WILLYS JEEP IN GOA

WILLYS JEEP

World War II Model

Hand-crafted from 1/8" plywood

Scale: 1/16"

The original Willys Jeep was manufactured in the U.S.A. It was imported and mainly used by the Portuguese Army and the Police Force in Goa till 18th December 1961.

Mahindra & Mahindra was set up as a steel trading company in 1945. It eventually saw business opportunity in expanding into manufacturing and selling larger MUVs, starting with assembly under licence of the Willys Jeep in India.

The popularity of the Jeeps built under licence by Mahindra & Mahindra in grew rapidly in Goa after the Indian take-over. In fact, the first lot of these seen on the roads in Goa were the ones used by the Indian Army contingent that drove into Goa from 3 different fronts.

Subsequently, they were used by the Government in various departments and by the private sector as well.

As a young boy I admired this versatile engineering marvel - a rugged and dependable four-wheel drive vehicle. Its robust, straight-cut appearance and identity has not changed much from its initial design. I recall making a toy replica of this machine out of a grey or red colour Agfa-Gavaert 120mm Black & White film carton that my neighbour, Mr. Paul Monteiro Sr., a professional photographer, had discarded after using using the film.

That hand-made model had springs made from copper wire that represented the front and rear leaf springs of this vehicle, and wheels labouriously cut from doubled-up cardboard and several pieces glued together to acquire the thickness of the tyres. By the time the model was completed I found my fingers with a lot of nicks and cuts in making the miniature, from using a pen-knife and 7 o'clock shaving razor blades collected from Bernard Titi who lived next door.

Having coming a long way from childhood to almost old age, my interest in this vehicle has not ebbed one bit. I have hand-crafted the model pictured above from 1/8" thick plywood, using a sliding blade cutter, cutting board and glue. NO SCROLL SAW IS USED. Length approx. 10 inches.