Wednesday,
February
21st,
2024
~ Sent to us by Chris Barth
This Jeep was owned by a family friend that lived next to our hunting cabin. He bought it around 1970. I was able to drive it as a teenager while helping to cut firewood. I bought it from him in 1996. It had some rust issues and needed mechanical attention. The last state inspection was in 1980. I started to slowly address the issues starting with the suspension, there were several broken springs.
Over next few years I rebuilt the trans and transfer case. In 2010 I rebuilt the F134. Note the speedometer had not worked in years so only 19k miles. It was only used for firewood and plowing snow while owned by our friend. I used it to slow snow and drive around my property for a few years. I needed to address the body to make it road worthy again. I decided to buy a new tub, windshield frame and tailgate. I good friend was able to get the fenders, good, and grille in good shape for painting. It was painted in 2017.
It sat for a few years until 2022 when I was able to find the extra time and money to make the final push to complete the restoration. In 2023 on the Sunday of the Bantam Jeep festival I finally got it running. I had been pushing to make the festival but I was fighting an ignition wiring issue. This summer we finally enjoyed several car shows and lots of trips to get ice cream. I’ve kept it mostly stock but after driving for a while I think disc brake and 12v conversions are on my list. Still have a few kinks to work out but it’s been so fun to finally enjoy it after years of restoration.
- Chris Barth Kaiser Willys Jeep Blog Story – If you would like to share your Willys Jeep Story please send us a line. We’d love to meet your Jeep.
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