Thanks very much for the video! I grew up in a CJ2A that my mom taught me to drive in and I taught my son to drive in it. It's a 46 and still running though it is always parked inside. I was three when we bought it in southwest Missouri. Best of luck on your projects.
I learned to drive in a 1943 Army Willys. I was 14. It was 1974 and we were there was no one anywhere. This was the middle of the Mojave Desert. There was no phone or 7-11. Nothing. Nothing for miles. Anyhow This was a 1943 4 seater like todays jeeps but... I also had to learn to double clutch. A drivers licence was not needed if driving on the dirt service roads so I was in heaven. The Mojave was a nice place to grow up when you had wheels :-)
Happy Thanksgiving Jonathan and family and Noah. You're the BEST of the BEST. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge and enthusiasm. From a devoted Yankee in New York.
When I was a kid (sixtys) my grandfather would buy 3-4 surplus Jeeps packed on pallets and when his shop was slow he and his mechanics would assemble them, paint and sell them. It kept his guys busy, it killed him to lay guys off. These jeeps bring back a lit of memories. When my dad wasn't there my grandfather showed me how to drive the plow jeep, I'm sure I sucked but he knew how to make a kid happy, let him drive something and stay dirty. I'm still at it!
I had a 63 truck back in the mid 70s had the original Tornado 230 ohc 6 hemi. Put it thru hell back when they were building Jordan and Falls lakes. Would go out behind the bull dozers after a rain looking for stuff. Both lakes had R/R track running thru them. When they stripped the rails and ties off would drive down the track bed. Most of the tressels were still there. Was lots of fun. Ran into like minded individuals doing the same late at night
Jonathan, the '53 tailgate with the "W O" (Willys Overland) stamped into it is of value depending on condition. '53 may have been the last year Willys put them on the pickups. You can buy new tailgates all day long for the pickups, but not with the "W O". The "W O" itself and the entire tailgate may still be manufactured in Brazil. I found a company there years ago that sold them, but getting them to the US was expensive plus you had to be able to translate Portuguese, lol. One time several years back a WO tailgate got bid up to nearly $900 on EBay. It was in very nice, original condition. I snagged one off Craigslist from a guy outside Denver for $200. Lucky catch, as I found out later he had a bunch of calls from people wanting it before he took the ad down. He was honest enough to sell it to me for the original price advertised. Enjoy your '55 diesel Chevy truck rat rod series. Lots of fun to watch.
I had a 49 Willis overland in the early eighties. 34mph was crusin speed, 38mph was was pushing the motor bad. You could put in in neutral on level ground and three men had a hard time pushing it. I took the back seats out, put in an army cot, used it to hunt in. It would go anywhere!
Hey Jonathan! Man that 0l' '53 Model is the one you want to fix up. If that old 4 cylinder will turn over I'd fix that one. We had one with that 4 cylinder in it.....you talk about Torque it would pull anything. We also had an '46 model Army Jeep that was an Billy Goat up the side of those Arkansas Mountains back home....memories again. Thanks.
Nice find, looks like fun. Its a toss-up between the 53 and the 62: The 53 has some of the hard parts to find. The bed, tailgate and rear fenders are about the hardest parts to find in good shape as folks beat them pretty bad. Your parts truck has the wiper upgrade which is nice because the vacuum wipers don't work well. The 62 may have the upgraded steering too, which is a bonus.
Everyone has a Willys story. My great uncle had an ESSO (now EXXON) gas station and repair shop back in the '50s and ''60s. He drove a Willys station wagon that was 2 wheel drive. I was just a kid so I didn't understand if it was built that way or if there was a problem with the front axle or transfer case and he just ran the rear drive. I always thought it was a cool vehicle.
If I had the money I would grab 1 from you. Sure could use something to get around with& do stuff for my Uncle. Would make a good farm welding rig...a 25 gallon compressor &a 250 Miller Bobcat... Nice save Jon!!!! Aloha
Great find! Maybe go in first with pickup, I use my motorcycles, and see what you need? Could be, take the trailer w skid steer and bring everything out in 2 loads? Hindsight being 20/20,,,Great job!
Have you thought about puting redirect pulleys on the sides of your truck tray? They would be handy when you are trying to load a vehicle which is not directly behind your truck or the wheels are locked sideways so you could drag the vehicle straight. You would only need one pulley on a rod & a reinforced hole on either side of the tray so you could life the pulley out & store it in a locker on the tray whenI not required. By the way, I am Australian which is why I refer to what you call a truck bed (I think) or flat bed as a tray.
I had a Willys panel wagon with a ford v8 flat head engine in it. Boy that that was a fun truck, don't remember the year. It would pull real well in the sugar sand we have Florida.
In the early 70s in Colorado putting a Buick v6 in them was popular or 289 like my dad and I did because he got tired of towing it when we went elk hunting.
You can ALWAYS get yourself into a tight spot. keep an eye out for my 54 Pontiac I think you just might be my best chance of getting one old beater. FINS UP 👍 👍
I had a 57 Wagon. Put it on a 2wd S10 frame...yes i know but i sold the 4wd running gear for more than i paid for the entire wagon. I put a 455 olds in it. Man that thing was scary fast.
My dad had an old 47 willys Jeep, we took the 4 CYl out and put a 289 out of a mustang in it. Used original 3 speed tans and transfer case, added a warn overdrive.
The 4 cylinder motor is called and L4,134. Look at the front grill on the 50s model has5 cross pc where as the newer ones have 3. The transmission is called a T90. If you're going to swap motors don't go larger than a v6.
I wish I had have kept my 46 Willy's jeep, but it was very slow and I kind of got tired of it after I went to all the trouble and expense to get it up in good condition,,
Hey I don't think that I ever noticed the old jeeps with a one piece windshield so is that because its a willys or did jeep do that as well ! I had a mid 50's that some one had put a 327 in and it was fun it just was all slow going ......
What are the procedure to salvage , take a car that has been abandoned? Do need to find the owner, get approval from the police? Or you just go and get?
..... Some may 'gasp' at this comment, but I have seen a guy who makes very cool looking 'park benches' from old assorted makes of truck tailgates ... You'd have to figure out the seat and legs. But using the tailgate as the backrest, makes for a great patio or man-cave item ... They can go for several hundred bucks.....
titles would be easy to get as long as it has the serial plate and it is not stolen and you have a trusted friend in the states that just require a notorized bill of sale and a pencil etching of serial numbers. have gotten two this way so far for a 59 Nash Rambler and 54 GMC truck that i built
so if you got a title say from tennessee they would not accept it without old registration papers also? mine came with new registration papers and have a clean title in my name also
+james p As long as it was a title from another state it would fly, but if the vehicle is over 35 years old it will have to be inspected by DMV.., so it had better be on the original frame. If the title matches the body but not the frame, your screwed. If I was to buy one from SC or GA, which are non title states for old cars, just a bill of sell won't fly, you would need a registration, or a copy from that states DMV, proving it was actually registered in that state. If anything is not perfect then you have to bond the car for 1-1/2 times its value and have receipts for every part of the car (if you built it) it has to be inspected and if it is road ready you get a bonded title and it will be 3 years before you get a good title. If it is not driving condition you get a non operational title then must have it inspected again when operational. But you are stuck with the vehicle for 3 years either way . A good NC title is like gold, but it still does not mean it don't have to be inspected. I had a 1940 Ford with a "Motor Number" instead of a "serial number" and it was a NC title, so it had to be inspected.
I had a 57 Jeep Willys pickup. With a super Hurricane 6 cylinder in her. I kick my self for getting rid of her. The lock outside was 2 Thin bars you spun half around 2 on each side..
Mi papá vive en Bristol Virginia yo estoy en México quisiera el conseguir una Willys 1948 cuando era joven el aquí en México tenía una Willys pero la tuvo que vender ahora 30 años después queremos una
Oh, but those were great big game hunters. The Jeeps attacked them and they had to defend themselves.....mental midget misfits that go around shooting at signs and everything else they see.