This jeep has live ammunition and exhaust flames.
This customized vintage Jeep is equipped with a replica .30 caliber gun that can fire a 4-foot exhaust flare.
Logan Fries’ 1949 Willys probably doesn’t remind you of any Jeep you’ve ever seen.
With olive green paint and American flags hanging from the rear corners, it looks like a machine to be reckoned with. This doesn’t take into account the inoperable .30 caliber gun mounted on the passenger side.
He quickly realized that the gun was a replica that he had begged a kind person in Ohio to sell to him. But live ammunition is “100% ready.”
Fries’ ride was one of many custom vehicles on display on the lower level of Huntington Place for this year’s Detroit Autorama, which concluded March 1. The lower floor was reserved as “Autorama Extreme.”
With a custom chassis, 1984 Ford F-150 drivetrain, and 351 Windsor engine, this Jeep is Fry’s pride and joy. The 24-year-old construction worker from Gibraltar, Michigan, also happily calls himself a rat rod, a category of habits that are far from normal.
“Jeeps were never meant to be on the ground, but now they are. It’s got twin turbos and it’s basically a giant go-kart. It’s just random parts, random makes and models, mixed and matched with different ideas that people have,” Fries said of his vehicle and what makes something a rat rod.
He said it could be a daily driver, but the ride is a bit rough, so it’s more likely to be headed to car shows. That didn’t stop Fries from installing heated seats in this open-to-the-element vehicle. There are other things that might grab your attention.
“It has a rev limiter. You can rev it up, and if you put it in a parking lot…you can just sit in the park and rev it up, and you can get about 4 feet of flame coming out of the exhaust,” he said.
Eric D. Lawrence is senior auto culture reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Send your cool auto tips and suggestions to elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.
