After spying an old Willys Wagon in a field behind the Camp Verde Park last summer, I finally decide to leave my card in the mailbox of the old farmhouse there sometime last fall: “If you ever want to sell the Willys Wagon, please call me.”
This day, March 15, my phone rings. It’s the family that owns the Willys Wagon. They are clearing out the estate and if I want to buy the old Jeep, it’s mine. It belonged to Ed Mechem, a long time Camp Verde resident, and well-known local cowboy. According to the family, it was running when they parked it in the field 7 years ago. The tags expired in 1993, so I'm not sure how long it has actually been sitting. Ed used it to get firewood, and it clearly show signs of some good off-roading, but she’s straight and all there.
After consulting with Don at Savage Sun Engineering, who is also building a Willys Wagon, and talking to Joey and Darryl, who are always dragged into helping me with “projects”, I decide to go for it. We make the deal that afternoon.
After inspecting the vehicle closer, I realize how little I know about these things. Everything is there, and it is such a simple machine, but I have lots of research to do. One of Don’s many helpful leads is to investigate www.OldWillysForum.com, which I join, and begin learning immediately. Don also turns me on to www.WillysAmerica.com -- I particularly enjoy the restorations page, and the videos, as they have lots of good info and pictures of what the full factory details were. It seems like my Wagon is all stock running gear.
Let it begin!
Lookin GREAT Nena...
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