Photo: Barrett-Jackson
I don't ask this often of you, but when you click on the photo gallery of this piece make sure you enlarge a side photo of the car shown there. Focus on the lower, purple part of the door. Enlarge again. Seem them yet?
You all know the Willys Americar. Born in the factories of Willys Overland, the same guys that introduced to this world the name Jeep for the first time, the car was only on the market for five years, between 1937 and 1942.
That means it didn't impress the crowds all that much back then, and most definitely the raging World War II had a say in the model's demise. But it didn't completely disappear from sight, as so many others did, and slowly became one of the favorite base cars for customization work.
We've seen plenty of them come into the spotlight in recent years, but the one we're looking at now is perhaps the most contradictory of them all.
On one hand, you all know how custom Americars reinterpreted for today's drivers usually get painted in bright, vivid colors, meant to enhance further the beautiful native lines of the Willys. Compared to those, the combination between Magic Blue, Cortez Blue, and purple used in this case seems a bit dull.
On the other, the rather toned-down vibe this color scheme has is more than matched by the meanness of the three skulls airbrushed in the lower portion of each door. We are not told what these scary details are meant to represent, but they sure are the element that makes the build stand out in a crowd of much flashier Americars.
It's auction house Barrett-Jackson that brought this thing to our attention, as it's getting ready to send it under the hammer at the end of September in New Orleans.
We have no info on who was responsible for making it, but we do know it was completed in 2005. It pairs an Art Morrison chassis with a 400ci Chevrolet engine tweaked by Merkel Racing and is equipped with Gen 2 fuel injection and twin turbos.
Located under the hood, together with an even larger skull, the engine works with a transmission with just three speeds, which seems enough to handle the undisclosed amount of power the unit develops, all of which is sent to a 9-inch rear.
The wheels that transform the engine's power into motion are of Colorado Custom make and are wrapped in Continental ContiTouring Contact tires. When it needs to stop, the car relies on Wilwood disc brakes.
The interior of the Americar is a perfect continuation of the exterior color scheme, used over vinyl and suede. The presence of a roll cage makes it clear that the vehicle was not just built for show. A RacePak dashboard is located in front of the two seats holding gauges of undisclosed provenance.
The auction house doesn't say how much it expects to get for the Americar, but the fact it goes with no reserve could lead to a lot of surprises.
That means it didn't impress the crowds all that much back then, and most definitely the raging World War II had a say in the model's demise. But it didn't completely disappear from sight, as so many others did, and slowly became one of the favorite base cars for customization work.
We've seen plenty of them come into the spotlight in recent years, but the one we're looking at now is perhaps the most contradictory of them all.
On one hand, you all know how custom Americars reinterpreted for today's drivers usually get painted in bright, vivid colors, meant to enhance further the beautiful native lines of the Willys. Compared to those, the combination between Magic Blue, Cortez Blue, and purple used in this case seems a bit dull.
On the other, the rather toned-down vibe this color scheme has is more than matched by the meanness of the three skulls airbrushed in the lower portion of each door. We are not told what these scary details are meant to represent, but they sure are the element that makes the build stand out in a crowd of much flashier Americars.
It's auction house Barrett-Jackson that brought this thing to our attention, as it's getting ready to send it under the hammer at the end of September in New Orleans.
We have no info on who was responsible for making it, but we do know it was completed in 2005. It pairs an Art Morrison chassis with a 400ci Chevrolet engine tweaked by Merkel Racing and is equipped with Gen 2 fuel injection and twin turbos.
Located under the hood, together with an even larger skull, the engine works with a transmission with just three speeds, which seems enough to handle the undisclosed amount of power the unit develops, all of which is sent to a 9-inch rear.
The wheels that transform the engine's power into motion are of Colorado Custom make and are wrapped in Continental ContiTouring Contact tires. When it needs to stop, the car relies on Wilwood disc brakes.
The interior of the Americar is a perfect continuation of the exterior color scheme, used over vinyl and suede. The presence of a roll cage makes it clear that the vehicle was not just built for show. A RacePak dashboard is located in front of the two seats holding gauges of undisclosed provenance.
The auction house doesn't say how much it expects to get for the Americar, but the fact it goes with no reserve could lead to a lot of surprises.
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