Boy, do I see Jeepster written all over it! I'm old enough to recall the first gen models of '49-'50. Sadly, many of them were crushed here in Florida for lack of parts. Just goes to show that Floridians can't read interchange books.
Jeep did make 4-wheel drive versions of the Commando. They held their own in the snow back home in Illinois. Many of these were used to plow parking lots in Winter. Almost all of these rigs came with the AMC 304 CID V-8, with either a 4-speed or an auto tranny. You had to get out to kick in 4WD. These came with manual lock-outs, that engaged the front diff. A former neighbor of mine rebuilt one 25 years ago. His was lifted 5" and fitted with 33" monster mudders in true Florida style. Nice to see one again.
I always thought these were very gay- but this one is in such nice shape, and is such a great color, I don't hate it as much as I normally would. For some reason, they're worth a surprisingly lot of money these days...I'd bet that 'un would bring top dollar.
Don, I don't know about the gayness factor, but it certainly was different. It looks like an attempt by AMC to spruce up the Jeep. Although the ones that I remember had canvas tops and side curtains for winter use. Think that was about '49, or maybe '50. These first models looked very sporty indeed. But as time went on, they evolved into what we see here. As for being a high dollar item, I did see one of these on a Barrett-Jackson auction on NBC Sports Network. I recall it fetched about $55K. Not too shabby for a glorified verson of the Jeep.
Cap'n, $55K? Holy crud! I saw one go for $18K and thought that was absurd! (But then, I don't think $55K is justifiable for any old car...). Those ones from the 40's you mentioned...sounds like they may've been the inspiration for the VW Thing, too! :D (When's the last time ya saw one'a them?!)
Don, the 1949-50 Jeepster phaeton was a very sharp ride. It showed that even the lowly Jeep could be made to look sporty. Brooks Stevens hit it out of the park when he penned this bodystyle during the war. If you look at this car you see much of the Stevens design still there. Can't say I like the front end though. The car I saw on Barrett-Jackson's auction program was a pristine original with some 30K miles show- ing. As for the Thing, a regular customer of mine drove one to the restaraunt I worked at on a semi-daily basis. When she wasn't driving this, she would drive her '69 GTO ragtop. It was hard to focus on my work when either one of these rolled into my parking lot.
All they did at volkswagen was dust off the design for the Kubelwagen of WWII fame, and there you had it...the Thing! The one that my customer friend had was Red with a Black ragtop. It also had removable doors and a fold down windshield. It also had those pesky side curtains too. A hardtop version was also available but not as popu- lar. They were pulled from the U.S. market in 1976, mostly due to safety issues. They were built in Mexico well into the '80's when the production run ended for good.
Best of OPC. 
10 comments:
Boy, do I see Jeepster written all over
it! I'm old enough to recall the first
gen models of '49-'50. Sadly, many of
them were crushed here in Florida for
lack of parts. Just goes to show that
Floridians can't read interchange books.
i'm a fan of every generation of the CJ, but i never know what to think of these things. are they capable machines with off-road cred?
such a satisfying yet strange profile, and i love the evolution of the grill and headlights over the years.
Woof. One of the only vintage cars that I could certainly get enough of. Less examples is fine by me.
Jeep did make 4-wheel drive versions of the Commando. They held their own in the
snow back home in Illinois. Many of these were used to plow parking lots in Winter.
Almost all of these rigs came with the AMC 304 CID V-8, with either a 4-speed or an
auto tranny. You had to get out to kick in 4WD. These came with manual lock-outs,
that engaged the front diff. A former neighbor of mine rebuilt one 25 years ago. His
was lifted 5" and fitted with 33" monster mudders in true Florida style. Nice to see
one again.
I always thought these were very gay- but this one is in such nice shape, and is such a great color, I don't hate it as much as I normally would. For some reason, they're worth a surprisingly lot of money these days...I'd bet that 'un would bring top dollar.
Don, I don't know about the gayness factor, but it certainly was different. It looks like an
attempt by AMC to spruce up the Jeep. Although the ones that I remember had canvas tops
and side curtains for winter use. Think that was about '49, or maybe '50. These first models
looked very sporty indeed. But as time went on, they evolved into what we see here. As for
being a high dollar item, I did see one of these on a Barrett-Jackson auction on NBC Sports
Network. I recall it fetched about $55K. Not too shabby for a glorified verson of the Jeep.
Cap'n, $55K? Holy crud! I saw one go for $18K and thought that was absurd! (But then, I don't think $55K is justifiable for any old car...). Those ones from the 40's you mentioned...sounds like they may've been the inspiration for the VW Thing, too! :D (When's the last time ya saw one'a them?!)
The Thing way pre-dates this POS. Cool color, though.
Don, the 1949-50 Jeepster phaeton was a very sharp ride. It showed that even the
lowly Jeep could be made to look sporty. Brooks Stevens hit it out of the park when he
penned this bodystyle during the war. If you look at this car you see much of the
Stevens design still there. Can't say I like the front end though. The car I saw on
Barrett-Jackson's auction program was a pristine original with some 30K miles show-
ing. As for the Thing, a regular customer of mine drove one to the restaraunt I worked
at on a semi-daily basis. When she wasn't driving this, she would drive her '69 GTO
ragtop. It was hard to focus on my work when either one of these rolled into my
parking lot.
All they did at volkswagen was dust off the design for the Kubelwagen of WWII fame,
and there you had it...the Thing! The one that my customer friend had was Red with
a Black ragtop. It also had removable doors and a fold down windshield. It also had
those pesky side curtains too. A hardtop version was also available but not as popu-
lar. They were pulled from the U.S. market in 1976, mostly due to safety issues. They
were built in Mexico well into the '80's when the production run ended for good.
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