Just got back from the Easter Jeep Safari and what a fantastic time it was despite returning with Bronchitis, Pneumonia and a torn Achilles Tendon.
We spent hours talking and showing off the Willys to strangers and regularly took us 45 minutes just to top up the gas tanks. It was a great experience.
But…….. the same old question just kept popping up. Did we clone the amazing Sebastián Varas Willys so prominently featured in magazines and the Ultimate Adventure, etc. Well the answer is a resounding NO. Sebastián did not start building his first Willys until 10 years after I started building mine. In fact when he started building his first one in 2009 he made this comment on the first page of his Chilean Twisted Andes blog -
“En el fondo, la idea es hacer un CLON del Willys de esta foto, pero con un upgrade de motor (este tiene un V6)”
(Translated)
“In the background, the idea is to make a Willys CLONE of this photo, but with an engine upgrade (this one has a V6)”
Sebastián is a brilliant fabricator and has built two far, far superior machines than mine, but mine has been ticking along for close to 20 years now and I intend to keep on wheeling it for many years to come.