turbo diesel Willys!

[vwtipeii]

looking great man! You can smell the finish line....

[daniel_buck]

Little bit of update!

I changed the top of the roll cage (sorry Kurt!) to something more flat on top.

And getting more practice with the tube bender, I made a storage rack for the rear

Also added two ammo boxes for dry storage,

And put spring loaded quick release pins on the tailgate for quick easy opening. No rattles from a chain, and it opens and closes instantly! That'll make getting into the storage area behind the seats alot easier, and combined with the rack, I think it'll be much easier to "live" out of for the next trip! I got alot of ideas during the Moab trip! Both from the experience of driving that far in a loaded down jeep, and also from seeing all the other old flat fender jeeps there!

I haven't made knobs for the quick release pins yet, just wingnuts on there for now. I'll make something with a small ring on the end, so you can pull the pins with one finger, and make the ring large enough so that it can be opened with gloves on.

Next step, I think I need to intercool the intake coming out of the turbo, even in the cold weather to and from Moab (2 snow storms!) the EGTs would get hot enough to require slowing down a bit on some of the long steeper grades.

[daniel_buck]

Jeff (jpet, on a few of the forums) made me some quick 1/2 doors for my coast-to-coast trip, just got them mounted. I leave for North Carolina this Wednesday morning, less than 2 days away!

They are bolted on except for the front two mounts, which are "turn button" fasteners. Not sure if I like these or not, I may switch them out for snap buttons after this trip, but we'll see. Maybe the turn buttons will grow on me


The doors will help with wind and rain/water spray from the tires, and will also keep my legs warmer if I go through any real cold areas again like on the moab trip. Driving around 50-60mph, I hardly get any wind on my legs anymore. With the front 2 fasteners undone and the door folded out, it's actually not much worse getting in and out of the jeep than without the doors at all, that's nice.

Thanks for getting those so quick Jeff!
















And I made a sheet metal top (aluminum, roughly 20 gauge?), I'll be bolting that on tomorrow, waiting for a few small U bolts and J clamps from Synergy.

I've painted it a sort of Tan OD color, a bit brighter than the rest of the jeep, figure in the summer that might be a little bit cooler in the desert. You can see the top with the paint drying in the 1st photo next to the jeep (with the little warning beacon light on it).

[alittleoff]

Dan, the very best of luck to you. Are you cruising solo or with others? Are you driving direct or meandering?

Steve

[daniel_buck]

Solo! Driving direct the way their, along the 40 most of the way. On the way back if things are looking good, I'll maybe meander a bit and see some areas and visit some friends along the way back home.

[aw12345]

That's gonna be a long ride, goodluck and happy trails. I like where the ole gurl is headed, nice work

[Ol Man]

Enjoy the drive. The Jeep looks great. One of these days I hope to see it in person.

[dirtman13]

Good luck Daniel. you doing a blog or something?

[6spdYJ]

That build just oozes cool! The 40 is a fun drive in a classic. The best part is, if anything happens to break you already know how to fix it. Have a blast.

[Jason]

Be safe Daniel. That's a long ride. At your max speed Texas will take forever. Have fun.

[daniel_buck]

Thanks for all the well wishes!

It's amazing how many folks have messaged or emailed me about my trip wishing me luck, lending advice, or offering up a garage to park in along the way. I don't really expect to break down anywhere, but I suspect that if I do enough people are checking up on me that I feel I'd be just fine breaking down any old where :-D

I will try to figure out how to post photos from my phone here on the forums.


Russ messaged me and said he's already heading towards Flagstaff tomorrow morning, so I'm going to be tagging along with him until we both reach flagstaff, then I'll continue on. It'll be nice to have a friend a long the way for the first leg of the trip!

Thanks Russ! See you in the morning


Jason, you should see the old Willys now, it's nothing like it was when we picked it up back... 4 years ago or so? It's much faster, yet just as slow

[Russ Chung]

We decided to take the Historic Route 66 and stay off the interstate as much as possible.

[Ol Man]

Did you eat at the Road Kill Cafe in Seligman?

[Russ Chung]

Listen to the roar of the turbo diesel as we left Williams, AZ

https://youtu.be/8Fq3HVgGOgA

[daniel_buck]

I made it to my destination in North Carolina, no problems!