We love clapped out old beaters just as much as super-spendy high-dollar Jeeps. But the best Jeeps are the real sleepers, the kind that look like they’ve been at the bottom of a lake for the past 40 years but burn up any trail with amazing ease. Adam Woodlee’s ’52 Willys truck is just one of those Jeeps. At first sight you’d expect to find a tired factory driveline begging for mercy while trying to push 39.5-inch tires. Instead you find a rappy Tuned Port–injected and roller-cam’d Chevy 350 mated to a TH350, dual transfer cases, and 1-ton axles. The paint scheme resembles the barnacles you might find under a ship, and friends joke with Adam about clear-coating the Willys so it doesn’t lose its, uh, luster. But as with any sleeper this one sports some sweet mods that you might not catch at first glance. Check out the drool-worthy stuff Adam and his dad Dwight did to the ’52.
HARD FACTS
Vehicle:
1952 Willys Truck
Engine:
Chevy 350
Transmission:
TH350
Transfer Case:
NP205
Suspension:
Homebuilt/sprung-over
Axles:
Dodge Dana 60 (front)
GM 14-bolt (rear)
Wheels:
MRT Beadlocks/chromies
Tires:
39.5 x 15 x 15 Super Swamper TSL
18.1 x 16.1 Goodyear farm implement
Built for:
Full throttle attacks on Tennessee mud, rocks and waterfalls
What We Think
We want to see more budget homebuilt rigs like this that issue a spankin' when we least expect it.