Chris Moyer
All original parts except the engine which was replaced when the original block cracked. Replaced with a rebuilt Kaiser “Supersonic” engine.
Our CJ-2A. The history of our 1946 CJ-2A began in 1954 when I was a freshman in high school (60 years ago!). Our family had just built a cottage in Michigan and we thought it would be fun to have a Jeep with which to run around in the woods. I was assigned the task of watching the Classifieds and sure enough, one showed up for $175, only 8 years old, and even had a full canvas top. It was solid, but I had to take it through a series of painful paint jobs, from brushed on tractor paint to 1956 Ford Spring Mist green. Obviously, I wasn’t concerned with authenticity, and it wasn’t until 50 years later that I decided to give it a ground up restoration with the correct Harvest Tan color. The spare tire is even one of the original tires. It is still at the cottage, running like a top, and supplying lots of memories of driving through flooded viaducts in high school, to dates at the drive-in, to running across the dunes of Michigan. It has proudly rolled down Main Street in 4th of July parades, has towed boats back and forth to the launch ramp each spring and fall, and has given many a child a thrill ride through the woods at night. Since I learned how to drive in it, when it came time to take my driver’s test, it was the car of choice. Illinois had a part of the driving test when the examiner would all of a sudden ask you to stop quickly (I don’t know if it was a brake test or a reaction test). I had the windshield down, so I knew when he was about to call for the stop: with nothing to hang onto, he put his foot up on the dash and scrunched down in the seat! There are a few spots of oil on the floor, and the carb would probably like a good cleaning, but being seven years older than I am, we are both still kicking and always ready to take a spin in the woods together. Talk about a family member!
Chris Moyer
Be the first one to comment!