Last year, David showed us some remarkable sketches of Jeep ZJ Cherokee design development, sketches found by a Detroit-area reader who discovered the drawings for sale at a flea market. Well, as it says in either the the Bible (Book of Galifracians, 16:33) or maybe John Tesh’s autobiography (they’re remarkably similar works), “the market of fleas provides.” This time, the flea market has provided some really fascinating stuff, in the form of some fascinating internal design drawings and renderings from Willys/Jeep.
There’s a lot that was there (seen and photographed by our own Bishop), so I’m going to just dole some of these interesting things out in little chunks, and today I want to show you a particularly fascinating Jeep that never came to be, something that feels a lot like a ’60s version of the infamous Nissan Murano Cross Cab, but actually has a pretty firm precedent in Jeep history.
These drawings come from the estate of Joseph Papai, who was a well-known and accomplished automotive designer who happens to have also been the source of the ZJ Cherokee sketches we wrote about before. However in this case, unlike the ZJ, I don’t believe Papai was directly involved with the design, as Papai wasn’t involved with Jeep/AMC until the 1980s, and these sketches are from the early 1960s.
These are extremely interesting sketches and renderings for a number of reasons, not the least of which is when they seem to be done. The date on this photograph of what may be a fiberglass model is November 8, 1961; the styling of the front end is quite clearly the exact same as Brooks Steven’s famous design for the Jeep Wagoneer, released to market in 1962, as a 1963 model, I believe.
In fact, the front door appears to be the same, along with hood, front fenders, and, really, pretty much all of the body up to the B-pillar, where the rear door is lost in favor of a shorter rear with a trunk, and, of course, a convertible top.
Here’s what looks like either the same or another fiberglass model, this time from the rear; you can see the original ribbed Wagoneer taillights used here, too:
This doesn’t feel like something that the Wagoneer was adapted into after the fact; this seems like something that was being developed alongside the four-door SUV/wagon-style Jeep Wagoneer that we all know today.
To our younger readers, this sort of SUV-turned-into-a-strange-and-kinda-fussy-convertible may remind them of something like a Nissan Murano Cross Cab, but the truth is that Willys/Jeep has had a long history with taking rugged off-roaders and turning them into charming if mildly silly and overdone convertible cars of leisure. Remember the Jeepster?
The first generation Jeepster, from 1948, started as a way of repackaging wartime-style Jeeps as something people sick of war may like, so they were slathered in chrome and painted in nice pastels and had whitewalls slapped on, and sold as a good time on four wheels.
Later, there was a re-birth of the Jeepster in 1967, this time known as the Jeepster Convertible or Jeepster Commando, but following basically the same formula: civilize an off-roader with lots of chrome and color and a silly continental tire kit:
Of course, our pictures here date from a good six years before the Commando-based revived Jeepster came out! Look at these earlier sketches, from August 1961:
These sketches seem to predate the finalization of a lot of Wagoneer design details, as it differes pretty significantly in a lot of body lines and details. Details and trim are substantially different, too; for example, this sketch shows a different taillight treatment than what would come to be used on the production Wagoneer, which were what we saw on the models from three months later in the pictures above.
The spare tire here also seems to have some sort of cover over it, and no provision to open any sort of trunk at the rear, like a massive, butchier early Nash Metropolitan.
The sketch above seems to have come between the August sketches and November models, as it shows body panels closer to what the final Wagoneer ones looked like, as well as in details like the taillights. Are those reverse lamps below them, or some sort of step? Maybe both? And what are those leather straps for?
I think what we’re seeing here are designs for adapting the then brand-new Wagoneer into a re-born Jeepster, something that would not happen with the introduction of the Wagoneer, but would get revived, in quite different Jeep Commando form, in 1967, as we mentioned above. But it looks like Willys was seriously considering bringing the Jeepster concept back much sooner!
These pictures and sketches – and so very much more – are being sold by Mike Tafralian, and if you’re interested in them or knowing what other treasures he’s got, then you can email him here. There’s so much fascinating stuff, it’ll make you wonder why there’s no dedicated Jeep museum around.
How I Managed To Destroy Two Engines Without Driving My 1979 Jeep Cherokee Golden Eagle More Than 20 Miles
The Jeep CJ-5 Had One Of The Strangest Side Marker Solutions Ever Seen By Human Eyes
Detroiter Attends Swap Meet And Buys Me A Motherlode Of Jeep Drawings From The Original Designer
Those clearly not as nice Jeepster design give me the Willy’s. You’d never Wrangler me into one of them. Because I fight for my Liberty to remain free. Maybe if I hit my head and it Scramblered my brain. Otherwise it would take a band of Cherokee to even ride in one. Heads up currently I’m going Commando.
I love that blue/white Jeepster ad photo for including the popular ’60s-’70s car ad meme of having a crowd of people surrounding a new car with each person required to have a unique facial expression or body language.
Even the driver, who’s wondering “Was this door’s panel gap that big in the showroom?” Or perhaps she’s thinking “It’s true! The Jeepster does get its wheel covers from J.C. Whitney!”
Even earlier, the 1948 Jeepster ad is the same.
Obligatory T. Rex song reference https://youtu.be/FApi-kFFqUI?si=sZKB8kKY-mzATNng
Not certain how accurate the story is, but I was told Kaiser intended to go forward with this and they wanted to call it the Wagonaire as a play on Wagoneer, but Studebaker locked up that name for its Lark wagon sliding roof variant. Coincidentally, Brooke Stevens designed both the Wagoneer and the Wagonaire. Ultimately, Jeep did not proceed with the Wagoneer-based design and began planning for a new, smaller Jeepster design. The Studebaker Wagonaire died with the 1966 model, the same year Jeep introduced the CJ-based Jeepster Commando (later just Commando). Funny old world.
I’m getting serious Mohs SafariKar vibes from this Jeep concept:
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1975-mohs-safarikar/
This is an interesting thread, that I do feel they should have followed. One of the frustrating things about my SJ Cherokee, is the roof looks SO much like a contemporary Bronco or Blazer, but is not removable. Considering the SJ SUV’s are really about the same size as a K5 Blazer or 2nd gen Bronco I think a removable roof version would have been a pretty decent sales success. I think once the Jeepster/Commando was redesigned to be more Bronco-y, it was a little late. Too small to be a K5/Bronco competitor, and too big to compete with their own CJ series.
Those last pics look like what would happen if I asked an AI to give me what it would look like if someone from the 1950s sketched the 1984 Cadillac Seville.
These seem true… wouldn’t have saved AMC though.
“Commando” always seemed such a discordant moniker for such an obvious attempt at a jaunty, fun car. Kinda the opposite of some of Japan’s naming conventions back in the day, like Bluebird.
And why hasn’t Jeep brought it back now, given its contemporary grrr/tough thing?
When I saw the sketch I thought, “This is just a Jeepster, it actually did happen with a slightly modified design.”
The headline should have been. “This was almost a Jeepster for your love.”