One of the questions we ask ourselves whenever we have a bit of spare time regards the LSX-powered Jeep Willis. Ever since the project started taking shape a few years ago, this piece of America has been keeping us entertained.
Its most recent feat, a wheelstand worthy of an amusement park ride, comes thanks to its latest tech upgrade, which sees the muscle going into the ridiculous zone.
Let’s get one thing straight first - when you drive a Jeep Willis, you never expect your vehicle to pull a wheelie to such an angle that the rear bumper gets scratched, no matter how many horses you fit under that military hood.
Then again, perhaps this needs a bit of thinking through, and that’s because this offroader packs around 1,000 hp. We’re talking about a machine that started out in life as a 1952 Army-spec Willys Jeep.
Its gravity-fighting abilities are owed to a 292 ci (4.8-liter) LSX V8, which gets plenty of help from a D1 ProCharger supercharger and likes to sip plenty of nitrous.
This is more like riding a motorcycle
The most interesting part about this is that the driving experience looks more like a riding experience. Why? Well, one explanation would be the lack of a few elements we’ve come to associate with cars, from the windshield to the safety belt. A rollcage? Nope, not even close. Perhaps a headrest would be a good idea though.
Nonetheless, this has always been the type of “work in progress” car, so perhaps one day things will get a bit safer. Until then, the owner explains what you see in the clip below is the result of a setup that still doesn’t fully tap into the engine’s potential.
In his quest to bring you the most impressive automotive creations, Andrei relies on learning as a superpower. There's quite a bit of room in the garage that is this aficionado's heart, so factory-condition classics and widebody contraptions with turbos poking through the hood can peacefully coexist. Full profile
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