1942 Willys MB "Jeep in a Crate" | JeepsterMan

[@danielmart7940]

When i was in high school. I graduated in 1982, these were still available in magazine ads

[@Wingnut353]

In the mid 90s there was a phillipino missionary that came to our church and someone had sent them a crate jeep... a few years before. Not sure what year they actually got it though.

[@terrywolf2260]

I was stationed in Germany in 84 we still had them on our tac site they were fun to drive

[@hotroddriveintheater8788]

Grad in 82 as well, I used to comb thru the JC Whitney catalog looking at all the parts I could get for the military Jeeps.

[@Hjerte_Verke]

They weren't available unless you ordered one through the mail, C.O.D., and actually received said Willys MB or Ford GPW. What it was was an ad for government surplus with a picture of a Jeep on it to lure you in.

[@yambo59]

Same here I graduated in 77 and I remember the kits in popular mechanics, mechanix illustrated and even backs of some comic books. I also remember seeing ads for old used WWII govt. jeeps advertised for $50-!? No idea what that was about except they were just old beat up worn out Jeeps is my guess

[@RussellBond-dk6dj]

My dad bought one of these in 1965 and the old girl is still chugging around on our deer lease. We named her Nelly Bell after Roy Rogers jeep ours came complete and even had a spare transfer case and transmission and a couple of spare water pumps and a extra vacuum motor for the windshield. It hasn't had a top since we've owned it. Thanks for the memories.

[@kencleg7721]

Yup still at the cabin

[@kimcaswell2895]

😅😅I saw these advertised in some magazine in the early 90s. I guess it could have been a hoax.

[@telbon8869]

​@@kimcaswell2895 DEFINITELY A HOAX!! JUST LIKE THOSE ADS FOR "X-RAY GLASSES" TARGETED TO YOUNG HORNY TEENAGE BOYS! (FULL DISCLOSURE, I FELL FOR IT!!😂)

[@modusoperandiofsatan]

Its not a girl !!

[@Flinnyschannel8265]

Back in the 70’s I remember hearing the stories about those. Never could be in the right place at the right time. But I have one now!

[@THEFAITHFULPALADIN]

Post WW2 "Jeep in a crate" is not an urban legend, my father ordered one from one of my comic books, I think it was in 1960 but not certain of the date or year. I do remember my mom staying on the lookout for it, my dad's excitement as he opened it up and he& a friend of his hoisted it out using an engine hoist. He complained that the engine was only secured by 1 bolt but it was a complete Willie's.

[@jonpatterson7211]

Yep. I remember them being advertised in the backs of outdoor magazines and such. You could get them for next to nothing.

[@nghtwtchmn129]

I recall the JC Whitney catalog on the last century offering complete new bodies for the flat-fender Jeeps. along with hoods, windshields, etc. Maybe even the frame?

[@DJeepThoughts]

It is an urban legend. The advertisement in question was found in popular mechanics and other magazines for decades. It was an advertisement for government and military surplus auctions. Sad thing is sending 49.95 got you a listing of government auctions that was available for free by writing to the proper authorities. There weren't many "Jeeps in a crate" but the ones that were packaged that way were primarily sent as lend lease items to the Soviets. Jeeps were normally shipped on ocean vessels in a stacked fashion no more than three high. If your grandfather did actually buy a "Jeep in a crate" he likely had the last remaining one the Soviets didn't use that somehow survived the war still packed in a crate. And if you know anything about the second world war in the Soviet Union- that is more than unlikely. I've done much research on this subject. Everybody knows someone who bought one of these things but unfortunately it just never happened.

[@THEFAITHFULPALADIN]

@@DJeepThoughts Your information is erroneous in that it's incomplete! As I said before, it's NOT just an urban legend! When I was a kid in Cali. my dad ordered one from an add in one of the comic books he bought my brother's & I. I still remember he & a buddy of his using an engine hoist to lift it.

[@DJeepThoughts]

Then you need to figure out where it came from, see if you can find some old pictures or documents and compile that for posterity. So far no concrete evidence of anyone finding and buying a "Jeep in a crate" exists@@THEFAITHFULPALADIN

[@JT_70]

Dad had a real 1942 Willys that was a former military Jeep. It was small and slow but fun to drive. I believe we converted it from 6v to 12v. That old flat-head 4cyl was so easy to work on.

[@bwilliams463]

My grandfather bought a used civilian-style CJ after the war to use as a farm tractor. Several implements were made for war-surplus and civilian jeeps such as planters, cultivators and even plows. It served acceptably on their small acreage for several years, although it had a golfball-sized hole in the engine block.

[@mikevigilanti4596]

My grandfather bought one of these surplus Willys Jeeps around 1957, 58. I remember going for a ride in it. Great time.

[@RichSobocinski]

Just today I watched a video tour of the MD Juan factory (which is probably why this video showed up in my stream). They showed just about all parts of the process of making the parts and assembling the kit into the box. I saw a lot of manual MiG welding but no welding robots. Closest I saw to automated equipment was a CNC plasma cutter for the body panels.

[@thetvbaby83]

Lol me too. It took me back to the old school work i grew up doing.

[@rustedhorsepower5132]

I saw the same video of the factory, but to be fair it didnt show the chassis being built, maybe thats where the robotic welding comes in ??

[@ScarabChris]

I also found this video from watching the MD Juan video

[@gordonblank6845]

I remember in the early 70's seeing ads in magazines for a "Jeep in a Crate" for what I believe was $75.00. never could come up with that much cash but I dreamed about it.

[@marc.wrutgers6704]

I grew up in the Netherlands and in 1982 we visited a Army Dump and they Sold two Wiliy,s in a crate ! I can tell you they were not cheap. Also they had several Motorcycles in a crate . So I have seen them . Thanks for your great video.

[@Bwanar1]

My Grandfather bought one of the 1943 Willys Jeeps. I learned to drive in it, in the back 20. Later had lots of fun with it at the hunt camp!

[@analystanalyst7652]

I remember as a kid in 1959 seeing the ad in the back of a magazine for a crated jeep and I'm remembering $450 at the time but I was just a kid. My older brothers dressed in war surplus in the winter when Army & Navy stores were in every town. A lot of our camping gear was WWII and Korean War surplus. We also played war with GI bring-backs like mint helmets and holsters. Hate to think how they got banged up. I remember a PT boat plying the waters of Lake George, NY as a kid. The war had been yesterday and the surplus was everywhere; I'm sure you could have gotten a CG-4 still in a crate back then. Too bad what had been everyday is now challenged as urban legend or myth. Time moves too damned fast and too many people today are out of touch with the past.

[@MikeBaxterABC]

4:17 .... That's a HUGE benefit ... not just including the frame .. but having the body pre-fitted AND assembled. You probably will take it apart again to fit the drive train and springs etc ... but fantastic it's mounted perfectly .. literally save you a half summer of Saturday afternoons !! :)

[@richardross7219]

In 1967, Tunick's Junk yard, in Stamford, CT, had many of those jeeps in crates. They were $200 each. I looked at them but, the problem was that the electrical wiring harnesses had deteriorated so that you had to make a new one. That was beyond my capabilities at the time. I remember them advertised in the backs of magazines at that time too. Good Luck, Rick

[@rupe53]

somewhere in that era you could buy most any Jeep parts through JC Whitney, including a harness and most of the metal

[@richardross7219]

@@rupe53 You're right but, I didn't find Whitney until a couple years later. Good Luck, Rick

[@erik_dk842]

The electrical wiring harness would be like 6 wires in total. But, hell, if you need an excuse not to buy, it's as good as any.

[@richardross7219]

@@erik_dk842It was reality. I was 16 and didn't know anything about wiring. My father was against it so, he wouldn't have used his truck to bring it home for me.

[@OffGridInvestor]

Surely you could've got an auto electrician or mechanic to make a new wiring harness. How much wiring could there have been?

[@JD1459]

My high school buddy had a fully running one of these on his farm back in the 1970s. It was a blast to drive through the woods, ponds, and to abuse.

[@johndoran3274]

I bought one in a crate at an auction at the Army Depot back in 1986 for $400. It was packed in 1951 and stuffed into a corner of a warehouse with a dozen of its friends for 35 years. I can tell you that the original crate was nowhere near as pretty as that crate, and mine came with the driveline installed, just had accessories and wheels/tires to install.

[@DJeepThoughts]

You bought a WWII jeep in 1986?

[@johndoran3274]

@@DJeepThoughts yep. They had it sitting in storage at the Army Depot since 1950. It was there to have communication equipment mounted to it but it never made it out of the crate.

[@DJeepThoughts]

And I don't suppose you have any records of that? If you did you could possibly be the first person in history with actual evidence of purchasing a "Jeep in a crate." So far no evidence exists.@@johndoran3274

[@MrJeep75]

Bull shit

[@paleo704]

@@johndoran3274want to sell it ?

[@Sarge0311]

Very nice kit sir, My Jeep was a 1942 Ford Jeep I bought when I was in the U.S.M.C I was discharged in 2001 after second tour in the sand box.

[@johnycoho7830]

Thank you for your service.

[@rogerlayne8623]

As a kid I watched a friends father take one apart and clean it and put it back together again then we drove it back in the woods man what that thing be worth now

[@willskinner3101]

back in the late 70's a friend and I had a custom Van shop Cincy Street Vans. On our way to pick up a clients van we saw a WWII jeep buried to its axels in a front yard. We stopped and asked if they wanted to sell it. Nice old guy said if you can get it unstuck its yours. We got it out and replaced the brake lines tuned it all the usual stuff and it ran the little 4 cylinder was quite pepe. A lot of great memories with that jeep.

[@handimanjay6642]

My father said after WW2 you could buy large crates from Army surplus. People bought them to use as sheds, garages, or workshops. Many were delivered with military equipment still inside.

[@michaelmyers3892]

Back in 2010 when I lived in Alabama I spent the better part of a year restoring a 1950 willys Jeep, thank God the transmissions were easy getting correct part was a chore, but you have something like this that is not a rust bucket 90% complete wow that would have been a lifesaver got my attention for sure

[@dalegray934]

I could have used that back in the early 1980s. I had a rusted-out 43 Military jeep. The body was a total loss. We ended up with a frame, engine, transmission, and axles. Working on an extreme budget with a goal of having a functioning 4WD, we ended up buying a mail carrier jeep front end (fenders and hood) and a Wrangler body. To our surprise, all the holes lined up and we just bolted it all together (well, after we reduced the machine gun mount on the cross member). It ended up being registered as the 73 Wrangler. We sure could have used your kit!!!

[@kevinkronsagen2894]

My Dad and I went and looked at some Jeeps a guy in Rockford Illinois was selling back in the ‘70’s. The Jeeps all came cut into 2 pieces, the story being that the government couldn’t sell usable military equipment to the public. This guy in Rockford would weld the vehicles back together and sell them. We didn’t buy one but I wish we had.

[@johngallagher912]

As late as the fifties you could buy a jeep in a crate from army surplus. The jeep was used to the point that it wasn't cost worthy to repair anymore. The crate included the drive train with many miles on it. I saw an article in a car magazine about someone who had bought one and restored it for highway driving. This was in the late '50s.

[@MrJeep75]

Bull shit

[@daveryan6624]

We had them stacked in front of the surplus store in Oscoda Michigan. They were 200 dollars in the crate. 1968

[@CSltz]

What was the store? I lived there in like 66-68. Never saw the store. I can’t imagine that with all the military up there. That they would have lasted 2 minutes. For Sale. I’d like to see a picture or add.

[@thomasauslander3757]

@@CSltz must have been a secret sale..

[@ringhunter100]

The MCLB Barstow annex in California has about 25 or so brand new (used) early models that where once ready to be shipped to Korea and almost all of them are sealed for long term storage the Corp used to break out a couple once a year for parades they only have around a few miles on them and they all have original issued equipment or accessories.

[@jonnyem.8859]

There are still quite a few Willy's Jeeps on the island of Java in daily use. There are clubs that go out 4-wheeling on Saturdays, and some mountain tours use them.

[@AngelaMinetto]

My dad bought one in 1946. We drove it all over the property. I learned how to drive on this when I was 12.

[@troystallard6895]

I learned how to drive in my grandparents' surplus WW2 Jeep, scouting out across the desert for ironwood to drag back. It would get laid out in the living room with one end in the fireplace, and shoved in as it slowly burned. One good sized chunk of ironwood could last for two or three days sometimes, keeping the chill off.

[@walterdayrit675]

Classic, reliable, old school engineering! Little to no complicated electronics or computers. Easy maintenance. Nice! 👍

[@ML-jk3sz]

This one is so old school it doesn't even have an engine or drive train. Talk about old tech!

[@Wave-tq3mw]

I actually bought one in a crate in the mid 50's from the us miltary at Burtonwood Lacs. for the HUGE price of £45 😀😀😀😀. I built it and used it for some fun trips but got an offer to good to refuse. Good Memory though . Thanks for your film.

[@mikeb1039]

Growing up in the 60's I can assure you they were very real and advertised in the backs of many magazines. We all lusted after them.

[@makofett7404]

This stuff still exists. I met a gentleman who had numerous 1942 WGA Harleys in both olive drab and rare navy white! Still in pallet crates never used. He even had sidecars. Price he wanted was not crazy but I didnt have the money

[@g4joe]

My Dad bought a surplus British war time Army motorcycle unused in the 1950's Came in a crate. 😄👍🇬🇧

[@geodes4762]

I was the Director if Services at Camp Darby Italy in 1981-2. We had a Depot Support Activity that was collecting up non running and rusted out M151 jeeps which replaced the MBs and the M38s. Was an entirely different vehicle and shared few if any parts at all with the earlier 1/4 tons. The hulks were stripped if all running gear, engines and suspension. These parts were sorted, cleaned and cataloged. We received big shipments of crates similar to those in the video. The crates contained newly fabricates M151 bodies. A production line was set up by our Director of Maintenance to churn out basically new M151s. The M151 was washed out of the inventory a few years later and replaced with the HummV series

[@tomfrantz]

Nobody had $100 bucks in 1970. Everyone from class of '80 knew about these. Thank you for the excellent video. Not easy to make a video this good. This would be cool in a coffee store. "No motor-the better."

[@miked19831988]

I did the leg work for all of you that was wondering........ $13 k for the kit in the "pretty" box. Alternate shipping containers are less.

[@ericangela1528]

they really did sell the real thing in a create and they came with everything the engine entire drive train for 500.00 dollars 50 years ago

[@donjones4719]

More leg work: how much less is it without the pretty box?

[@coincollectorchase]

​@@ericangela1528 that's 50,000 pennies then, now it is 1,300,000 pennies, not to mention 42% pennies out there today are fake.

[@hodaka1000]

After WWII my father testified at the war crimes tribunals at Rabaul, while he was there he bought a brand new Jeep for £5 He negotiated with a ship's captain to ship it back to Australia but unfortunately the ship had to sail before the Jeep could be delivered to the dock and it was left on the wharf

[@tuvoca825]

Oh no! 😢😂😢

[@OffGridInvestor]

Bummer! These are exceptionally rare in Australia

[@hodaka1000]

@@OffGridInvestor I live in Grafton there are three or four around town that I known of

[@justdoingitjim7095]

My school would buy non-running jeeps at auction in the late 60's/early 70's and give them to the shop teachers. The students would repair/build the jeeps until they were in running condition and then they'd be sold to buy things like welders, torches and other items for the shop. They also did repairs on people's personal cars. The person only had to pay for the materials needed or used up (welding rods, gas, etc.), because all the labor was done by students and the shop teacher took a lot of time explaining how to do things. So, a repair at a regular automotive shop that would take a day or two, would take a week or two at the school shop, but they got it done a lot cheaper!

[@jimvelde6041]

in 1977 a friend (retired USAAC/USAF) at the Pima Air museum told of the time, I can't remember if it was in the US or the UK, just after the war when he went down to the docks and bought a Jeep in the crate but had to uncrate it on site and leave the crate....it was more needed

[@jamesthompson8008]

@jimvelde6041 I could see that, the military equipment far less important than the packing materials to get other items back to USA. I'd read in a book about US War efforts that when the war ended, the government had absolutely no way of knowing the true inventory of materials/parts/supplies for close to a year or more, as so many things were in production/transit/supply at the time. At wars end, lots of planes were decommissioned with only the delivery flight time from factory to air base on them.

[@southerngamer3146]

Thats freaking sick! I'd love to see one of these used in a build video.

[@elijahbey3366]

It's actually very healthy.

[@bobsmoot8454]

My uncle got a surplus Jeep I think it was pack in cosmoline (?) and he used it to pull a rack of reel mowers then when he, my Dad and another uncle bought a hunting cabin with 400+ acres, it became the hunting Jeep to truck the old guys up the mountain to their stands. The engine cracked and my dad fixed it with “Liquid Metal” and it ran at least another decade, it was also a vehicle that us younger men learned to drive on too.

[@vincentmueller3717]

I was in the Marines 79-83, and occasionally the motor pool would get a new in the crate M151 jeep. Allegedly, the wiring harness was assembled, and the pistons were on the crank shaft, but everything else was wrapped and boxed. Procurement price in 1969 was about $900, from the stencils on the crate.

[@budwhite3570]

My wife is from the Philippines, and she grew up around a jeep cause her father was a "jitney" driver, had his own jeep/s, I believe he had several. She told me she used to help him repair them. I'm thinking I want one of those jeep in a crate someday myself once I get a different home with a shop or garage. Technically, a person could store one in a metal shed I think, like a 10x14 or 10x16.

[@AzulNR-t2f]

Check out MD juan in the philippines,they make replicas.

[@williamgrayson4181]

I was going to say

[@Loss8131]

This is super cool! Maybe a series of videos of you guys showing how to assemble it.

[@SlushboxH8R]

This absolutely did happen, at least thru the 70s. A neighbor friend's dad bought one from government auction when I was a kid and I watched him open the crate.

[@donaldlouisjohn3652]

I can verify that jeeps were sold after the war, at least on Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California, in San Francisco Bay, across from Vallejo. It was basically a submarine base . I was ten years old. My Dad had been in the subs in the pacific campaign. I saw a huge, half-block stack of Jeeps, maybe six high, and heard that they were on sale for 25 dollars each. I wanted one but i was a kid.

[@jima4656]

The original "Jeep in a crate" kits were available as surplus sales for decades after WWII. What you got in the crate was enough good parts to put together a complete working jeep. You might get a semi-complete jeep with bullet holes in the transmission and also a spare transmission on the side. You may get one with a bad motor & broken front axle along with a front clip off another one. The mix & match varied quite a bit. Occasionally, you would just get a good complete Jeep ready to go, but that was the exception rather than the rule. This is something completely different.

[@dueymiller3762]

According to my father he bought 4 boxes for the wood at a surplus auction. And inside was a complete Jeep. That was in the early 50's. By the time I was born (1959) him and his friends trashed it on Denman mountain Grahamsville NY. All the trails to the blueberries was put in by him.

[@TanyaKing-m7p]

Actually, my dad gave me an actual WWII jeep that came from a ranch he bought in the 1950s. I grew up driving it and testify that it was beat up and had the original flat head four cylinder engine. It was a fun vehicle to learn how to drive.

[@danielz2131]

Yes, war surplus Willys Jeeps were sold off by the gov't after the War and were still in their crates. My father purchased one in the late 1940's or very early 1950. It was used on the farm in North Dakota. My oldest sister learnt to drive in this jeep. My brother crashed it and it was later sold off for parts.

[@MrJeep75]

They were not in a crate

[@BillRichards-f6x]

My first vehicle, in 1969 and my senior year in high school, was a 1942 Willys (WW2 surplus) jeep, and I have wanted another one, EVER sense!

[@chrisperrien7055]

Back about 1986-7 I put 2 Jeeps together in the Army. My captain ran over his jeep with his tank , and sometime that same year we got authorized an extra jeep on our TOE for our XO. Fun, and a good way to avoid the detail monster. Could spend a week putting 1 together (if you tried;) M151A2's IIRC

[@Dr.Reason]

I remember in the late 70s they were selling these things complete in crates for $250. I begged my dad to buy one that we could put together as a bonding thing… but he was just too busy trying to finance his families needs. I never felt I’ll will toward him, but I’ve always been sorry we couldn’t make that happen. Even more so now.

[@BigPoppaOnAQuad]

Had a friend in the 80's buy three jeeps in a crate from an Army Surplus Store there were parts missing,. He had enough parts to build two fully functional Jeeps. They were $250 each.

[@jayhawk7043]

Had a friend who had one, was going to put it together after he came home from Nam. RIP John

[@freeman48083]

My uncle bought and assembled one in the 70s. Definitely a real thing.

[@mgxmaddguiness7066]

That’s cool to see. I still have my first Jeep 98 Wrangler Sport 4.0 5 speed. It’s a sweet Jeep but the original would be a thrill to own and drive.

[@adareone]

I bought one of these back in the mid 1990s, purchase direct from MD Juan, shipped in a wood create, I loaded it in my 1952 Willy pickup. I think I paid like 2500.00 for it plus shipping 750.00.

[@LittleCowWorkshop]

You could order jeeps right up until early 80’s .. they sold for $50 but the shipping is where the price went up but it was still cheap.. you could order them from multiple publications I.e. comic books, various magazines etc

[@ralfie8801]

I used to see adds for WW-II jeeps still in the crate in Boy’s Life magazines during the late 60’s and early 70’s when I was in the Cub Scouts and later the Boy Scouts.

[@dawright1988]

You could order them into the 70’s, I believe, because of the surplus. My grandfather was our local fire chief and ordered one to build a small brush rig. They used it until 2018.

[@jerryeddy1099]

In the late 70's these kits were available thru some Army surplus stores. Two were purchased in my town.

[@kauaislash5]

Unless I missed it, you don’t address one of the most important questions anyone considering a “complete” kit like this should be asking, and that is how does one go about titling and registering it? Does it come with an MSO?

[@lancefletcher2963]

Probably because he mentions numerous times - it's not a complete kit. But also says right there on the site: Q: does it come with a title A: No it does not include title. You will need a donor Jeep or title as a kit car. You will need to do some research in the state you live in for rules and regulations on titling.

[@Hyperbread934]

yall should look into doin parts for Yjs too!! but love this jeen in a box perfect present for a jeeper

[@richardoconnor7112]

This has nothing to do with the kits but i once saw a demonstration of 6 members of the army roll out a running jeep, disassemble it with nothing but hand tools, wheels, rear end, trans and motor, then put it back together and drive off in 22 minutes. Kinda impressive and shows how functional minimalist engineering can be.

[@Mercmad]

My grandfather was on the wharfs in Auckland New Zealand ,during WW2when a ship load of jeeps in boxes were unloaded. They had to unpack some and a US officer, somewhat younger than grandad said he was taking too long and attacked the crate with a crowbar. The wheels had to be installed and fuel etc added but they were ready to go . They aslo Shipped air craft the same way. Theres a vid here on YT showing how a team was to assemble a Corsair (I think) in the field and get it ready for flight.

[@b1bmsgt]

The vid I saw was a P-47...

[@generoush3823]

had a 52 willys I bought from a South Dakota farmer in the mid 70s, loved that thing would go anywhere

[@mahbriggs]

My Dad said there was a guy going house to house back in the late 50s in the country selling WWII jeeps for fifty bucks. Unfortunately, he didnt buy one. By the way, the WWII jeeps that were shipped in crates had the engines and drivetrain installed. From what I have read all you had to do was mount the tires, install the battery and fuel it up and you were good to go.

[@OutnBacker]

Back in the early 70's you could sign up for a Jeep-in-a-crate for $55, and be eligible to attend the auction. There, you would bid for crates of "jeeps." But, the caveat was that you never knew what parts were inside. It might be a crate full of fenders or a stack of frames, or some windshields and seats, etc. In the end, you had to preview a huundred crates to get enough parts to assemble a single working Jeep.

[@jamesthompson8008]

@OutnBacker Had a neighbor whose uncle had purchased Jeeps in crates via government auction circa early 60s. He remembered also, that you had to purchase a lot size of minimum 10 crates, but could increase lot size by 10, up to 100 iirc. The uncle had a used car business, which aided in access to auction mailings/listings.

[@Mercmad]

@@jamesthompson8008 I have been to auctions like that here in Australia. Some of the things I bought were crazy. I saw a really cool multimeter,in a canvas pouch . I bid on it and won,my bid being $15. What i actually bought was a crate full of the damned things for $15.

[@bobkohl6779]

Restored a 44 GPW in the 70s. Had a ball with it. It served in the USMC we had it in ETO colors and it worked on MASH

[@eddiea1213]

Grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Father was a WWII Navy Veteran. Remember him talking about Surplus Jeeps in a crate, think they were $100 in the early 50's he didn't have that kind of money to spend on toys trying to buy a house and raise three children on one paycheck.

[@gasNmudtv]

Jeep in a box after the war was a thing. My dad went to an auction as a young man in London Ontario and saw Jeeps and Harleys still in the crate never touched up for sale to the highest bidder

[@ericyeoman2687]

There were many of these left in Australia after WW2. Sent to auction & sold for about, (then), 10 Aust. Pounds.

[@envisionCamusa]

If a person wanted this kit, and didn't have an original drivetrain. What alternative engine would work and look good in the engine compartment?

[@allanmcleod1384]

My dad during his apprenticeship at lever brothers during ww2 built kit form jeeps

[@sigmanfloyd7179]

I saw a video a couple years ago where some company was making complete jeeps like this includingdrive train and engine. I believe it was somewhere in the south Pacific?

[@rnvrnv354]

Would really like to see a complete one of these projects!

[@classicgunstoday1972]

Hey I’d love one of these over a modern 4 wheeler. Road legal and looks good

[@madebysteve1738]

back in the 80s I worked for a guy whos family collected and restored military vehicles,, for a side project for the shop was putting together a jeep set up like this one, by the time I got there it was a rolling chassis and I helped put the engine and trans in, and set up the break system I was going through wooden boxes like you have there for break parts and such, everything was still wrapped with cosmo paper it was all brand new and I am thinking it was a 41-42, the funny thing is it was made for france and everything down to the stamps and labels on the block were written in french,

[@martinhill5881]

growing up in the sixty's in Tacoma, Washington my old veteran neighbor told me after WW2 the army buried over 500 of brand new jeeps in a crate in the back of Fort Lewis behind their arty range

[@thetoymanator7723]

We had some stories similar to that in Australia. One went that Jeeps and whole aircraft in crates were buried somewhere outside Sydney in New South Wales (possibly near what was called "the Putty Road"). In WWII northern Australia (Darwin) was getting bombed by the Japanese and there was a real fear of invasion. 1940's preppers if it's for real. I'd like to think that someday in the future the urban sprawl will result in major excavations for new housing and infrastructure, and those relics may be surprisingly unearthed and be reassembled as museum pieces. Urban legend? Who knows.

[@aojorel]

BROOOO I ❤❤❤❤❤ IT! Now where can I get the engine and transmission? I want to build one with my girls!

[@midos67channel24]

That is the most complete Jeep kit I ever seen. All you'd to do is locate a drivetrain for it....which could be done by searching on the internet or at salvage yards.

[@xne1592]

Here in the UK in the early 1960's I can remember a military disposal dealer who had WW2 jeeps stacked up in crates. We went to buy an engine off him for a series one landrover. My father said during the war in North Africa he swapped his Italian SMG to an American cook for a Jeep. I can still picture dozens of Jeeps and landrovers all lined up. Can't remember for the life in me the name of the place but it was something like ryton rocket site...

[@davekolp4552]

How much does this cost with an engine and all other needed parts?

[@davezoom2682]

Yes you could buy them after the war ,( us army surplus ) From a warehouse in Dagenham Essex , they were 100 pounds sterling , the guys unboxed it put the wheels on a new battery steamed the transport grease off them put 5 gallons of gas in it and you drove it away , I used them a lot when working building the UK interstates ( motorways ) drove them until they died then buried them under the motorway and bought another .

[@albertpinedo6099]

What engine and transmission do you use for these guys?

[@Jerry-ko9pi]

Hell, the crate and boxes are pretty neat too!

[@skeetersaurus6249]

Back in the 1980's, I had a DRMO bidder number and often went to the Memphis TN auctions. I remember one summer afternoon, a 1942 'Jeep-in-Crate' came up, but an old WWII mechanic was there bidding also, he said 'thing probably ain't worth $50'...I asked 'why?' and he told me, 'you can't be sure what's in the crates...in-Theater motor pools would open the crates, often 'robbing Jim to pay John' (stealing or swapping parts) with directives of 'don't assemble new units unless the Company count falls below expected minimums'...a lot of times, you'd find 4-drivetrains in a crate (no Jeep), other times the wiring would be gone, or both axles, etc.' Basically, the 'Jeep in a crate' became a dumping ground better titled 'Some Jeep parts approaching a full unit - though it may be worn out old parts - may be inside this crate'. This is why they shipped hundreds of the crates back...they really didn't know what was inside a vast number of the crates, so they brought them back stateside to 'inventory' them. They got inventoried, re-sealed, never needed due to newer models, many sat for 20-40 years before bases were commanded to 'relinquish old equipment not in use to DRMO (Defense Re-utilization Management Office) for further disposition. In reality, I'm guessing less than 500 'new units' were ever realized and sold in the U.S. So, no, they weren't 'intentionally cut in half' or 'disassembled on purpose'...as there was nothing 'specifically military' about them (compared to, say, a Heads-up fighter aircraft display windshield)...

[@towdjumper5]

I’m from Toledo and use to love going to Willys pool during the summer not far from the Jeep plant.

[@richardturk7162]

Back in the early 60s there was a wrecking yard only a mile or so from where I lived and that guy had at least 20 Jeeps in the original military crates stacked on top of each other in a huge lean to area with Jeep frames and engines,axles and crates of parts.Lots of complete Jeeps from the 40s and 50s with their military markings. That yard is gone now and I haven't been down that road in years. So urban legend no I remember them clearly.

[@mikeyadrick5154]

I was brought up in the 50s, 60s--during this time in the Popular Mechanics mags there would be ads for these surplus Jeeps--about $150(?) I was very much a fan of Military Surplus stores, several in Seattle, never saw orheard of anyone owning these units--Mikey, Belfair, Wa

[@ajosephbaumhauer4071]

I was twenty one in 1967 and hung out at a Gas station owned by a WWII Marine Vet and a fire station full of vets and they all told me it was an urban legend. And I never saw an add in any magazine

[@ronburgandy74]

I am 75 years old and when I was probably around 10 to 12 years old I remember seeing with my own eyes an advertisement in a magazine about purchasing either a Korean era or WWII maybe both jeep in a crate that was 100% complete with engine/rear end etc. delivered to your door. I wish I could remember more but I wanted one but did not have the money much less my drivers license yet. I assure you that this did happen because I saw the ad. I think that they were made by Willis Overland co. Gerry USN Viet Nam vet

[@Michael-fx2qr]

Very great Video...cool. I love this. Thanks for this

[@MikeBaxterABC]

3:30 The frame and welding is WAY better than Wartime Production!!!

[@gordonwallin2368]

There were ads for Army Surplus Jeeps in the back of Mechanics illustrated. Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.

[@DM4N2000]

Where do they sell the drive train and engine also how much do the jeep crate for?

[@edbrown2061]

I remember hearing about those that were buried in the desert in case the U.S. was invaded during WW2. Wonder if that was true and if there are still some buried somewhere.?

[@whuffo]

Those jeep bodies are made by MD Juan in the Philippines.

[@surlyogre1476]

Yup... it took me a few minutes into the video to figure out that _md1_ is actually *MD Juan* ....silly closed-captioner.

[@jimmorris5829]

After the war, used (salvaged) jeeps were sold in the old crates. You never knew what you were getting. You might have two frames and no body or engine or you might have a body with three bad engines. I never saw one with a complete jeep inside. It was a complete crap shoot, so you would buy three or four crates just to maybe get a nearly complete jeep. Your kit looks great! Keep up the good ideas!

[@jimprior5700]

When I was a kid, after WWII, I remember a lot of people driving surplus jeeps but they didn't come out of a crate.

[@francisvantuyle]

In norther Utah there is a business that sold military surplus. Crate Jeeps was one of the items. You can call them up and ask them. Smith and Edwards is the name of the business