1921 WILLYS OVERLAND TOURING CAR
Mileage reads 5,000 This car was in the process of being completely restored, the owner was unable to finish it. Most mechanical and suspension have been completed. The engine was rebuilt, comes with many spare parts (see photos). All four doors open and close as they should, original radiator cap in good condition, very nice Overland emblem. California residents will be subject to title transfer fee (if non-op) and/or DMV fees to register and 7.25% sales tax. Freshly painted, no rust, tires are serviceable, Stewart speedometer. Willys Overland is the company that built the world famous WWII Jeeps. Please email for more photos or with any questions. Thank you.
A bit of history… In 1908, John Willys bought the Overland Automotive Division of Standard Wheel Company and in 1912 renamed it Willys-Overland Motor Company. By 1915, the company had risen to the position of second largest automobile manufacturer in the U.S. and production reached a new high of 91,780 units, taking second place only to Ford.
In 1913, Willys acquired a license to build the Charles Knight’s sleeve-valve engine which it used in cars bearing the Willys-Knight nameplate. In the mid-1920s, Willys also acquired the F.B. Stearns Company of Cleveland and assumed continued production of the Stearns-Knight luxury car, as well. In 1916, it acquired the Russell Motor Car Company of Toronto, Ontario, by 1917 New Process Gear, and in 1919 acquired the Duesenberg Motors Company plant in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The New Jersey plant was replaced by a new, larger facility and was to be the site of production for a new Willys Six, but the 1920 recession brought the Willys Corporation to its knees. John North Willys added the Willys-Knight to the already established Willys-Overland in 1914, with a sleeve-valved, 186-cu.in. four-cylinder engine designed to make the car last longer than any other on the market at the time. The car initially began as a $1,000 car-a mid-range price at the time-and crept up to the $2,000 range five years later before beginning a quick drop in price over the next three years. In 1920, the Knight engine developed slightly more horsepower than the Willys-developed straight-six engine in the slightly larger Willys Model 89 and quite a bit more horsepower than the 100-inch-wheelbase Model 4’s inline-four poppet-valve engine. An estimated 12,679 Model 20s left the factory that year, and production for all three cars in 1920 totaled 105,025.. The engine of the 1921 Model 20 Willys-Knight was improved in detail to produce 40 hp at 2,600 rpm, and so great was the influx of orders for all cars of the Willys-Overland group, that the Corporation reached a production total of 196,038 units for 1923, with a daily output of 1,100 ve­hicles during the peak months. Company slogans now came rapidly, though not without justification. “The Most Automobile in the World for the Money”; “Drive an Overland and Realize the Difference” and “A Car of Proven Per­formance” were among the favorites.