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Although it bore the CJ name, the CJ-2 was not really available at retail. Willys produced less than three dozen CJ-2 Agrijeeps in 1944 and 1945. It was very closely-related to the Military Willys MB , using the same Willys L-Head engine , but there were some changes. It had larger headlights, a side-mounted spare tire and opening tailgate, and an external fuel cap.
Lessons learned with the CJ-2 led to the development of the first full-production CJ, the 1945- 1949 CJ-2A. Like the CJ-2 and the Military version, the CJ-2A featured a split windshield. An early column shifter and floating axle gave way to a more modern gearbox early in production. In the end, 214,202 CJ-2A's were produced.
The CJ-3A was introduced in 1949, and replaced the CJ-2A by the next year. It featured a one-piece windshield with a vent in the frame. A bare-bones Farm Jeep version was available starting in 1951 with a power takeoff. 131,843 CJ-3A's were produced before the series ended in 1953.
Only one CJ-4 was produced. It used the new Willys Hurricane engine and had an 81-inch wheelbase. It was a test model, but was sold to a factory employee.
The CJ-3B replaced the CJ-3A in 1953, the same year Willys was sold to Kaiser. It introduced a higher grille and hood to clear the new Willys Hurricane engine. The CJ-3B was produced until 1968 with a total of 155,494 produced, although the design was licensed to a number of international manufacturers, including Mitsubishi of JapanJapan (, Nippon/Nihon literally "the origin of the sun") is a country in East Asia situated on a chain of islands east of the Asian continent on the western edge of the Pacific Ocean. The largest of these islands are, from north to south, Hokkaido , Honsh and MahindraMahindra is an Indian company started in 1945 comprised of two main divisions, an automotive division that manufactures utility vehicles, light commercial vehicles and three-wheeled vehicles and a farm equipment division that manufactures tractors, tracto of IndiaThe Republic of India is a large multicultural country in South Asia, with a population of over one billion. The Indian economy is the fourth largest in the world, in terms of purchasing power parity, and is the world's second-fastest growing economy.. Mitsubishi ceased production of vehicles derived from the CJ-3B design in 1998, but Mahindra continues to produce Jeeps today.
The CJ-5 was influenced by new corporate owner, Kaiser, and the Korean WarThe Korean War from June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953, was a conflict between communist North Korea and anti-communist South Korea. It was also a proxy war between the United States and the Soviet Union. The principal combatants were North and South Korea. M-38 Jeep . It was intended to replace the CJ-3B , but that model continued in production. The CJ-5 repeated this pattern, continuing in production for 3 decades while three newer models appeared. 603,303 CJ-5's were produced between 1954 and 1983.
In 1965, the CJ-5 and CJ-6 got a new Dauntless V6 from Buick with 155 hp. The company was sold to American Motors in 1970, and the GM engine was retired. AMC began offering two V8 engines - 304CID and 360CID . V8 Jeeps got bigger brakes, tougher axles, and the track was widened.
Special CJ-5's include the following: