Just wanted to toss up an introduction post to folks so that things don’t linger too much. My name is Tim Driscoll (Timd32 on OWF) and between myself and a small team of folks helping on the back end sorting out the hosting and domain work will be working to maintain eWillys.
First and foremost I would like to thank Dave for trusting in me to do the right thing and take eWillys into it’s next adventure. I’ve been in this position before with a very prominent Willys project, it’s not always easy to step into such a great personal project like eWillys and maintain the high level of work performed prior. I often wondered if eWillys was Dave and with no Dave is there an eWillys? But after discussing the project and my history and views on Willys I think we are very well aligned with what eWillys is and what it should never be. No one can replace Dave and build another eWillys, but with so much knowledge and history a lot of us thought it important to take a step to move eWillys forward and continue it’s journey.
Thanks Dave for all the past years of eWillys and the support to move forward with this project!
I’ve been involved with Willys since 1995 when I bought my first Truck. The truck was/is an early 2WD Willys Salad was priced at $500, did not run, had a really rotted wood bed, I-beam front end and an 8 lug dana rear differential. We pulled it home with a chain which is always a good time, with limited brakes it was a completely unknown vehicle and unknown mfg to my 18 year old self, and so began My Willys Adventures. Over the last 29 years I’ve enjoyed learning and working on Willys of all sorts. For me it’s more about the people then the parts. The stories and hearing others adventures, hearing the history of their families and the joy Willys have brought them.
Since that time I’ve had several Willys and the current fleet includes a few Wagons and Trucks, a large collection of 230 Tornado Engines (mostly cores, “Save the Tornados”). Along with at least one each of the other more common engines L134, F134, 226, everything except anything related to the 161’s.
The nice Willys in my fleet were bought not built I’m the current caretaker of Willa Dean who is a 1948 4T Truck that every single part was lovingly restored over a 3 year period by Vintage Don. Then this year I picked up a super nice 1963 Wagon with the 230 Tornado that was rebuilt and painted in 1994, it’s was also a well loved Willys throughout it’s 30+ years with the last owner, the back story and ownership history are really impressive and the Wagon is a joy to drive.
Our initial goals with eWillys is to maintain the site as it is, I don’t have any major changes to the site to start off. The hosting needs to be sorted out and then any updates required will be performed, we may not have daily posts till we get it all sorted out. Overall I’m a big supporter of (semi) accurate history, I say semi because basically if there is one thing I’ve learned about Willys is you will be surprised at the twists and turns the brand took and what appears to a fact can easily be disproven by one of the many Willys experts in the field.
As I gain the knowledge needed to run the site and navigate the path which it will naturally take, others may join in and assist from time to time. I’ve had alot of help and there are many mentors that have helped me with my Willys over the years. So it’s just natural that this will likely be a team effort. There will be mistakes along the way, things that should have or could have went this way or that way, so bear with us at times. If it’s wrong we will correct it, if it’s broke we will fix it. Every Willys leaks a little something (or its empty) rarely will you find a trailer queen, Willys are meant to be driven, maintained, fixed, and others constantly worked on at times, which I fully expect a website like eWillys will need the same from time to time. But like a well sorted Willys, eWillys should be an enjoyable experience, with just a touch of frustration from time to time!
Thanks for hanging in there, with the holidays it may result in longer then normal reply times and as the work continues there may be some downtime, so don’t give up on us quite yet.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year to all the folks who have supported eWillys over the years. Especially to Dave and his family who have brought so much to the Willys community over the years.
Thanks, Tim
1948 Willa Dean 4T Truck and 1963 230 OHC Wagon
