPal.
This better shows the size as compared to my guitar:
Here’s the other poster, one based a 1956 brochure;
This shows the original brochure (entire original brochure here) vs. the completed poster.
==========================
Original post from June 2020: This June 1954 Willys wagon ad was published in Better Homes and Gardens. It’s such a cool ad that I thought it might make a good poster.
Neat old postcard showing a campsite in the desert with a CJ-3B. The photo was shot by Al Christman (presumably, there were at least two folks camping).
The buy-it-now price on these is $35. They are pretty tiny, but at least two of these look pretty old.
View all the information on eBay
This CJ-2A appears to have some kind of extended rear on it.
https://www.auctionzip.com/auction-lot/rpc-smith-s-ferry-idaho-cougar-mountain-lodge_0754C92AD6/
“”Visit Cougar Mountain Lodge- Smith’s Ferry, Idaho” b/w RPC, street scene with frontal image of the Post Office, quaint picture, flag flying above the A-frame post office, with a jeep parked in front; Business district , Lynn’s Place, Boise Meat Co., Miller signs ; white border, clouds, with forest in background behind Post Office; vintage card; rear of card unused; no divider, stamp box has unusual EKC lettering looks like an anvil on an e-bar Provenance: Country (if not USA): State: Idaho City/County: Smith’s Ferry Date: unknown”
A July 19, 1945, article in the Dayton Herald, out of Dayton, Ohio, covered the jeep demonstration at Charles Sorensen’s farm. Two things about the article stuck out to me. 1) I was surprised to learn that there had been no sales price shared with reports as of the demonstration. 2) The reporter who wrote the article noted that the most interesting piece of equipment was the John Bean Haymaker, which apparently never became a Willys-Overland Special Equipment item, at least not one of which I’m aware. I did find a brochure from a few years later that covered the John Bean Haymaker (see the cover at the bottom of this post).
July 19, 1945, Dayton Herald out of Dayton, Ohio.
What the above article doesn’t mention is that Willys-Overland had hoped to build 20,000 jeeps over the remainder of 1945, at least according to an article in the Cincinnati Enquirer on July 18th:
July 18, 1945, News Messenger out of Fremont, Ohio.
So, why wasn’t the company able to see the 20,000 production figure and instead produced only 1824 CJ-2As? One big factor was that Warner Gear had gone on strike for 12 weeks, stopping production of transmissions that Willys-Overland needed to complete the jeeps. There were probably other reasons as well, but had W-O been able to produce over those 12 weeks what they subsequently manufactured throughout 1946, the company could have come very close to the 20,000 production figure for 1945. In other words, there likely would have been a lot more VECs!
December 22, 1945, Daily Times out of New Philadelphia, Ohio.
I’ve guessing the brochure’s year based on the lack of an intake vent on the grille of the Willys truck and the lack of any FCs appearing in this document. I like the underside illustrations on this brochure as well. This is Ramsey Bulletin 126-A
