By the late 1950′s when Kaiser Corporation had owned the Willys name for about 5 years,they embarked on a serious campaign to promote vehicle sales by finding and extending their many uses.
The CJ5 was the new workhorse, but the model CJ3B was still being produced. Both of these machines were powered by the Hurricane F-head, 4 Cylinder power plant which had been in production for 6 years. Touting 4Wheel Drive and three power takeoff points, the Jeeps were poised for duty.
Not only was the Willys Jeep offered as a delivery vehicle, heavy hauler and stakebed, but it was built as two different versions of fire trucks , an ambulance, cargo-personnel carrier, crash wagon (airport use) and dump truck. Those were the specialty bodies which had to be factory ordered. In addition, many aftermarket addendum’s were offered in an agreement between Jeep and outside manufacturers. This was nothing new. After the war, farm implements and snow plows as well as steel cabs were built “outside”.
At this juncture, Jeep was fighting for business as many competitors were vying for the auto market and the outdated station wagon was being left in the dust. They saw the utility /service vehicles as their only salvation.
The farming rear hydraulic lift was still offered for the CJ line. It adapted the Jeep for plowing, planting, grading, mowing, harvesting and fencing. Steel cabs and body extenders for the bed were also in the offerings. Blades for smoothing and grading were supplemented by scoops for hauling soil and gravels.
Next came the famous Jeep-A-Trench. This apparatus mounted to the rear and operated from the PTO. As it’s name implies, it dug trenches for pipe, cables and drain tile. It was even supplied with overload springs to compensate for the additional rear weight. “A post hole a minute” was the marketing motto of the large PTO auger. It claimed to be adjustable to any angle and operated with a standard 12″ auger or other optional sizes. While you were at it, the largest device to be offered was the back hoe. It could dig 12′ deep with a swing of 13′ and buckets up to 36″ width. This weighed upwards of 2250 pounds and needed a truck for conveyance.
Welders, air compressors, hydraulic loaders and wrecking attachments filled out a partial lineup of modern accessories for your Willys Jeep.
