Thread: My 41 willys

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Well here is another fun wall that I ran into. I sat in the car today and slid the seat all the way back and guess what! F#@k my legs are still bent up against the toe plate i think its called or firewall. There is no room for pedals of any kind and if I look left or right I'm staring at a piece of metal not out the side window. I f there was a steering wheel it would be out of reach by alot. I would have to be an ape to drive it!!! I do believe that you are right , I think the firewall has been moved way back into the cab to fit a gasser type engine set up. What now? Cut out the firewall piece and re weld it further forward? This sucks!!!

Well, not many of these early cars are what we can call roomy, especially by today's standards. I don't know if people back then were smaller or what. But if your already cramped cockpit has a modified firewall to accomodate a big block set back some, then you are going to be even more cramped.

Most of us who have been playing with these things for a while come to accept a certain amount of cramping, particularly when we chop and channel a car. It is just part of the fun. I think you mentioned you are new to the game, so that realization probably hasn't happened for you yet.

The other problem is that the Willys was sort of a compact of it's time......maybe not as much as an Anglia, but small none-the-less. When you start shoving a V8 into an engine compartment where a 4 was designed to go, something has to give, and that something is usually the firewall and leg room. I am not familiar with your physical dimensions, but I am 5'9"/ 170-ish, so I fit into these things pretty well, but if you are taller and/or heavier, you might find the fit very tight.

Bottom line, I think you are expecting the car to be something it isn't, and that can come with newness to the hobby. Things could be worse, it could have an 8 point cage with doorbars to climb over.

Don

i took a ride in an early austin gasser with set back engine the footwell was small enought had i had to have one foot on top of the other, but i can say ive never been more comfortable in a car

You've got to build it to suit yourself,I don't see a lot of sense in putting money into a car to have the correct Gasser look and then not be able to drive it. On my little project I'm modifying coupe doors to gain 5 inches of room,compare your car to a ford coupe and you'll see where they took the difference in wheelbase from. You guessed it,the passenger compartment. The gasser class rules allowed a 10% setback,not required. Hank

I hope you're planning to drive up to Puyallup this next weekend for the Goodguys shindig. Bring your tape measure, pictures of your car, a camera and a notepad. There should be quite a few Willys there. If you approach most owners respectfully they'll be happy to share their experience and maybe even let you crawl around the car for measurement purposes once you let them know you're part of the "secret society". Even the glass cars should be informative, and will be in greater number than the steel ones. Someone may have dealt with the issues you face in a way that will inspire you.

The Willys passenger compartments were small in the first place but with the amount that has been taken from yours already I would find it very difficult to drive with any reasonable expentancy for comfort. Believe me when I say from experience that trying to put seats big enough to be easy on the tush and still have leg room, even for short guys like me, is a challenge and then with the size of your firewall box and tunnel shape, you will find it hard to have both a brake and throttle without the tendency to hit one or the other when you don't want to. I know you want to keep it as correct as your father-in-law had it but perhaps he wasn't far enough along to really understand the drawback as well.
With both the sentimental value and the market value that your car will have you owe to yourself, and to the next owner, (let's be realistic somebody else will own it even it it is your kids), to make it as driveable and thereby as valuable as it can be.
John

some of the old willys gassers that had alot of engine set back i have seen them mount the throttle pedal on the trans tunnel and the clutch in the foot box and a hand brake!! in some extreme cases anyway. but from alot of pics ia have seen the throttle pedal up on the tunnel was somewhat popular with either a hand brake or two small brake and clutch pedals. depending on if this will be an auto or stick. but thats for an all out racecar. what are you trying to turn this car into?

To answerwe the last question first. I'm just trying to turn the car into a nice street rod.. Thats the way my father in law would have wanted it. My stature is 5'5" and I'm about 200 pounds. Built like a firehydrant! I was looking at the firewall and I do have to tell ya that it looks like it follows original lines . It really doesn't look " to the untrained eye" that its been moved at all. Maybe it just fits that way ??I'm just going to have to take more pics and with me in the cockpit and post them. Maybe you guys will think it looks perfectly normal. Thanks again : jimmy

the first pic is pretty close to a stock original firewall. Most glass bodies have about a 6" -8" setback in the middle for a v-8 clearance. I think your biggest problem is that the floor does not remain flat to the firewall but has the angled "footrest" added, which probably shouldn't have been. perhaps you can remove that and let the floor continue on to the firewall. that should give you the room for pedals. as for needing "ape" arms, just allow your steering column to reach back to you. You will learn to lean forward to look out the windows. Don't expect to see much though, especially out the back windows.

John

I can't see for sure but as I look closer at your firewall I think that the whole thing has been moved back to the windshield. as you can see form the original you should have about 6+" of body in front of the windshield before the firewall actually begins. can you give us a shot of the outside of the fiewall?
John

John has found the problem exactly IMO. Your firewall could be reduced and that toeboard eliminated entirely which would free up lots of foot room. It would also give you a chance to jig up the car and fix the door issue.

Don

You may be interested in this link they specialise in Willys in your neck of the woods www.rodcraft.cc/contact.html

want a 64 nova instead?