A Jeep Willys Enthusiast’s Lifelong Dream Comes True
When one falls in love with a vehicle, what’s one to do? Well, Vincent Koekemoer can tell you a thing or two about a love affair with a Jeep® Willys, that’s for sure. More specifically, with the iconic World War II Jeep® Willys which singlehandedly introduced the concept of Sports Utility Vehicles many years before it even became a trend. In fact, he spent his entire life yearning to own his own Willys and he went to great lengths to get one. So much so that his wife nearly divorced him when she had to count out the cash for his second one!
Hailing from Kariega (Uitenhage), Vincent – a building surveyor – managed to find his first Willys in Cape Town. He’s been wanting to own one for more than 40 years at the time. He later got hold of a second Willys, which cost him R21 000. This one was lying in bits and pieces on a farm in Patensie in the Eastern Cape.
“When I was growing up, I used to go to auctions all over the Eastern Cape. The military were selling their old Willys. I couldn’t afford them but as it was, no one would even give me a chance to bid,” Vincent says.
Still, the bug had bitten and after matriculating from Muir College, getting conscripted and going to work in construction, he continued to dream about owning a Jeep® Willys. So, he started looking again. And, each time he found a Willys, he would be disappointed as they would all have been modified and rebuilt in fibre glass. In fact, even the original engines would have been replaced by others. Eventually, Vincent ceased searching. That’s until five years ago…
Where there's a will, there's a way
Chatting over a drink with a friend, their conversation led to cars; Willys in particular. This encouraged Vincent to start scouring internet sites like OLX and Gumtree, finally leading him to Cape Town where his bother and sister-in-law were able to check it out for him. The vehicle was in rather bad condition, with the wrong engine, but he bought it. It wasn’t too long after that, that he came across the Jeep® Willys in Patensie. This one was in bits and pieces, but at least all the parts were still the original parts. Three years and about R60 000 later and he had a fully restored Jeep Willys, completely original. If he could not find the parts in South Africa, he either had them sent from America, or he’d make them himself. “I grew up on a farm. I am very hands on. I do metal work, woodwork, you name it,” he says.
Then Vincent started taking his restored Willys to local fairs, kicking off with the George Old Car Show, where someone offered him R900 000 for it! But, the intent wasn’t to sell it. Instead, he has now bought two additional Willys after getting a phone call from a farmer in Kirkwood. Apparently, he had two wrecks on his farm and he wanted Vincent to restore them for him. “I said yes on condition I could restore the second one and keep that one,” Vincent says.
Jeep Willys for Civilians
Now, Vincent is South Africa’s famous Jeep® Willys restorer. He has met Willys lovers from all over, including Swakopmund, Colesberg, Cape Town and Plett. “These Willys are the civilian models,” he says. “My first one, the green one, is a 1947 model and my second is a 1953. The first Willys were built in 1941. There were three companies that tendered: Bantam, Willys Overland and Ford. Bantam won the tender, but it was too big, so Ford and Willys built them for the US Military. Ford insisted all the bolts had the letter F on them.” Willys and Ford had built half a million of these vehicles by the end of World War II!
“After the war, Willys continued making the vehicles for the civilian market, the chassis and the body remained the same, but the lights were different and they added a tailgate, as well as a PTO (Power Take Off) to allow farmers to pull ploughs and run farming implements,” Vincent explains.
Despite the sale of Willys Overland to Henry J Kaiser and finally American Motors Corporation (AMC), these vehicles carry the Willys and Jeep brand names to this day. AMC was acquired by Chrysler, which became part of Stellantis following the merging of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Peugeot (PSA) three years ago.
A passport to an aspirational lifestyle
Head of brand at Jeep, Janus van Rensburg says: “The Jeep brand has evolved from an essential mode of transportation in a time of war to a complete line-up of SUVs, delivering legendary off-road capability with luxury interiors and advanced technology. The Jeep brand today is a passport to an aspirational lifestyle of freedom and adventure that creates the same level of passion and enthusiasm in today’s Jeep vehicle owners as the Willys does for Vincent.”
