Hi Celica,
Its better to give you some idea regarding owning a jeep on the forum as it may help some fellow members.
First of all you need to decide that which type of Jeep you R interested in. Let say mostly people here are interested in Willys both versions 1942 and 1952 M38 , CJ-5 and CJ-7.
For CJ-1/CJ-2 Willys it’s hard to find one but mostly you will find CJ-5 restored with Willys’s body Tub. The good thing is that it really fits on CJ-5 chassis very well. And CJ-5 Chassis are easly available in the Jeep Markets.
Chassis & Body:
The same like chassis, Willys’s original body Tub is also hard to find, even if you find one there will be lots of denting, welding and painting work needed to be done on it, if it was not re-stored. But in the local market the Jeeps workshops are using locally built body tub which to me is also fine to have it on CJ-5. But I saw last time some original CJ-5 bodies and chassis as they were recently auctioned from the Army store at Golrah, Rawalpindi/Islamabad. But as I said they need a real effort to restore. If you have time and looking for original body tub then go for it.
The difference between 1942 and 1952 M38 Willys is:
1) the Head Lights position on the Grill for 1942 is that it fits inside and the whole light is in side the Grill but 1952’s Head Lights are fixed on the Grill.
2) Secondly the body tub for the 1952 is more comfortable then the 1942 for leg space for front seat s and for rear as well. And most importantly from the front view of the Jeep it gives you different looks for 1942 and for 1952.
CJ-7 Chassis is 10” long and bit wider as compare to CJ-5. That why in Local Jeep market they are also using Modified CJ-5 chassis for Wrangler Shape Jeeps. But in my opinion as locally modified CJ-5 chassis is not durable or it can’t hold more load. So its better to have CJ-7 chassis for Wrangler Shape or for Cj-7 shape jeeps.
POWERTRAIN:
3C Turbo Diesel, 2L Turbo Charged, 2L-T, 3L OR 1KZ Engines provides good power to your CJ-5 or CJ-7 Jeep.
Danna 5 speed, Toyota Parado/Surf OR Rocky’s 5 speed manual Transmission works well.
Suspension:
Rocky’s Front and Rear Axels are completely reliable and great in performance for Willys.
For CJ-7/Wrangler, Rockey’s Suspension/Axels are good but if you use Parao Suspension that’s great.
Lets talk about price now. If we talk about Willys/CJ-5 it will always depend on your choice of parts. And mostly on Engine, Transmission and Suspension.
In short you can get a really nice re-stored Willys/CJ-5 in between Rs. 250,000 To RS. 350,000.
And a normal Willy in running condition you can find it around 150,000 to 200,000.
Nicely built Wrangler/CJ-7 will cost your around 450,000 to 650,000.
These prices off-course are when you will buy already re-stored ones. But if you have time and want to re-store by your self then sure the price will be low.