Rubicon Ready

Was I suffering from some sort of manic depression? When Nick asked me if I'd like to drive Elusive Elaine - that's the name of his 1943 Willys - on the Croisiere Blanche I didn't have to think twice. Of coure, I said, and the result was one of the most amazing off-road experiences I've ever enjoyed. And I wasn't even cold, because photographer Pete lent me his thermal oversuit and Nick lent me the flop-eared furry hat. The flaps on the hat kept flying out sideways, earning me the on-the-spot nickname of Deputy Dawg. Elusive Elaine isn't all 1943 Willys, of course, but it's a used car - see more about its Croisiere campaign, including how I nearly set her on fire, by clicking the Snowfun link in the menu...

It's a tribute to Karl K. Probst that his "baby" lives on in such numbers to this day. Probst's original quarter-ton war truck design for American Bantam may well have been honed by Willys and Ford in their efforts to mass-produce the vehicle for the war effort, but the key classic features of Probst's original styling remain, making the Jeep one of the most iconic cars of all time. Originals are rare, and becoming too valuable to trash off-road, which is why I, for one, am so glad that there are still vast numbers of licence-built Hotchkiss copies around and so many owners who are prepared to use them in the manner for which they were made. Pity that so many have been tricked-up to look like wartime orginals, even to having "original" Willys identification plates fixed to the dashboard. If you're thinking of buying one get an expert to look it over before parting with vast amounts of money for a car that doesn't have the history that's claimed for it, while at the same time don't hesitate to grab a good-looking Hotchkiss if you want to enjoy some "real" Jeep-style off-roading.