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Willys Wagon

From those photos and what I see people asking for wagons these days, that is a very good deal even if you have to replace some sheet metal.
 
The pics are not great, but I think there is some good value there. I see a lot of wagons that seem in similar condition for $4-5k....so if you are up for the work, it's probably a good deal. But it's gonna need some going through before it's road worthy.
 
From what I see the body is in better condition than mine was, so I too think it's a pretty good deal.
 
Now if we can just get that serial number which might be on top of the frame like the CJ's. I know mine is.
 
Well…

I went, I saw, and I walked away. The frame was in very nice shape. From the front bumper to the back side of the doors, the body was pretty decent. From there back, it needed a bunch of sheet metal work. The interior was gone, the master cylinder missing, and the tailgate was pretty rotten.

My hope was to get something that could be road-worthy without *too* much money and labor. This wasn’t it. I thought it would be a fun machine to bomb around in with the body in its current condition. ☹️ I already have the ‘72 CJ5 project, so don’t need another basket case.

The adapter between the bell housing and transmission looked to be home-made; welded up of 3/8” plate. Both differentials were pretty sloppy.

It was likely worth $1800 but not to me.

We found the data plate in the driver’s door opening. I realized when halfway home that I didn’t write anything down or get a picture; I hereby apologize to one and all for that failure.

Jon
 
Not that it matters now, but my best guess is that its a ‘54 or ‘55 model year. The speedo is not original, but the chrome surround is the “Deco” style used for a few years before the large speedo that came out in ‘57 when they went to 12 volts. The ‘56 had a different pattern of horizontal grill bars.
I have a ‘57 Wagon with a 289 and it is a lot more lively than the original 226 flathead. Rear quarter sheetmetal is available, but are a fair amount of work to graft in. Often, rust is found in the gutters which is very difficult to repair properly.
Overall, that sounded like a fair price.
-Donny
 
I bought it! Way less than the original $1800 he was asking.

The serial number tag reads:
453-FA2 12047

It’s in better condition than I first thought. The body and frame are in really decent shape. Roof is perfect (Glenn, I think, cautioned me about the gutters). Floors are sound, doors are nearly perfect. The rear hatch and tailgate need work but…

All in all, I’m pleased.

Jon B.
‘72 CJ5 and a fifty-something Willys wagon
 
Well then, it's a '53. Cool that you bought it. What made you reconsider it?
 
It was posted on Craigslist for six weeks, with the asking price lowered to $1400. I’ve had it in my mind since first seeing it, so I decided to take another look.

There’s no title but I have a bill of sale. The agreed figure was $1000 even. The hood, fenders and such are rock solid. The roof is pristine. I crawled under it and saw loose, scaling bits on the floorboards. It turned out to be undercoating, with shiny black paint under it.

The interior is trashed but that’s minor, in my opinion. There’s rust right in front of the rear wheels but the rest is darn nice. I’m tickled.

Thanks for the info on the year of manufacture. It’s older than we thought. I looked for the hole in the radiator support that you mentioned but the whole thing was removed with the engine transplant, I guess.

Jon B.
 
Great deal! Some other common rust areas to check are the two floor supports/outriggers (on each side) under the front floor. The forward one is up near the hinge post, the other is under the front seats. There is also an inner rocker structure that ties the two outriggers together. Any or all of these supports are commonly rusted out. These outriggers serve a similar function as hat channels in our CJs.
Another common rust area is the upper most part of the rear wheel opening. The inner wheel well tub has a closing panel that extends down to the outer fender lip. This forms a narrow cavity under the outer body skin that never got any primer/paint, and to make matters worse, dirt collects in this cavity.
Your lower tailgate by the hinge looks to be in remarkable condition, rust-wise.
A way you may determine what engine your Wagon has is to pull a valve cover. There should be either 289 or 302 cast in the head between valve springs. It could even be an earlier 260, but those are fairly uncommon.
Great project!-Donny
 
I got it home! Now to unload it - on Saturday. No brakes, so it could be exciting. My brother-in-law has my tractor, so some redneck engineering may be necessary.

I’ll post some pics in a day or three.

Jon B
 
Test message…

Jon B.

Hmmm… Signature isn’t appearing.
 
My ‘57 Wagon with a 289 has that same CB antenna mount, in the exact same location (upper left rear corner).
Your hood might be from a ‘50 or ‘51 because there are are no holes for the stainless trim on the lower edge. You can see the holes on the cowl for the short stainless. Your grill has only 3 trim bars which is a ‘54-up feature. ‘53 and earlier had 5 bars. If holes aren’t present for the two other bars, your Wagon has likely had sheetmetal swapped around, but this Jeep is nearly 70 years old!
-Donny
 
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