1949 Willys VJ Jeepster: Jeep Goes to Hollywood
When Americans returned to war, Willys went back to the drawing board and came up a Hollywood-worthy vehicle for a new audience.
After World War II, Willys found itself with a perceived gap in their model lineup. In between the utilitarian CJ and the family-oriented station wagon, they had no civilian passenger car to appeal to the day’s younger demographic. Thus, they employed industrial designer Brooks Stevens and together they came up with the Willys VJ Jeepster. A rear-wheel-drive-only model, this sporty new vehicle didn’t really appeal to the traditional Willys customer. But it did capture the attention of wealthier clients and traveling salesmen. And this particular 1949 Willys VJ Jeepster, part of Omix-ADA‘s “Jeep Collection,” is also one of the nicest examples you’ll ever see.
Omix-ADA is not just a renowned maker/seller of Jeep parts, but also an important member of the Jeep community. The idea behind the Jeep Collection is to help preserve the brand’s heritage. Over time, the collection has grown to include a number of rare and otherwise significant Jeeps. As part of JK Forum‘s “Behind the Metal,” which shares the fascinating stories behind Omix-ADA’s most impressive builds, Dave Logan, the Jeep Collection’s curator, gives us the rundown on this pseudo-luxury but gorgeous Jeep.
JK Forum: What’s the backstory on this gem?
Dave Logan: Well, they only built them for a few years. The year 1948 was the first year, and 1950 was the last. Most of these came with the flathead four-cylinder.
But in late 1949 and 1950 they were offered with a flathead six-cylinder. That engine was known as the “Lightning” engine.
In 1949, it had a 148 cubic-inch displacement, and then in 1950 they bumped it up to 161.
So, what that means is if you’ve got a ’49, they only built them for about three months. And if you’ve got a ’50, they built them for a few more months.
That makes most any Willys VJ Jeepster somewhat rare, we’d imagine.
They’re not really rare, but they’re not common, either.
What was it that motivated Willys to build something so different?
Post-war, Willys, like everyone else, was trying to come up with something that would sell. They had station wagons, they had CJ-2As and 3As, and they had pickup trucks. They had a little of everything. But this was their sporty businessman’s coupe, their roadster. With the engine-turned gauges, the soft top, and the big steering wheel. This was kind of a poor man’s Hollywood celebrity vehicle.
It was quite the departure from the rest of the Willys lineup as well, wasn’t it?
It was two-wheel drive. This one also has electric overdrive, which was an added feature.
One of the unique or unusual things of this time was also the fact that all the engines had names. The original WWII Jeep had the “Go Devil” engine. Later it became the “Hurricane,” the “Super Sonic,” etcetera. The bigger vehicles had the “Vigilante.”
They really tried to market these names. Some of them just wouldn’t fly today! But in this post-war era, everybody was getting into jets. So, there were a lot of aviation references.
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