New member, 1961 4x4 wagon.

germain

germain

Precision Fit
Nov 30, 2009
588
Bartonville, TX
First Name
Gary
Willys Model
  1. Wagon
Willys Year:
  1. 1961
Hi all;
I'm new to posting in forums, so please excuse my technical errors.
My wagon is 98% complete, driven to work every couple weeks and on errands weekends. The body is mostly stock but with custom bumpers I fabricated. It's painted in original paint scheme colors of teal and off white from the Willys PPG chart. http://www.4wd.com/productdetails.aspx? ... artID=4959 is where you can access a photo until I can figure out how to attach others..Copy and paste...look at view below pic of tire.
Details are; drivetrain; 1999 5.7L Chevy, 4L80E with 4x4 tailshaft to a Dana 300 transfer case, Tom Woods drive shafts, Dana 44 axles, 3:73 gears, open diffs., 4 wheel disc brakes, 15x10 American wheels, Procomp 33x12.50 Mud terrains. All mounted on a coil spring suspension, copied from my 1999 TJ, using a Skyjacker 4" lift kit and factory and self fabricated brackets. Rubicon Express brackets were also used, and power steering added.
Body/interior; 4 TJ bucket seats, Tuffy security console, VDO gages, Vintage air/heat, Pioneer audio, Camaro steering column, Aerostar floor shifter for trans., electric w/s wipers.
I'll work on posting photos and hopefully be helpful with some of the solutions I came up with for build issues I ran into. I like them stock, 2WD, 4X4, and resto mod.
Gary
 
Figured out one photo, more to come. This took 4 1/2 years and some cash. Later, Gary.
 

Attachments

  • willys resize.jpg
    willys resize.jpg
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Glad you are up and running on the forum Germain...

Nice job on your wagon.

Pete
 
Thanks all for the welcome, posted the before pic of the arrival in my alley when my wife said "that's not an Austin Healey".
Deconstruction-reconstruction photos this weekend. All mine are in tiff format and large files, and it takes me a while to convert them.
Gary
 
More pictures please....undercarriage and running gear....Super looking ride and a beautiful color combo....more pic's please.
 
Don't tell me you, or should I say your better half, likes Austin Healeys too! I still suffer from the Brit car disease...
 
Posted the 20 pic limit the gallery let me. Some show the front suspension, pass. side. How do I delete pics from the album? I put some in that are of Willys I have seen in my travels and at car shows. If I take them out I can post some of the undercarriage and front and rear suspension.
I wanted the ride of a TJ and was originally going to buy a rollover, strip off the body, stretch the wheelbase, and put the wagon body on it. There is a Jeep parts/vehicle seller that buys all the insurance wrecks in this area, so I went with plan B. Rubicon Express had, may still have, bracket kits for the TJ axles (so some guys can put Dana 60's) on their TJ's. Now there are several companies that sell frt/rear D44 axles with the brackets already on there. All you need is the frame connections. For the rear the Jeep dealer can sell the upper spring mount and the control arm frame mounts. By measuring the factory control arm angles, adjustments can be made by fabricating bracket extensions for the arm brackets. I would use a long arm kit if I were building this vehicle today. Those kits, I believe, have a single bracket that both front and rear arms mount to. For the front spring I used a 4"x4" square tube with a plate on one end, bolted/welded to the frame with a smaller square tube next to it for the shock mount. Recent Ford or Dodge trucks have coil over shocks on the front, and using one of their mount setups would work also. Just make sure you measure the angles that the suspension part is set to by factory design, that's how it will work best when mounted on your vehicle.
Engine mounts are Advance Adapters and the trans mount is stock bolted to a 2"x4" crossmember I made. If I can add photos I will shoot some this weekend, it is 35 degrees in my shop and my heaters are not that good so working out there is a stretch. I can't seem to want to spend good parts money on insulation.
My wife was not too disappointed with the wagon (instead of a Healey) when I consulted her and our daughter on the color scheme. Matching the interior with the exterior made a big difference, and actually finishing the project helped tremendously. She admitted that with her families history of not completing projects, she expected that I would work it for a while and then sell it unfinished. I have been driving it for 5 years now.
Any of you have any preference for, or experience with, power window kits?

Gary
 
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