1958: Steven Bolger
"I'm from Succasunna, NJ, and I purchased this 1958 3B in 2010. The body is in extremely poor condition but mechanically it is surprisingly sound. It hadn't been started in over 15 years (170K JPEG) but with a new battery, coil and a couple shots of ether, it was running like it had just been parked. Amazing. I couldn't resist driving it around my neighborhood (with no brakes). I haven't had so much fun in long time. People were giving me "thumbs up" and big smiles. This little willys seems to really make people feel good.
"The elderly gentleman I acquired it from said he used to have several but has junked them over the years. They were all surplus (including mine) from Picatinny Arsenal, just a few miles from my house. The only thing I have found so far that verifies it came from there is a metal plate (200K JPEG) with rusted rivets on the front bumper: 'Picatinny Arsenal CI291'. My intentions are to restore it as close to original as possible. Some of the paint layers are (from oldest) silver, red, olive, blue, and few variations here and there.
"Once I straighten up my garage and re-organize my tools, I will bring her in and start the surgery. I'm a licensed aircraft mechanic (but own an oil company) so I'm looking forward to turning some wrenches instead of talking with lawyers all day."
See also Steve's Jeep parked with the TJ (200K JPEG).
1958: Ian Hall
"I have owned this CJ-3B since 1972. It has been fully restored and registered since 1974. It was assembled by Willys Motors Australia in 1958 with Vehicle No. CJ 3B 1095. It was fitted with Australian made Lucas 12V electrical parts, including the starter and generator (dated 1958), regulator, headlights and wipers.
"The Jeep was originally purchased by the Royal Australian Air Force and painted Air Force blue/grey. Extras fitted included front and rear "D" sling hooks, shovel and bracket, tow bar, amp meter and oil pressure gauge. The CJ 3B has now covered 35,000 miles and contains about 98% of the original parts installed in 1958."
In 2012 Ian wrote, "I have just completed a repaint (240K JPEG) of the outside of the CJ3B to correct some defects which had developed over the last 40 years. I am now looking at getting all the canvas remade."
See also more photos and details on Ian's Jeep.
1958: Greg Wilkens
Greg is in Mildura, Victoria, Australia. He says, "I got the registration and road worthy for my 1958 CJ-3B on 27 January 2010. Since early 2004 my CJ-3B has undergone full restoration. I had the body sandblasted, and cut out all the rust and panel beated all the body panels, and applied a small layer of body filler on the outside of the Jeep, just to straighten her out a bit. The chassis number is stamped on the side of the chassis L/H rear: 57348 46151S. It is right-hand drive with no cutouts or repairs to the toe board or the left hand side of the body. A 1953 CJ-3B was used as a parts donor for the 1958 CJ-3B. I bought both Jeeps (70K JPEG) from an ad in the local paper.
"I fully rebuilt the engine, gearbox, diffs, breaks and steering. I upgraded the steering linkages with a HJ60 Landcruiser tie rod and tie rod ends. I have eliminated the problem with the Jeep tie rod end slopping up and down (that I was never happy with.) See a photo with the front fenders removed, showing the RHD steering linkage (80K JPEG). See also right front and left rear and engine (80K JPEGs).
"I painted the body, rebuilt the instrument cluster (80K JPEG) and installed VDO instruments inside the original cluster (70K JPEG).
"Here are some photos of my CJ-3B on a 5-day camping trip (260K JPEG) in Sunset Country, a national park in Northwestern Victoria. Easter break 2011. First real trip the CJ-3B has been on, and without a problem at all, along the bush tracks (190K JPEG) and sand dunes. Everyone else had Toyota Landcruisers or Nissan Patrols with air conditioning -- I bet I had more fun riding the Jeep (100K JPEG) around the countryside than anyone else there that long weekend. I am most impressed with the Willys.
"See also a gecko friend on our front grille (90K JPEG) and ANZAC Day 2010 (240K JPEG)."
1958: Ross Holdway
Rossco's Royal Australian Air Force surplus '58 in Queensland, Australia is one of those right-hand-drive Jeeps in Australia that got the T-handle parking brake three years before it appeared on 3B's in the U.S. (see Dating a CJ-3B by Interior Details.) He says, "I suspect that the repositioning had something to do with ergonomics (a phrase not often linked with flat-fenders!) as the original position would have made use from the right hand side of the vehicle impossible. The hole for fitting the T-handle we did get though is rather interesting -- it appears to be roughly cut out by joining numerous drill holes." See a photo of the dash (20K JPEG.)
Rossco's 3B is an old 'Follow Me' Jeep like the one featured on The CJ3B Page in the historic photos on the tarmac, and he says, "Though my vehicle did come from Amberley Air Force base, I have no idea (yet!) whether it is actually the Jeep in the photos. A couple of interesting things are that it was once turbo-charged and had an overdrive (Wow!), both now gone, and that it went on a longish, and in the 70's very rough, expedition to the top of Cape York while still painted in checks!"
See details on Rossco's restoration of this Jeep in Two RAAF Brothers.
1958: Sean Newlin
"I live near Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia, and I have not long bought 2 CJ-3B's. The first is a left-hand drive and is a old shell and chassis and rear diff, not too good to look at. The second is a 1958 CJ-3B, right-hand drive, VIN 5734846145S, engine number 4J243557, and a number stamped on the left side of the chassis, W1298 (I have no idea what that number is.) The old girl will get a full restoration."
1958: Robert Shannon
"I am in Walnut Creek, California. I purchased this Jeep body from a fellow CJ-3B owner who had the body sitting in his field in Farmington CA. I purchased a running but totally rusted out CJ-6 form an owner in Napa CA. After collecting parts for the buildup for 3 years, I began by stripping the CJ-6 down to a bare frame, shortening the frame and adding all new suspension and body mounts. The Dana 44 rear came from a friend out of a Wagoneer, and the Dana 30 from a CJ-7. The transmission is a SM420 attached to a Dana 18 transfer case with a Warn overdrive. The Oddfire V-6 powers the Jeep quite nicely.
"I built the custom roll cage in a weekend using a friend's bender and welder. The paint is Ace Hardware school bus yellow, which matches the original color quite nicely. The inside is coated in Herculiner, and the seats came out of a Dodge Neon. This Jeep has been across the Rubicon many times and has been on many of the harder trails in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
We have made the trek to Moab, Utah for the Easter Jeep Safari."
1958: Nieves Garrastegui
"I'm a pulmonologist in San Juan, Puerto Rico, with Jeeps as my only hobby. I have a 1958 CJ-3B Willys, built entirely using information and specifications from The CJ3B Page. It has the original engine, transmission, wheels, etc. Most of the parts were installed in my home, by myself, after I returned from my duties in the hospital. Paint was done using the color chart obtained from The CJ3B Page.
"When I use my Jeep, there is always somebody that stops me to ask about it. My colleagues ask why this hobby. My basic answer is that when I was a little child, I worked helping my grandfather and my uncle, with a farm full of cows. They had a 1968 Ford Bronco and the farm neighbor had a 1958 CJ-3B Willys. When my relatives had problems with the mud stuck Bronco, I had to run to our neighbor to ask for help from the CJ-3B. That Jeep capability was so amazing for that time, that in my memory for a lot of years, CJ-3B was the invincible 4x4 vehicle. That is the reason why I decided to rebuild one for me. I'm also the owner of another two Jeeps, a Sahara TJ and a Rubicon JK."
See also a front view and a right side view (60K JPEGs).
1958: John King
"I'm located in Aurora, Ohio. I recovered my deceased father's jeep from the backyard this winter. It's been sitting there for the last 8 years. I plan to get it running and have some fun with it this summer. Chassis is in good shape, body needs work. I'll do the mechanical and electric but leave the body to the pros. Right now, I'm rebuilding the carb and pulling the head for inspection/cleaning.
"Disappointment.... Pulled the head hoping to just do some cleanup. As you can see (250K JPEG) three pistons
are shot. See also the valves (260K JPEG). Looks like a rebuild. I haven't taken an engine down past the heads before. New territory, but the F-head does look like an easier one than a V8."
1958: Ted Benbow
CJ-3B serial no. 57348 43397 belongs to Ted Benbow of Statesville NC, who says, "This jeep is licensed and inspected and driven on the road regularly.
It was green originally, then red, now olive green. It has two wooden strips along the full length of the hood. I have not seen this on any others. It also has a front split bench seat. I want to paint it back original."
1958: Peirce Eichelberger
Peirce in Pennsylvania says his 1958 is still 6-volt, with a Dualmatic PTO and overdrive. He's the second owner, and purchased it from a boatyard in Bradenton, FL for $195.00 in 1969. It has been to Nebraska, Cincinnati, and Florida three times since he moved to to PA in 1993. He comments, "Was a July 4, 2000 weekend project that lasted until late 2005. One of the most difficult tasks was to re-engineer the steering tube for the horn wire to work as Toledo intended. Used a freeze plug with a section of steel brake line brazed to center, installed using epoxy around plug to steering box."
Peirce got the last word in the discussion of Endearing Qualities of the CJ-3B on the CJ-3B Bulletin Board: "The high hood looks aggressive compared to the earlier Jeeps. I get more thumbs up in the old Jeep -- it's better to drive something old and nice rather then something new and common."
See a page of photos of the 1958 CJ-3B at the Jeep Shows.
1958: Gary McLean
Gary in New Zealand says, "Gidday, just bought this baby from a workmate's Hubby. Paid NZ$300.00 which is roughly US$250.00. Was restored in 1988 and is still in great condition. A local military collector told me the previous owner paid NZ$10,000.00 for it, and it has sat in a shed for the last few years. Only plans are to chuck rollbar out and drive to work."
1958: Jim Barr
Here's one more of those 1958 models which seem to be hard to find, maybe because so many of them went to Australia. This one shows only 13797 miles on the odometer as of January 2003, and belongs to Jim Barr of Cortlandt Manor, New York. It sports a Meyer halfcab steel top, Western snowplow S/N 12244, and Manley Winch with 9247 (cast) on tower pulley. Jim has owned the Jeep since 1985; the previous owner was a Chevrolet Dealership. Since then he's used it mostly just to plow a 60-foot driveway, and it's been parked outside but covered.
See also a photo of the engine with the hydraulic pump (70K JPEG) and a front view with the plow (60K JPEG.)
1958: Rob Wallace
"I'm from Brisbane, Austraila and I have owned the 3B for some years now after purchasing it from a friend who rebuilt it from the ground up. According to the serial no. it was built in 1958, and still has the original motor and gearbox. I still run the military 700/16 bar treads which are getting fairly rare over here now. I have kept it painted in olive drab, which is real easy to repaint for a lousy painter like me. The only extra I would like to get for it is an overdrive, but I'm not willing to sell my kidneys or liver yet. I am actually wanting to sell the 3B to make way for the next project."
See some more photos of this RHD Jeep: a side view (60K JPEG) and a rear view (16K JPEG). Also a great photo of the Jeep in action (50K JPEG).
1958: Tony Yuma
Tony Yuma's 1958 Jeep carries Arizona plates that say "58Willy". Tony says, "There has been some cutting and mods to my 3B, but I think I have something to work with. The wiring on the firewall (50K JPEG) will require a new harness if I touch it, and I don't know if that heater is stock or not. There's been some cutting and patch work under the drivers seat and all those holes on the dash for instruments (40K JPEG). I'm just going to work at it one step at a time."
See also a front view of Tony's Jeep (30K JPEG).
1958: Steve Perialas
"About five years ago I decided to pursue my plan of collecting one of each flat-fender Willys I had as a teenager and beyond. My 3B "Cherry Red" is the crown jewel of my Jeep collection."
See more photos of Cherry Red, along with the whole story of how Steve came to purchase the Jeep.
1958: Jon Paulsen
"The Jeep has a Buick V6 and a mild shackle lift. I've owned her since 1994 and have rebuilt the gear boxes and front axle (outer ends / knuckles) and had frame work done. It has a custom front crossmember, 11-inch brake drums and AA Chain clutch linkage. I've done a lot of work on it."
See some project photos of Jon's High-Hood Beauty, including the front frame crossmember and the V6. See also Tracks in the Woods for off-road photos, and Snow No Problem, Jon Says.
Note: Jon no longer owns this Jeep.
Continue to 1959 Owners and Photos.
Return to the index of Jeep CJ-3B Owners and Photos.
You can contact the CJ3B Page to add your CJ-3B to the Owners & Photos pages. -- Derek Redmond
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Last updated 30 December 2012 by Derek Redmond redmond@queensu.ca
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