Photo: Mecum Auctions
Crossovers are selling like hotcakes nowadays to the point where many automakers are dropping small cars to build crossovers of all shapes and sizes. This has been going on since the late 1990s, but the crossover concept is an idea that can be traced back to the 1940s.
There's a lot of debate as to which company built the first crossover. Most enthusiasts credit the AMC Eagle, introduced in 1979 as a station wagon with a suspension lift. Some say it was the Matra Rancho, launched in 1977. But the Willys Jeepster, which first debuted in 1948, is also eligible as an early forerunner of the modern crossover.
Built by Willys-Overland Motors, the company that eventually became known as Jeep, the Jeepster was designed in an attempt to offer a passenger car alongside the SUV-like vehicles based on the early Jeep CJ. The Jeepster still looked like a CJ, but it featured a proper windscreen and side windows, proper doors, and a retractable soft top. It offered seating for four and sat closer to the ground. But its ride height was still greater than most automobiles of the era, so Willys unknowingly delivered the first commercial crossover. Or a primitive version of it.
It was produced from 1948 to 1950, so it wasn't exactly popular. Kaiser Jeep revisited the idea in 1966 with the Jeepster Commando, the spiritual predecessor to the Cherokee.
Although it featured whitewall tires, chrome trim, a glovebox, and a friendlier interior, the Jeepster was as spartan as the Willys CJ under the shell. It was offered with the same four-cylinder engine (with 63 horsepower) that Willys had been using during World War II, and all-wheel-drive was not available. The Jeepster was also notably more expensive than some V8-powered convertibles of the era, so it didn't catch on.
Jeep eventually introduced inline-six engines and lowered the price, but the Jeepster went into the history books without leaving a big mark on the industry with only 19,000 units built.
Seventy years later, the Jeepster is getting more attention from Jeep enthusiasts and classic car collectors. This red-painted example from the 1950s, for instance, was thoroughly restored and fitted with a big 5.7-liter Oldsmobile engine. It also features extra like front disc brakes, a radio, and a heater. There's no word on how much power the V8 delivers, but a Jeepster with such a big engine is most likely a proper hot-rod. Fancy a classic sleeper? It's going at auction via Mecum in late March 2021.
Built by Willys-Overland Motors, the company that eventually became known as Jeep, the Jeepster was designed in an attempt to offer a passenger car alongside the SUV-like vehicles based on the early Jeep CJ. The Jeepster still looked like a CJ, but it featured a proper windscreen and side windows, proper doors, and a retractable soft top. It offered seating for four and sat closer to the ground. But its ride height was still greater than most automobiles of the era, so Willys unknowingly delivered the first commercial crossover. Or a primitive version of it.
It was produced from 1948 to 1950, so it wasn't exactly popular. Kaiser Jeep revisited the idea in 1966 with the Jeepster Commando, the spiritual predecessor to the Cherokee.
Although it featured whitewall tires, chrome trim, a glovebox, and a friendlier interior, the Jeepster was as spartan as the Willys CJ under the shell. It was offered with the same four-cylinder engine (with 63 horsepower) that Willys had been using during World War II, and all-wheel-drive was not available. The Jeepster was also notably more expensive than some V8-powered convertibles of the era, so it didn't catch on.
Jeep eventually introduced inline-six engines and lowered the price, but the Jeepster went into the history books without leaving a big mark on the industry with only 19,000 units built.
Seventy years later, the Jeepster is getting more attention from Jeep enthusiasts and classic car collectors. This red-painted example from the 1950s, for instance, was thoroughly restored and fitted with a big 5.7-liter Oldsmobile engine. It also features extra like front disc brakes, a radio, and a heater. There's no word on how much power the V8 delivers, but a Jeepster with such a big engine is most likely a proper hot-rod. Fancy a classic sleeper? It's going at auction via Mecum in late March 2021.
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