Now this is what a Jeep CJ should look like! None of this soft comfort, big tires and sky-high ride heights! Okay, perhaps that’s a bit harsh, but I do love the vintage appearance of this 1946 Willys CJ2A listed for sale here on craigslist. Thanks to frequent finder Ikey H. for this rough and tumble find! It’s located in Yonkers, New York and the asking price is $10,500.
The seller tells us that the Jeep was used 35,000 miles on a farm and had a single owner from new until this year! Included with the CJ2A are the original bill of sale and a 3-inch thick binder of every service ever done to it. How many finds can you say that about?
Please, please, if you buy this piece of history leave it alone and don’t restore it! Assuming that this is the original color, as best as I can tell from this chart it is Lochinvar Green (I was wrong, it’s Pasture Green as you corrected me!) If any of you know any different information, please chime in.
The underside of the Jeep looks even better than the top. We’re also told that it has solid floors, some of which you can see in a subsequent picture.
Not exactly filled with creature comforts, is it? One of those levers is for the original Power Take Off (PTO) setup; after World War II one of the marketing ideas for selling Jeeps was to sell them to farmers as an all-purpose vehicle and many were fitting with PTOs.
This is said to be the original 134 cubic-inch “Go Devil” four-cylinder engine as fitted to wartime Jeeps and all civilian CJs until 1950. Known for its reliability, the Go Devil only made 60 horsepower but made up for it with 105 lb-ft of torque. What do you think of this vintage find and the documentation that goes with it? Any of you have experience with this generation of Jeep?
Indeed we do. We have a customer’s ’48 here at the shop. The Go-Devil is nearly bomb-proof.
An original post war jem!! Doesn’t look like it’s ever been modified and there’s nothing missing under the hood! I know from experience that the top speed is about 45 mph but there’s no where it won’t go!!
I would think finding a ’46 Willys in apparently very good original condition has to be rare. Sure looks like a fun rig though with a low top speed it has limited use except for tooling around town or to continue life on a farm as intended. I suppose you could turn it into a WWII military Jeep if you have a spare 50cal machine gun laying around. Love to have it but it wouldn’t see much use on my 1/2 acre city plot.
LOVE it! <3
It is RARE to find a vintage Jeep like this that hasn't either been driven to death, OR cut up & (horribly) modified, OR has become an unfortunate victim of the "tin worm".
I hope whoever buys this gem takes equally good care of it & resists the temptation to change it in ANY way from its original form. :-)
In this era of hi tech machinery, its astounding how capable these Jeeps are for an 85 year old design. I drove a box stock 66 CJ-6 up the side of Mt Antero last summer, and even the rockcrawlers were impressed at what can be done without 40k worth of accessories…
If it had only one owner since new, then that means you will be buying it from the original owner. He must be one old dude.
Not the typical vehicle you expect to find in Yonkers, NY. Wish I was in the market for a Jeep, this would be just too nice not to pursue.
I doubt the one owner claim, unless it was owned by the farm itself and not the farmer. With that thought in mind, it is still a really cool little Jeep.
I had the opportunity to drive one of these for a bit. Not comfy, not dignified, no where near fast, and sometimes kinda scary. I loved it lol!
I sold my 47 when I got so fat I couldn’t fit in it. I don’t doubt the one owner.
but probably one family and title never switched. Having said that, the owner could be 93 or 95 or whatever. I’d buy this if I could fit in it. I know, I know, get a smaller steering wheel. LOL
I bought two one-owner cars, both all original, low mileage examples from 90 year-olds. One, my ’72 Galaxie 500, I bought 25 years ago. The other, a ’64 Fairlane 500, I’ve only had for a year. It was a real treat to talk to the ancient original owners; they had some great stories to tell about their cars. It’s really not unusual for people to hit 90 these days. Just ask my mom, she’s turning 93 in a couple of weeks.
My brother and I had one. We converted it to 12 volt to install a stereo. The starter was the only thing that was still 5 volts. We kept burning it out and the only place in greater Vancouver that had a rebuilt one wouldn’t sell it unless you handed them the core at the same time. My brother could re and re the starter in 20 minutes. We did it about every 6 months. That Jeep could go anywhere, just not very fast.
Surely a 6 volt starter would cope with a 12 volt system?
Would love to mop some olive drab on it and use for a ww2 display. Good luck to the new owner!
Cheers
GPC
Wow! Must be the last one-owner ’46 Willys left (until this flipper got it). Super cool rig that would be fun to drive. I had a ’51 CJ3A for about 15 years but it was never in good enough shape to drive much. It now belongs to Jeep guru and journalist Rick Pewe.
I see slight paint over spray under the hood at the tags and adjacent bracket, so it may not be original paint, not necessarily a bad thing.
What is nice is that it is an early Jeep that’s so unmolested after all these years, nor does it look as though it was abused.
I’d love to have it but I’d get run off the road where I live due to it’s slow top speed.
It is a beauty to me, simple, but so much a Jeep.
had a 48 for a few years amazing vehicle top speed about 50, low gear low range about 2 mph but I used mine to pul arund bir tractors at my shop and hunting in pa woods was great for both never really needed an actual road or even a trail for that matter
My 46 has been converted to 12 v. Original starter works fine. I’ve had it since 1980. Totally rebuilt in 1990. All matching numbers. This particular CJ2A is in pretty decent shape, and at the high end of market price. I hope that whoever buys it keeps it as is. Parts are cheap and plentiful.
we had a ’48 pickup. TimM is right about the 45mph. When I was getting towed I hit 55mph and it scared the s*** out of me.
Jamie, that is Pasture Green. And I believe the 134L head engine was available through ’53 on the 3A, and then they used the 134 F head up through ’71 on the CJ5. This looks like a terrific stock jeep and I hope the buyer will keep it as original as possible. Thanks for the write up.
Thanks for the clarification, Tom — I’ll change the article to reflect that.
My dad had a ’42 army reconnaissance willy’s. We used it to drive up old stone quarry roads and trails in northeast Pa. When my dad started it, all the neighbor kids would come running for a ride. It would go anywhere and we had chains on it. Always hard to start with 6 volt battery. Ended up selling it to a guy with a private airport near Albany in the 90’s.
Original windshield frame was black.
Working on a ’51 Jeep Utility Wagon, w/ the F-Head 134 motor. These vehicles are pretty solid chunks and you wonder how they can shove themselves along with 70 or so HP, but they do.
I wanted one of these when I was a teen. You could buy WW II surplus Jeeps at the time.
I can see a speed govenor and a PTO shaft poking out of the back of the chassis so this is a very desirable vehicle never seen one with all of this here in Australia although Landrover did similiar in the late 40’s and onward, although I’m a concerned about the heavy piece of steel welded to the chassis near the front spring hanger
Looks like that plate may have been a mounting plate for a plow or tow bar of some sort. The frame looks very solid so I don’t think I’d be too concerned.
Drove one around in Indonesia for years. Loved every minute owning it. I agree leave it alone as it is it’s a gem!
I have a 48 with a 12 volt alternator, 6 volt starter. Works fine, just don’t crank it too long. When it doesn’t start, usually fuel problems. It’s pretty original other than that. Had it about 8 years. Also a 57 CJ3B but it has a Buick V6, overdrive, and disc brake conversion on front.
I have a 52 F6 cab “forward” with the flathead V8, also 12 with a 6 v starter. Again, works fine, just don’t keep cranking too long.
Mas manly. Looks like its in upstate New York. Makes sense.