Ask Lemmy

You said no airbags and then asked if it could pass modern standards. No of course not if you crash at speed you are dead

Straight from the original blueprints: heck no, consider the lack of seatbelts to say nothing of emissions.

With a bunch of engineering tweaks but staying close to original: maybe you could get it to be legal, but almost nobody would buy it. The gas mileage would be terrible. Maintenance would suck. Cars have EFI instead of carbeurators now for good reasons. And a car with no air conditioning would be miserable in lots of places.

Anyway if you wanted to do a project in that spirit today, I'd suggest making it all electric, but designed simple, like an e-bike on steroids instead of like a Tesla (which is more like a computer on wheels). Use LFP batteries instead of the higher energy but much more finicky and dangerous Tesla style packs, have some rooftop solar panels, maybe something like a street legal Kei minivan:

https://www.vantagevehicle.com/collections/electric/products/electric-passenger-window-van

You can buy those used in the US for around $5K but their top speed is 40mph, and they are only legal to drive on slower streets. I was a little bit tempted but decided I needed something that can drive on the freeway.

Mahindra started out by cloning the Willys and they sell something relatively modern in the states called the Roxor

I have experience with these. I learned to drive stick in one.

So they would in no way pass modern emissions standards, they also run on leaded 65+ octane fuel although regular fuel would work.

They have very little HP, less than 50, but im not sure, maybe 25-35.

The gearbox is unsynchronized and a 3 speed. The top speed is around 45 MPH I think.

It also wouldn't pass modern safety standards since it has no roll bar or crumple zones.

I want the SAS variant with the Vickers machine guns attached. I don't think I'm allowed one.

This guys sells a boxed/crate 1942 replica if you are interested

https://thejeepsterman.com/products/jeep-in-crate-mb-1942-willys-jeep

Maybe. if you can get it under UTV\ATV rules. I'm not sure what those are but you get a loteof options. It wouldn't be street leagal, butiin some cases you can drive on a road between off road trails - check local laws. If you want to sell this have your lawyers look as theremay be other exceptions - could you call this a farm vehicle if you add some accessory?

They do. Mahindra roxor.

I like the idea. But new vehicles are required at the federal level to have at least airbags, stability control, backup cameras, and soon automatic braking.

Yes. Because it is. https://www.hotcars.com/this-country-is-still-producing-ww2-willys-jeep-parts/

Absolutely not in the states though. Whatever came after passing safety regulations wouldn't be a Willy's Jeep.

Not specific to that vehicle, but I think that generally, the way type certification works for vehicles is that existing certifications remain valid for already-manufactured vehicles, but once regulations change, you can't just go back and produce more of something.

I am confident that doing the Willys in particular would violate existing regulations. One off-the-cuff issue is that the original engine in that thing would have used leaded gasoline, and I'm pretty sure that you can't make new cars that use leaded gasoline in the US.

EDIT: It might be possible to build an "experimental' car for yourself

I forget the term, but there's some class of vehicles in the US that DIYers and experimenters build, and I believe that it has a lighter set of requirements. Even if you could, though, it wouldn't permit for mass production, which I assume is what you're after.

kagis

Sounds like at least some, if not all, of that classification is state-level. So I suspect what's permissible would vary by state.

https://afdc.energy.gov/laws/9492

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/vehicle-registration/new-registration/register-a-specially-constructed-or-modified-vehicle/

In most countries, absolutely not. It would fall so far short of modern safety requirements.

I'd love a modern take, but they only way I can think of getting one would be the classic car market.

Sadly a simply manufactured, safe, and easy to work on with minimal training vehicle has little profit incentive for the manufacturer and therefore not attractive to venture capital. No one will make and support it if it can’t make them as rich as Elon. From a consumer perspective, I am intrigued, but in the western world I think this is a pipe dream.

The entire design would need to change to meet safety standards. I don’t know that the ease of assembly and cheap low cost would survive the safety requirements.

A lot of the complexity of modern vehicles encompassing not just drivetrain but also exterior design is to squeeze fuel economy from a stone. The shape of the Willy’s isn’t aerodynamic and that’s putting it mildly. Modern standards for body panel tolerances raise component costs. Full time 4x4 is awful on paved roads and terrible for fuel consumption, so we would now use a transfer case or a AWD system, which add cost and complexity. The simplicity of the suspension design made it a death trap at speed - good for off road, no good at 70mph.

My point is that as much as I want a repairable, simple thing (car, computer, etc.) we’ve developed so much technology that even when a thing is designed for repairability, it’s going to need specialized skills to some extent - can’t fix everything with a hammer anymore. Might need a torque wrench.

The current wrangler is an idea of what a modern Willy’s would be like. It’s going to be a $40k vehicle.

ETA - Ineos Grenadier is a modern take on the classic Land Rover. Similar concept, similar departure from simple an cheap.

Yes, and apparently a Chinese company is doing it