Freelancer Input
The April '09 issue looks great. Pete hit another home run with the on-board air article ("Air Free"), very thorough! I really liked Christian's "Poor Man's Posi-Lok", "Cheap-Avenger," and "The $1,035 YJ". These are not the sort of things that you will find in Four Wheeler, or even Petersen's (these days at least). However, I am still trying to figure out what you contributed.Harry WagnerSome palatial estate in New Mexico
Hmm, what did I contribute? A few gray hairs, some stomach lining, and my liver!
Not A Jeep
I'm always looking for new magazines to add to my monthly diet. What could be better for a guy who's always driven Jeeps than an all-Jeep mag? Anyway, in the May '09 Mailbag you say you don't consider the Mighty Mite a Jeep. But then a couple of letters later you claim the M35A2 to be the baddest Jeep ever. That 2 1/2-ton truck really ain't a Jeep! Let's see that overgrown beast try to operate on a real Jeep trail! Get a clue! I'd like to read about the Mighty Mite if you can find a knowledgeable author. In the meantime I'm still looking for another good magazine to subscribe to.Irv VanEnwyckMorristown, Arizona
More Not a Jeep
I just got my May `09 issue of Jp. In Mailbag you stated the M151 is not a Jeep. Willys (then later Kaiser), Ford and also AM General built Mutts. If the Mutt is not a Jeep, because it wasn't built by Jeep, then that's like saying the GPW is not a Jeep because it was built by Ford! If it was shot at and blown up on the front lines, it deserves to be called a Jeep. I own a Mutt, it is in fact the evolutionary pinnacle of the military Jeep that actually saw combat with US Forces. There is a saying, "My Jeep went to war, yours carried the mail." I'm not knocking civilian Jeeps at all, I have a `68 Wagoneer and my daily driver is an SRT8 Grand Cherokee, I just think the Mutt deserves its rightful place amongst the legions of Jeeps!ChadSan Diego, California
OK, this is the last time I'm gonna go over this. I'll start from the beginning. The GPW is a Jeep. It was designed by Willys and the Ford assembly lines were only contracted to build it to keep up with the demand. It was not designed by Ford so it is a true Jeep in my mind. The M151 (MUTT) was actually designed and developed by Ford. However Ford did not build many M151s. The commercial division of Willys and later AM General built them. But the M151 is not a Willys design, so it is not a Jeep in my mind. The 2 1/2-ton is a little trickier. Kaiser had owned Willys-Overland (later named Jeep) from 1953 until 1970. The M35A2 was designed by Kaiser, but it was later built and refurbished by several other manufacturers. However, since it was an original Kaiser design and it's likely the most capable production heavy-truck of that era, I think it deserves the Jeep name in the same exact way an M715 gets it (technically the M715 is a Kaiser). Then if you really want to get technical you could consider the current Dodge Power Wagon a Jeep using similar logic. And if you've been reading Jp for any amount of time you'll know that I do consider the Power Wagon a Jeep. It's just been misbranded by Chrysler. Anybody wanna see a project where we convert the new Power Wagon into a modern Jeep pickup?
Cheap Jeep
As a new Jp magazine subscriber, I was very impressed with your April '09 issue. I am following your $1,035 YJ project very closely since purchasingmy '91 Jeep YJ last month.I didn't"steal" my YJ like you guys did for $500 (I paid $1,900 for my '91), but felt likeI got a greatdeal on a 100-percent rust free, accident free,straight and near original-condition unmolested Jeep YJ. I am currentlycleaning the engine bay and haveordered the Crown tune-up kit, a new set of Smittybilt seat covers and I am changing out all of the fluids.The aftermarket alloy wheels and original factory red paint should buff out nicely with a little elbow grease and a weekend of my time.