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 .
The annual “Delaware Goes to War- Victory In Europe” reenactment took place at Fort Miles in Delaware last weekend. Joe shared these photos taken by Bill Goodwin. Thanks! (I think this is a good start to “Front-end Friday”)
Today, a gentleman name “Moos” from the Netherlands will be flying into Redmond, Oregon, to purchase to a Willys Truck and drive it to Kent, Washington. From there, the track will get shipped to the Netherlands, where he’ll prepare it for a trip from the Netherlands down to Dakar (Senegal) in Africa.
Hopefully, everything will go smoothly on his drive today. Moos has my number in case he has a problem along his route. If he does have a problem, I may be phoning folks along his route to serif you can help. I will be around Renton for part of the day, but then I will be heading to Bellingham to deliver some jeep tires and enjoy some dinner with Wade Smith.
I suggested this route to avoid some of the Friday traffic, but he still must drive north up Interstate-5.
And here’s the truck. If you drive by Moos, give him a wave!
Jim Allen wrote a piece on the Mahl Loader, a bit of history that Glenn Byron has been chasing.
http://www.fourwheeler.com/features/1705-the-holy-grail-of-jeep-industrial-accessories/
This post from 2016 shows a number of brochures and other information about the Mahl.
I thought this Warn brochure was interesting. It’s in excellent shape. It bought it as part of a lot of brochures. It’s approx 3″x3″.
This year’s Northwest FC Get-Together will be held Aug 4-6th in Olympia, Washington.
Every year the Italians celebrate the Colonna della Libertá (Column of Liberation). CeePee and his friends from Bavaria once again made their way down to join the event in their jeeps. It had snowed two days prior to their trip south, so it sounds like it was a chilly drive.
CeePee reports they had a good time, as always. One of the people he met for the first time was Italian Gregory Alegi (read more about his trip here), who in 2013 drove an MB with his friend to Toledo. Ann and I almost had a chance to meet up with Gregory, but we couldn’t make the timing work.
On their return trip to Germany, CeePee wrote that his group was nearly swept away with rain. Still, it didn’t dampen their spirits. Thanks for sharing your trip with us!
UPDATE: Jeffrey’s Data plate:
=============
Originally published May 01, 2017: Nick Oxender added this data plate from a Navy CJ-3A to his collection. According to him, this one was found at a flea market 5 years ago. It’s in excellent shape – the only “wear” being from the dash screws. The previous owner suspects one of the guys was out on the town and totaled the Jeep, and all that survived was the tag. Either that, or someone thought it looked nice and swiped it.
This data plate was so nice Nick was skeptical about whether it was real or not. After quite a bit of research, he found one guy that made a small run of them, but those weren’t produced within the time frame of when this one was found.
Does the CJ-3A page have a list of Navy plates? Might be an interesting this to assemble.
We didn’t have time to stop and inspect it, but Ann spotted this MB/GPW at our local Yoke’s Grocery Store parking lot. It looked in good shape.
More parts have been painted. On my next visit to Seattle (in a couple days?) I will be pulling the brakes to see what I need, checking the rear end, and working on the gas tank and readying that for installation.
Today I’ll be cleaning the and painting the bell housing and cleaning the generator and starter.
Three examples of Ford GP photos testing a footbridge at Fort Custer that sold on eBay over the last few years.
Posted April of 2017: “1941- Army engineers at Fort Custer test footbridge by driving Ford GP jeep across it. Photo measures approx. 7″ x 9”
Posted August of 2015: “1941- Army engineers at Fort Custer test footbridge by driving Ford GP jeep across it.”
Posted February of 2015: “WWII Engineers Test Bridge in Ford GP Jeep at Fort Custer Original Press Photo”
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was $2000 CDN.
Warren forwarded this Marx Jeep still in its box.
“1945 release,complete with all inserts,instructions and nice box.First issue jeep as a toy by Willys.This Jeep has working headlights,canvas top,and trailer with tailgate..Never been played with and you will never find one more complete.Leave your number if serious,thanks.”
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was on eBay
“THIS IS A NEW OLD STOCK BROCHURE IN LIKE NEW CONDITON ~ MINT ~ 1950’S JEEP DISPATCH ~ THE SIZE IS 8 1/2″ x 11″ AND OPENS TO A VERY LARGE 11 x 17″ TO SHOW THE LISTING AND THE BACK OF THE BROCHURE SHOWS THE JEEP DISPATCHER SPECIFICATIONS. THIS IS NOT A REPRINT.”
A Brit listening to an Indian bag pipe player in North Africa.
“1942 Press Photo General Sir Claude J.E. Auchinleck tours North Africa This is an original press photo. General Sir Claude J.E. Auchinleck, British Middle East Commander, who took over personal command of the British Eighth Army in North Africa, chats with an Indian Sentry while making a tour of the front lines in an American made jeep.Photo measures 9 x 7.25inches. Photo is dated 8-6-1942.”
View all the information on eBay
Joe in Mesa forwarded photos of this truck that the Road Hauks crew on Discovery channel made over. Only those with history channel access can see this online. Otherwise, set up your DVR to record it. I’m sure they’d rerun it.
This weekend my lovely helper and I blasted and painted the frame. Now, we are both tired. So, here’s a recap in pics …. First the dirt and scraping. Yuck!
Interesting photo.
“1946 Press Photo Flying Fortress Plane Tests for Bikini Atomic Bomb at Roswell.
This is an original press photo. Roswell, NM – In a experiment for the Bikini atomic bomb tests, a 46,000 lb flying fortress took off from the Army air field here yesterday, circled the base for 30 minutes, and landed. The entire operation was remotely controlled by radio, the landing and takeoff from jeeps on the ground, and the flight itself from another plane flying to the right and a few feet above and behind the “drone”. Here the jeep prepares to bring in the “drone” Photo measures 8.5 x 6.75 inches. Photo is dated 02-28-1946.”
View all the information on eBay
UPDATE: **SOLD** Were on eBay.
The first photo is particularly good.
1. “1943 Press Photo President Roosvelt Reviewing US Soldiers in Casablanca, Morocco
This is an original press photo. Casablanca, Morocco – In an army jeep driven by Sgt Oran Lass of Kansas City, Missouri, President Roosevelt reviews American army tank units to right are – Major General Ernest Harmon and Lt Gen Mark Clark. Running alongside the jeep on the far side is corporal Robert Hopkins, son of Harry Hopkins.Photo measures 10 x 8.25inches. Photo is dated 01-31-1943.”
2. “1943 Press Photo President Franklin Roosevelt-checks troops at Casablanca
This is an original press photo. Commander In Chief Reviews troops from jeep. President Franklin Roosevelt, riding in the front seat of the jeep at left, inspects a body od D.S. Troops drawn up at a base near here. Photo measures 10.75 x 8.25 inches. Photo is dated 2-1-1943.”
View all the information on eBay
Guy found this combination key chain and bottle opener on Amazon.
Ann is not afraid to get dirty!
Unlike our sunny Friday, today was a rainy day, so any thought of blasting the frame was put on hold. But, we did get nearly all the parts removed from the frame and the engine/transmission ready to pull out. The more we removed, the more we could see that poor Rusty had come from an abusive home.
Case in point: the transmission cross member. Both sides of the frame where the transmission crossmember normally attaches have been beaten, suggesting that the jeep was often bottomed or high centered. That would also explain the need to install a custom cross member:
You can see the wave along the bottom rail. I play on straightening it and then added an extra piece of metal to about a foot long to add additional strength along the bottom of the frame.
This net photo shows the rear passenger spring. The front portion of the bottom leaf is bent down quite a ways. This is slightly problematic in that there aren’t off the shelf springs for DJ-3A convertibles (that I know of anyway).
I don’t know which year this image was printed, but it highlights the different springs among models.
Note that the hardtop version had different numbers of springs on the left vs. right sides. From the CJ-2A Page.
To make it more confusing, I have five leafs in the front and four in the back (on both sides). I think I should have only 3 leafs. Perhaps the previous owner broke them and installed heavier ones? Or, the number of leafs was changed after 1956? I don’t know.
If you like old jeeps, shells, and women, then this photo if for you!
“1942 Press Photo A Group of Girls Riding the Range in a Jeep Pass 16 Inch Shells.
This is an original press photo. Women who just a short while ago thought of a range as something to cook on and powder as something to pat on their faces are now doing the work of men on the firing range at the Army ordnance Department’s proving grounds at Aberdeen, MD. They don’t just fool around with the light work, either. They fill shells with powder and prime them. They run huge cranes to assemble the big guns. And they load, clean, and fire everything from Garand rifles and Tommy guns to the big railroad guns. A group of the girls riding the range in a jeep pass a huge stack of 16 inch shells. Photo measures 9 x 7.25 inches. Photo is dated 06-06-1942.
View all the information on eBay
Just a few updates for today ….
Friday was another day of blasting. And, with Ann’s help, there was plenty of scraping, too. This photo describes my day:
But, all that work wasn’t for naught. See the much cleaner steering box:
And, some of the blasted parts … clutch linkages, pedal levers, column shift parts, and more:
We are still hoping to find a Jeepster owner to participate in the Alaska or Rust adventure. Email me (d@ewillys.com) if you know someone that would like to go!
This French brochure highlights a diesel jeep for a CJ-3A.
“Brochure JEEP WILLYS INDENOR DIESEL”
View all the information on eBay
This 35 page book looks interesting. It’s a reprint, but may be an old reprint.
“From a cache of WWII military jeep and motorcycle parts hidden away many years. A number of books and manuals were included.This is a 35 page Photo book produced in 1942 for introduction to the troops of the 1/4 ton 4×4 vehicle Reconnaissance later known as the Jeep. It’s filled with photographs and details for the use of the jeep vehicle. The book measures 8 1/2″ x 11′.with 35 pages, it’s listed as used, as I don’t know it’s actual history so listed as a reprint, great original period photographs and jeep details.”
View all the information on eBay
Can’t be too many of these records around.
“This is a Promotional Item Card Board Record 78 RPM around 1960. Very Rare Item !”
View all the information on eBay
