Del Francis found this "Topeka Hiway Mower" which looks like it might be a distant cousin of the Willys CJ-3B. As Del says, "This followed me home the other day. It is supposed to be a Willys tractor by Topeka Highway Equipment. It has a Continental engine but everything else seems to be Willys. I have no idea what year it is. It has a sickle mower and a blade."
See also a photo with that nice tall windshield (100K JPEG) in the up position.
Anybody have more information about the Topeka mower?
At the other end of the sports/utility spectrum is this Jeep, obviously intended more for fun than hard work. It was described in an online auction in 2003 as a 1960 2-wheel drive Jeep with 3-speed column shift and a rust-free replacement steel body added in an older restoration. It clearly began life as a DJ-3A, but what makes it particularly interesting, and surprising that it was given a high-hood CJ-3B tub, is its connection with the Kaiser family, owners of Willys Motors and Kaiser Jeep from 1953 to 1969.
It was claimed that the Jeep was "previously owned by Alyce Kaiser and was housed at her St. Croix, Virgin Islands compound until it was acquired by Edgar F. Kaiser Jr. on 1/11/88."
See also a photo of the flathead engine (30K JPEG) and a rear view photo (25K JPEG) showing the non-original taillights and surrey-style top.
Tiziano Pizzagalli in Italy sent this photo of his Spanish VIASA CJ-3B with Perkins 1740 cc. diesel engine, taken at Omaha Beach, Normandy.
Tiiziano sold this Jeep in 1987, but apparently the image of a Jeep on the beach at Normandy stayed with him, because he says that "At this moment I am restoring a 1942 Ford GPW."
And then the tide comes in: the Jeep in the water is Edwin Go's Mitsubishi J24A, carrying him through some flooding in the Philippines. See More Mitsubishi Jeep Photos for more on Edwin's Jeep.
Another natural disaster: the Jeep under the tree belonged to Brian Maglosky (who now owns a 1963 CJ-3B.) It had a small block Chevy which he installed without cutting the front cross member. He says, "It was extremely good offroad and could literally idle up any hill. True story: I had just sold the Jeep. I had it parked next to the tree, and the tree fell on it. I called the guy and told him what happened and he still bought it."
Thanks to all of the photographers. -- Derek Redmond
Want to see more trouble? Check out Do CJ-3B's Get Stuck?
Return to the Index of Unusual Photos on The CJ3B Page.
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