Vehicle Description
1947 Willys CJ2A #4338
The Willys CJ2A, the first mass-produced Jeep intended for the
civilian market, began production on July 17, 1945. Most people
know that civilian Jeeps evolved from the model MB of World War Two
fame, but few realize that the CJ2A had two civilian ancestors: The
CJ-1 and the CJ-2. By 1944, the Allies were confident the war would
be won. This allowed Willys to consider designing a Jeep for the
post-war civilian market. Documentation is hard to come by, but it
seems that a CJ-1 (for "Civilian Jeep-1") was running by May of
that year. The CJ-1 was apparently an MB that had been modified by
adding a tailgate, drawbar, and a civilian-style canvas top. None
of the CJ-1s built have survived, and it is not known (at this
writing) how many were built.
For consignment a far cry from the original CJ2, we now give you a
rip roarin' lengthened, powerful engined, dune digger that has
radical updated looks, plenty of customizations and it is no longer
your typical Civilian Jeep 2A, but plenty more! Read on...
Exterior
The original body shell from the firewall back has been retained
and is olive drab painted steel. Now sans any fenders the wheelbase
has been extended lengthwise and widthwise using 30x10R15's up
front and 35x12.5R17's on back all with knobby mud digger sand
slinger treads. The power plant compartment has been opened up to
accommodate the engine, and up front the original 7 opening grille,
flush mounted round headlights are retained also presenting pin
olive drab. A fold down windshield is up front which is typical of
the original CJ's, no doors no roof and a small rear deck has been
fashioned from simple touch cut pallet wood. On this rear deck sits
a fuel tank that looks like an old bomb made from spun aluminum.
Neato STOP tail lights bring up the rear, and now we are ready to
go sloppin' and diggin'.
Interior
Utilitarian army chic would best describe this rough and tumble
interior with bomber style seats for driver and passenger have a
cushion made of black padded vinyl and an army star painted on
their curved backs. These chairs sit on another rough wood deck
that floats above the black texture trunk paint floor. The straight
all steel dash has been upgraded with some modern instrumentation
to keep track of the vitals which are sitting right in front of the
passengers. Fronting this dash is a HAUK rally style steering
wheel. Interesting use of an ammo box for the center console
storage, and a B&M shifter sits proudly in front of the ammo
box. This all comes together to create the Army look, somewhat
retaining the original interior but now with style.
Drivetrain
A beautifully done 350ci V8 now sits in the open air engine
compartment and it is circa 1970-76. It has a 4 barrel carb atop
and an air scoop is topping that. Adding to the menacing look are
wrapped headers that snake their way into large side pipes, and
entering passengers are protected from these by a small step. Also
seen on the back of this mill is a TH350 3-speed automatic
transmission which pushes power rearward to a Ford 9 inch rear. The
overall engine retains the original cast metal look, right up top
the electric fan which is spinning behind an aluminum radiator.
Undercarriage
Underneath is pristine with no rust and fully restored. In front is
a transverse leaf sprung setup which all the world can view as this
CJ has gone naked sans fenders. In back are more transverse leaf
springs. Stopping this digger are disc braking upfront, and drums
on back. This undercarriage literally looks like new with all
surfaces coated either with black undercoating or the textured
trunk paint.
Drive-ability
"GI is really grand , marching through the mud and sand, sound off
one two, one two three four", and it's off to the test track. Here
all was working perfectly with plenty of noise, power and good
braking. Our test track does not have any dunes or mud bogs so we
were not able to get a little mud on the tires which made our
detail man very happy! All is right with this modded CJ.
Hi Ho lock and load, hear the engines loud and bold. A custom 1947
CJ2A the runs like an infantryman on a mission, great build and it
retains just enough of the original CJ to make it believable,
hoverer performance is unbelievable and is definitely an eye
catcher. Ten-HUT!
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.
