1925 Willys Knight Model 65

Willys is a name that’s best remembered by the Willys Jeep of World War II, a vehicle that spawned several official and unofficial derivatives, and icons of which live on in the current Jeep brand of Stellantis. However, the Willys-Overland company is much older, dating all the way back to 1908 when John Willys founded the company. In fact, John Willys didn’t create the company, but bought the younger (by just five years) Overland Automobile. Between 1914 and 1933, Willys produced the Willys-Knight range of two and four door cars. What we’ve got here is a 1925 Willys-Knight Roadster that’s more of a restomod, as it packs a much newer drivetrain than what would have originally propelled this Twenties automobile along the roads of the time. The mileage on the car is reported to be just 7,500 miles, and if you want a slice of Twenties American automobilia with a twist in the tale, take a chance on this car.

Exterior and Interior

This 1925 Willys-Knight Roadster is 97 years old, and carries those swish Twenties looks with pride. The car wears a two-tone paint job that sees cream uppers combined with beige lowers. Rolling on wire wheels and whitewall tires, you’d notice that the tires are wider than what would be typical for a Twenties car. There’s a reason for this, that we’ll get to in a moment. In the meantime, take in all the details, such as the podded headlamps, running boards, hood mascot, and the fact that this is a full four door roadster. Now, open a door and enter the maroon interior. Notice that it’s mostly stock, save for the aftermarket Grant GT steering wheel, and the relatively modern gauges for speed, fuel level, oil pressure, battery charge, and even a tachometer. You’ll also probably notice that the gear lever isn’t typical Twenties fare, nor are the pedals. That’s because this is a car that you’d enjoy driving every bit as you’d enjoy travelling in the rear seat of.

Engine

Let’s get to the meat of this 1925 Willys-Knight Roadster and it’s a 351ci Ford Windsor V8 that drives the rear wheels via an automatic transmission. Since a Windsor V8 typically puts out at least 250hp (unless it’s one of the emissions-strangled Seventies ones), you can understand why wider tires are necessary.