I purchased my 1949 CJ2A from a newspaper ad in 1989. I am a little surprised that I am still driving it 27 years later but once the Jeep juices get in your system, they never leave. Shortly after purchasing it, it started smoking badly. A friend and I overhauled the motor. At the machine shop, they discovered a crack in the block down the third cylinder wall. A metal instructor at the local tech college repaired the crack and we have not have the motor open since. The restoration began in 1997. I had never taken on a project like this before, but I figured if man built this vehicle, I should be able to rebuild it. Whenever I would get stumped, I would think “if it mechanical, it has to be logical” and proceed to figure out why something worked the way it did. Modern technology has nothing on the men who figured out how to build motors, transmissions, transfer cases, etc. with nothing but a pad of paper and an idea!
My 2A is unique and gets a lot of attention at Willys gatherings from both the 2A and 3A crowds. It was titled a 1949 but the serial number tag places it in the 1948 range, although I have been told many times that these tags were not put on vehicles in any certain order. Most “experts” tell me that my Jeep was manufactured near the end of the 2A run. It is mostly 2A but I have a 3A frame, three 2A springs and one 3A spring, a 3A right front fender (with the early 3A “bubble” for the battery tray) and a 3A air cleaner. I have several “options” that include a passenger side heater, a steering arm shock absorber, a rain trough under the hood hinge, and a trailer hitch. My goal in the restoration was to recreate the Jeep as closed to when it came from the factory as possible. My restoration was completed while we lived in Minnesota under the watchful eye of Louis Larsen who owned Willys Minneapolis. Since moving to Ohio I have added a rear seat, correct parking lights, and other mechanical fixes from Kaiser Willys. I drive my Jeep often and have taken it to Toledo for the Jeep employees car show a few times. I drive it often and always let kids climb up in the seat to beep the horn in the Jeep!
Kaiser Willys Jeep Blog Story – Bruce Linafelter
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She’s a Beauty Kid! I opted to buy a new body. Glad you kept your’s original! A very nice job indeed! Hope it gives you many years of enjoyment!
She’s a Beauty Kid! I opted to buy a new body. Glad you kept your’s original! A very nice job indeed! Hope it gives you many years of enjoyment!
I have a M38A1 that I drove in the local July 4th parade with a Navy Captain and former nuclear sub commander He was astounded with the utility and functionality of my 62 year old vehicle. He owns a tricked out 2016 Jeep–probably 300 horsepower. Willys jeeps are amazingly simple and durable machines. I think the USMC is bringing back something similar. Humvees are expensive and difficult to maintain. Soldiers don’t bond with them like us old guys. My first one was a M151 in 1969 as a Lieutenant in Vietnam. Nice but not a Willys. We’ll see how many Hummers are around in 50 years.
I have a M38A1 that I drove in the local July 4th parade with a Navy Captain and former nuclear sub commander He was astounded with the utility and functionality of my 62 year old vehicle. He owns a tricked out 2016 Jeep–probably 300 horsepower. Willys jeeps are amazingly simple and durable machines. I think the USMC is bringing back something similar. Humvees are expensive and difficult to maintain. Soldiers don’t bond with them like us old guys. My first one was a M151 in 1969 as a Lieutenant in Vietnam. Nice but not a Willys. We’ll see how many Hummers are around in 50 years.
Very nice, I am going through the same process right now so I understand how much work and patience you have put into your beautiful Willys . Thank you for sharing it with us .
Very nice, I am going through the same process right now so I understand how much work and patience you have put into your beautiful Willys . Thank you for sharing it with us .
what is body color used and also for wheels and for wheel pinstripes ?
I have a 1950 CJ3A looking to paint like factory dark green with cream yellow wheels with cinnamon red wheel pin stripes. Not finding these 1950 jeep orig paint colors so maybe your 1949 is same
what is body color used and also for wheels and for wheel pinstripes ?
I have a 1950 CJ3A looking to paint like factory dark green with cream yellow wheels with cinnamon red wheel pin stripes. Not finding these 1950 jeep orig paint colors so maybe your 1949 is same
Gregory:
I cannot remember for sure but I think the body color was Forest Green and is a late 2A and 3A color. Early 2As had a lighter green color. I actually got the color from the underside of the tool box cover but have been to several shows where there were Jeeps that matched my color. The wheel color was taken from an actual wheel and is correct for this tub color. I was told that the rings should be painted tub color. I had that done last year after this picture was taken. Send me an email and I will send more recent photos if you want.
Gregory:
I cannot remember for sure but I think the body color was Forest Green and is a late 2A and 3A color. Early 2As had a lighter green color. I actually got the color from the underside of the tool box cover but have been to several shows where there were Jeeps that matched my color. The wheel color was taken from an actual wheel and is correct for this tub color. I was told that the rings should be painted tub color. I had that done last year after this picture was taken. Send me an email and I will send more recent photos if you want.