1948 Willys-Overland Jeep CJ-2A

If you collect Jeeps but Olive Drab is not your color, what does one do? Check out this Harvard Red Jeep for starters, at MotoeXotica Classic Cars. This is one of 74,122 Jeep CJ-2s made in 1948. We purchased this solid Willys-Jeep from a gentleman in Minnesota who had loving w/ cared and restored the Jeep while under his care of 25 years.

The current owner purchased this Jeepster in early 2019. He sent it directly to a stable in Glen Carbon, IL and spent over $20,000 having the car gone through to make it road worthy and reliable. The repair list was substantial, with complete invoice attached 12/R steering box and shaft, steering wheel and fix horn assembly, R/R door catch, fix shift linkage, adjust hand brake cable, install new windshield and numerous other items.

Additional repairs fix overdrive, turn signals, rebuild rear end. With new axle bearings and carrier bearings and brakes, new hoses and fuel lines, new steering wheel and horn on 9/2023 the Jeepster went back for repair of the fuel gauge, spark plug ends, new distributer rotor and tune up. He drove this car on a weekly basis and wanted it tight and dependable! Over $28,000.00 was spent in doing so. See attached invoices...

The Jeep's Tunisian Red exterior is in overall great condition. Its bodywork is straight and solid. The cargo area is in good order and the black bumpers fit tightly to the body. Overall a very nice Jeepster with minor flaws from age.

This Jeep rolls on Merit tires, size 215/75R15 at all four corners while the rear-mounted spare tire is a Jet model, size FR78-15. Each one is mounted to an Americar Black wheel. The wheels and tires are in overall very good order.

Under the hood is a L-134 CID “Go Devil” four-cylinder engine from the CJ-2. This motor is mated to a Borg-Warner T-90 three-speed manual transmission, complete with a Dana 18 transfer case; a Dana 25 front axle; and a Dana 41 rear axle.

Inside is a Barcelona Red interior, including the front bucket seats and rear bench. A black, three-spoke steering wheel presents a nice contrast to the exterior color. The red, metal dashboard looks great and a floor-mounted shifter completes the interior. The red paint has a slight metallic fleck to it. It drives out nicely with no known issues.

The lessons learned with the CJ-2 led to the development of the first full-production CJ, the 1945-1949 Willys-Overland CJ-2A, or Universal Jeep. A trademark for "AGRIJEEP" was granted in December 1944, but was not used. The CJ-2A looked very much like a civilianized MB with a tailgate and side-mounted spare wheel. A distinct difference between the MB and the CJ-2A lay in the grilles of the two vehicles. Where the MB had recessed headlights and nine-slot grilles, the CJ-2A had larger, slightly bulging headlights, flush-mounted in a seven-slot grille. While still powered by the reliable L-134 Go-Devil engine, the CJ-2A replaced the MB's T-84 transmission with a beefier T-90 three-speed.

Production of the CJ-2A started on 17 July 1945, sharing production time with the MB – roughly 9000 more MBs were produced through September 1945. Many of the early CJ-2As were produced using remaining stock of the military jeep components such as engine blocks, and in a few cases, modified frames. Up to serial no. 13453, the MB-style full floating rear axle was fitted. Once they were used up, the CJ got a stronger Dana / Spicer model 41. Sometimes the use of MB parts was due to strikes at suppliers, such as Autolite. Since Willys produced few parts in-house and relied heavily on suppliers, it was vulnerable to strikes. Unfortunately for Willys, strikes were common after the war, and this likely contributed to low production totals in 1945 and early 1946.

The CJ-2As only came with a driver seat and driver side mirror, and a wide variety of options were available, such as: front passenger seat, rear seat, center rear-view mirror, canvas top, front power take-off (PTO), rear PTO, belt pulley drive, capstan winch, governor, rear hydraulic lift, snow plow, welder, generator, mower, disc, front bumper weight, heavy-duty springs, dual vacuum windshield wipers (stock CJ-2As were equipped with a manual wiper on the passenger side and a vacuum wiper on the driver side), dual taillights (stock CJ-2As had a taillight on the driver side and a reflector on the passenger side), hot-climate radiator, driveshaft guards, heater, side steps and radiator brush guard.

True to their intended purpose, the combinations also resembled those used by the most popular farm equipment manufacturers of the day. From 1945 to mid-1946, CJ-2As were only available in two color combinations: Pasture Green with Autumn Yellow wheels and Harvest Tan with Sunset Red wheels. Additional color combinations added in mid-1946 were: Princeton Black with Harvard Red or Sunset Red wheels, Michigan Yellow with Pasture Green, Sunset Red or Americar Black wheels, Normandy Blue with Autumn Yellow or Sunset Red wheels, and Harvard Red with Autumn Yellow or Americar Black wheels. The Pasture Green and Harvest Tan combinations were dropped later in 1946. The Harvard Red combinations were dropped in 1947 and replaced with Picket Gray with Harvard Red wheels, and Luzon Red with Universal Beige wheels. In 1948, these color combinations were also added: Emerald Green with Universal Beige wheels, Potomac Gray with Harvard Red or American Black wheels.

If you like post-war Jeeps but hoped to find one that's not Army Green, you should stop by MotoeXotica Classic Cars and check out this red example.

VIN: CJ2A191722

This truck is currently located at our facility in St. Louis, Missouri. Current mileage on the odometer shows 73,527 miles. It is sold as is, where is, on a clean and clear, mileage exempt title. GET OUT AND DRIVE!!!

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