(quoted from post at 06:14:21 09/11/22) Now THATS a rare one, built before the Army made Ford adopt the Willys engine to standardize the Jeep/GPW to ease motor pool service. Good luck finding that manifold, carburettor and (obviously) the correct air cleaner!
When I first hired into G.M.(1976), there was an old Skilled Trades guy who drove a topless Ford GPW to work almost every day, year 'round. On the rare days he didnt drive his Jeep, he drove a beat up 1950's Harley panhead. I was terribly envious of his rides, but far more impressed by his weather-beating toughness- driving rain, snowdrifts across the parking lot, -15F and windy, nothing could stop this guy and his open-air commute! Every once and awhile, I'd see him parking (always up front by the entrance gate/guard shack), and make some small talk- ''Damn cold day for a bike ride!'' I'd say as he got off his Harley on a below freezing February day. ''Yeah, someday I gotta get some gloves.'' or ''Hell, I grew up in the U.P., I didnt even notice!'' he'd say, trundling off to work and leaving me in a state of absolute wonderment.
A few years later, he disappeared. No GPW, no Harley, no oil slick by the gate-all gone. A few years further on, I was eating my lunch one day outside by the gate and a friend and I got to talking about Harleys. ''Remember that old dude with the panhead or the jeep that used to park there?'' I said, pointing to his spot. ''Yeah,'' he said, ''... that was Fartin' Phil. Never saw him do anything, so I guess he was a Millwright? He died in his sleep a few years ago, up in an overhead crane in the draw die area. Last anyone saw him was on a Friday night, and then the crane operator found him dead Monday morning.''
''Well, he really impressed me the way he always drove that jeep or his bike, no matter the weather! I always thought he was one tough old S.O.B.'' I said.
''Well, yeah, kinda...'' my buddy said, then he stood up and pointed down the parking lot aisle to a tiny house directly across the street from the plant, sandwiched between two shop-rat dive bars and less than a tenth of a mile away from us- ''Thats where he lived.''