Oregon man buys a 1949 Willys Wagon and tries to drive it 2,164 miles across America to get it home

This man bought a 1949 Willys Wagon online and attempted to drive it 2,164 miles from Missouri to Oregon to get it home. 

The Willys Wagons went into production in the United States back in 1946. 

During its US production run, which lasted until 1964, more than 300,000 Willy Wagons and its variants were built. 

Back then, they were known for being a reliable and dependable vehicle – and one car enthusiast decided to test out if that was still true more than seven decades on.

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He found the 1949 Willys Wagon on Facebook Marketplace

The vintage vehicle was snapped up by YouTuber Casey LaDelle, who discovered it on Facebook Marketplace – a great place to look if you’re after something a little unusual such as this Boonie Bug or this street-legal Chevy Camaro golf cart. 

In LaDelle’s case, he eyed up this 1949 Willys Wagon that had been placed up for sale in Missouri as he thought it would be the ‘perfect candidate’ to put tracks on during the winter. 

LaDelle, who has previously pulled off this excellent prank on a neighbor, flew out to Missouri and gave the Willys Wagon a once-over. 

He noted that while the wagon had retained its vintage bodywork, it had benefitted from modern upgrades including a new V6 engine and transmission system.

But purchasing the wagon was only the beginning of the task, now LaDelle had to get into the 75-year-old vehicle and attempt to drive it 2,164 miles back home. 

The wagon was taken on an epic road trip

In preparation for the road trip, LaDelle simply topped up its fluids and got cracking. 

During the 2,164-mile road trip, LeDelle and the wagon encountered some seriously harsh weather including heavy rainfall, dense fog, icy roads, and blizzards that led to road closures. 

However, the reliable Willys Wagon was able to tackle every weather condition with no issues, aside from a windshield wiper arm falling off, which was easily fixed on the roadside. 

LaDelle was left seriously impressed by the wagon. 

“We made it, with all the detours and closed highways and backroads it ended up being 2,164 miles in a 75-year old Willys Wagon that I had never seen before,” he said in the video. 

“And I had zero issues other than this wiper arm falling off, which was no big deal.”

In fact, he was so impressed that he decided to he’d fit some snow tracks on it so it could run throughout winter.

LaDelle told Supercar Blondie that once the tracks are on he’ll use the wagon to do snow recovery for stranded vehicles.

You can check out the full video – and lots of other cool videos – on Casey LaDelle’s YouTube channel here.