Features 1937 to 1942 Willys Picture Thread

"MGM..C&O Hydro" ..Irwindale 1966.

 

love this thread- keep it coming guys!

 

My husband and i haven't seen jim or the handshaker for awhile. Sure hope he can make Beaver Springs.

 

Hi Wanda. Yes its me. I just worked out how to put pic's on here. I will add some more of Willys down here in Aussie.

 

HEY Trouble.
It is rumoured that down here cats have been used to be made in to Dim Sims.
Tast nice deep fried lol.
Here is a fair dinkum true story. Last Thursday when i got home from work at lunch time i went to check my flamed mail box. When i lifted the lid there was a live full grown black rabbit in it. It sure did frighten the crap out of me lol.

 

anyone got more pics of that goldenrod willys sedan??

 

This is my Gasser project that i have been working on for a few years now.
I know it is only Fibreglass but that is all i could afford to buy as Steel Willys Coupe bodys down here are as rare as hens teeth.
This glass body i got in from New Zealand and is pretty crappy as i have lots that need fixing up.
When it is finished it will be running a 354 Hemi and Ford Toploader and 9inch diff.
I am building it as a street driven car as i just love going cruzin.

 

Awww whyyyyyy????

 

Old coupes

 

Vintage Willys

 

Well this is an interesting one. This came up when a steel 1941 coupe with blown 392 was being readied for the 2009 GNRS and the builder - John West at Dan Fink Metalworks - needed a windshield garnish molding for it. A 1937-40 garnish molding was procured from the former Don Waldron Rods West collection and it was too tall by almost 1", so either it needed to be cut or a 1941 garnish molding needed to be sourced. A genuine 1941 garnish molding off a 1941 coupe was located and it fit perfectly. It is the one on the car today. I have long held the view that the 1941-42 coupes have a visually shorter windshield, which is why I prefer the earlier bodies with the top mounted wipers. I seem to recall Mike Nordahl saying something to this effect as well. Whether it is the top of the roof that changed or the cowl section was raised up is also something I have not researched but when I get the chance, I will check into it with a tape measure in hand.

There are so many anomalies in the Willys world that my rule of thumb has to be that there are no absolutes. For example how many of you know that very early 1940 Model 440s had the two round gauges instead of the rectangular cluster? My current coupe originally had round gauge holes, but I decided to go with the rectangular gauge cluster since I had a mint one and did not have the 1939 style gauges. Had the original VIN been missing, it would be easy to say that this was a 1939 body with a 1940 front clip. There was also an early 1940 truck on evilBay that had the round gauge dash a while back.

 

Merril Frost Willys

 

W

Weasel'
I still stand by my original position, but you are right on when you say Willys had some anomolies. I have seen pictures of Waldon's stuff, and unless the mouldings were taken off a 37-40 on the spot, they could have been in with a batch of mouldings and actually come from a 41-42...quite possible! I talk with Nordahl every couple of months, I'll try to remember to ask him...you get that tape measure going also...now I am curious. I had at one time a front and rear window moulding out of a 37 sedan that was one piece, no separation or clips, so the wierd stuff is out there. As far as dash gauges that's all over the map also...those two Canadian brothers (white '39 4dr & blue 2dr sedans) had two different dash gauge panels as well. I sold a '39 coupe with the rectangular panel like the 40, but have seen the round ones in a '39. My white coupe is a hybred (pictured behind the blue 41 Stocker on pic. #684, this thread) 38 body-39 nose and rear fenders, it has the round gauges, and double glove box. By the way, that 41 has a 1 inch larger windschield (car belongs to a local friend). Lastly, in the picture just above your post, there are 3 coupes with the yellow one being a 41...those windschields look identical to me. At any rate, it's fun to try and figure out what was going on at Willys/Overland Toledo back in the day. Remind me to tell you some time why a lot of tail light lenses (coupe & 37-40 sdn's) never made it to the junk yards over the years, according to a very old Willys mechanic (now deceased).
G-willys

 

My '40 pickup has a round gauge dash also.

 

My 40 Willys coupe all steel. #001 Driving south down the Jersey turnpike going to the Street Rod Nats East in Timmonium MD 74 had American 200 S' on it. 002, 003 first time out in 73 had Astro wheels on it then.

Pat

 

My buddy Scotts Coupe

 

Great traps shot

 

Great wheels up pic

 

Edgewater Drag Strip

 

One of my favorites, local street rod today.

 

Swc

 

Before and after......

 

Before and after. Gary Mintz, Canada.......

 

Before and after. Some nice survivors were sacrificed in the 80's/90's. The after version was state of the art at the time. Before version sure was sweet!