---
title: "Did You Know Mitsubishi Made an Old-School Willys Jeep Until 1998?"
description: "Mitsubishi kept building the Willys Jeep CJ-3 for more than four decades."
date: "2022-03-24"
modified: "2022-03-24"
authors:
  - name: "Victoria Scott"
    job_title: "Contributor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/victoria-scott"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/44906/did-you-know-mitsubishi-made-an-old-school-willys-jeep-until-1998"
categories:
  - "Culture"
  - "History"
  - "Mitsubishi News"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
tags:
  - "Jeep"
---

# Did You Know Mitsubishi Made an Old-School Willys Jeep Until 1998?

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2022/03/276991058_10221545462330754_2587590488600223770_n-2.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Few vehicles in history have had such a profound impact on the world as the humble Willys Jeep. The original [military-commissioned Willys MB](<https://books.google.com/books?id=VCcDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA52#v=onepage&q&f=false>), launched in 1941 with a microscopic 84-inch wheelbase and 4WD, was the perfect formula to cross the globe during World War II. War correspondent Ernie Pyle, [once wrote](<https://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-2F1>) "Good Lord, I don't think we could continue the war without the Jeep. It does everything. It goes everywhere." It came as no surprise, then, that the post-war civilian CJ model was also popular, with the consumer version [selling over 1.5 million units](<https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/28/business/amc-to-end-jeep-cj-models.html>) before it was discontinued in 1985 by Jeep's then-owner, AMC.

What does come as a surprise, though, is that *Mitsubishi* also made the Jeep CJ, and right now, [you can buy one](<https://northeastautoimports.com/242754/1977-Mitsubishi-Jeep>).

![message-editor%2F1648143088140-277169235\_10221545466210851\_254062367865789882\_n.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648143088140-277169235_10221545466210851_254062367865789882_n.jpg>)
*Northeast Auto Imports*

![message-editor%2F1648143094922-276303326\_10221545469570935\_5226854721431632454\_n.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648143094922-276303326_10221545469570935_5226854721431632454_n.jpg>)
*Northeast Auto Imports*

![message-editor%2F1648143102752-276255589\_10221545471690988\_8341309499900065086\_n.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648143102752-276255589_10221545471690988_8341309499900065086_n.jpg>)
*Northeast Auto Imports*

![message-editor%2F1648145395137-276991058\_10221545462330754\_2587590488600223770\_n.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648145395137-276991058_10221545462330754_2587590488600223770_n.jpg>)
*Northeast Auto Imports*

![message-editor%2F1648145508270-jeep.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648145508270-jeep.jpg>)
*Northeast Auto Imports*

From a glance at the Northeast Auto Imports listing, it appears to be a normal CJ-3 Jeep—after all, it has "Jeep" stamped right into the sheet metal on the front quarter panel. But look closely and you'll spot a few clues about its true identity. For one, it's right-hand drive and bears a faintly visible Mitsubishi badge stamped over the iconic bar grille; for another, more obvious hint, instead of a Willys Hurricane inline-four, under the hood is a 78-horsepower Mitsubishi 4DR5 diesel engine. That 2.6-liter inline-four is mated to a *four-on-the-tree* manual that drives all four wheels, in true Jeep fashion. This specific example was built in 1977 as the Jeep J3, nearly a full decade after the stateside CJ-3 was discontinued.

Even more surprisingly, though, was that Mitsubishi started production of the J3 in [1953 and did not stop building Jeeps until *1998*](<https://web.archive.org/web/20090320113933/https://www.mitsubishi-motors.com/corporate/ir/share/pdf/e/fact_2008.pdf>)*.* That's right, in 1998 you could buy a brand-new CJ-3 Willys Jeep, functionally identical to ones that served in the Korean War, except powered by a Mitsubishi diesel motor. Over nearly a half-century of production, Mitsubishi sold 200,000 Jeeps in some form or fashion; not only was the soft-top, short-wheelbase version currently for sale by Northeast Auto Imports available, but there were also long-wheelbase versions, hardtops, and four-doors, sold with both gasoline and diesel power plants.

![message-editor%2F1648144539935-mitsubishi\_jeep\_j-37\_003.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/content-b/message-editor/1648144539935-mitsubishi_jeep_j-37_003.jpg>)
*Four-door hardtop Mitsubishi Jeep, *By [Tennen-Gas](<https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4475410>) - CC BY-SA 3.0**

I've always wanted a classic Jeep; while the [modern Wrangler has plenty of off-road prowess](<https://www.thedrive.com/new-cars/16925/2018-jeep-wrangler-first-drive-the-all-new-wrangler-sets-the-standard-again>), it still doesn't change the fact the shortest version on sale in 2022 is still a full 16 inches longer in wheelbase than an old Willys CJ-3. Throw in a stout Japanese diesel motor, [something I'm already completely sold on](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/40673/meet-the-absolutely-rad-jdm-1995-toyota-hiace-that-im-calling-home>) because I own one with more-than-satisfactory results, and I'm *absolutely* in.

*Got a tip or question for the author? Contact her directly: victoria.scott@thedrive.com*

## Author
Victoria Scott is a former staff writer for The Drive. She began in the automotive industry as a freelancer in early 2021, fresh out of a programming job at NASA Mission Control.

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/vantimevictoria/>)  
[Instagram](<https://instagram.com/reimuracing>)  
[Twitter](<https://twitter.com/mikurubaeahina>)