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Willys Jeep Truck History
Willys Trucks
Willys trucks and station wagons are not nearly as well known as the ubiquitous and familiar "Jeep". But in fact Willys made a number of different truck models, including the 6-226 truck with an open rear bed (an early "pickup"), the Forward Control model FC-150 and the 6-226 4x4 station wagon.
At the close of WWII, Willys-Overland had to switch over to the production of civilian vehicles after the extremely successful production of the M-series military Jeeps, of which over 300,000 were manufactured. The war had given Willys a built in market advantage: hundreds of thousands of servicemen who were now consumers considered the Jeep brand the epitome of toughness and durability. |
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Willys first introduced the CJ-2A in 1945 but quickly followed it up with a new "Utility Vehicles" line: the Willys Jeep Wagon Model 463 in 1946, the Willys Jeep Truck in 1947, and the Willys "Jeepster" in 1948 (a convertible with a racier image). Still based on the military Jeep concept, these new models offered the public the more familiar rounded forms of other popular vehicles of the time yet were promoted by stressing the military heritage. Two-wheel drive was standard, with 4WD available as an option (not until 1949 for the wagon in the 4x463 model, never for the jeepster), as was a larger 6-cylinder engine in all models. |
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| The Jeep Truck was available in Pickup, Stake Bed, and Cab & Chassis models. A 463 derived Panel Wagon (Model 463PD) was also introduced in 1947, but wasn't available in 4WD until the newer Model 4x473SD (now called a Sedan Delivery) and even then, not until the
1954 model year. |
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Forward Control 150 and 170
In 1956, the Willys Motor Company (Kaiser purchased Willyls-Overland in 1953 and changed the name) introduced the snub-nosed "Forward Control" model (shown at right). None of the "Big Three" American autmakers had made much of a foray into the lightweight 4x4 utility vehicle market. Introduced as the FC-100, it featured a cab-over-engine design. It was powered by the familiar Jeep 75hp F-Head inline 4 and was equipped with nine forward and three reverse gear combinations. The selling points incuded larger pay load capacity with the cab moved up over the engine, increased visibility, put at 200% more than in conventional vehicles of comparable size and the power and maneuverability of four-wheel-drive on an 81" wheelbase.
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At the end of 1956, the FC-150 model was introduced, and the FC-170 came out in late 1957 at approximately 7,000 lbs., a wheelbase of 103.5", and the 105hp "Super Hurricane" engine. Neither model was a big seller for Willys. The heaviest truck Willys ever produced was the FC-170 DRW (shown at right) available with dual rear wheels in gross weight ratings of 8,000 pounds or 9,000 pounds.
Production of Willys trucks and station wagons continued until 1965, by which time the company name had changed again, to the Kaiser-Jeep Corporation, at which time the Forward Control model was discontinued. |
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