1953 M38A1 Navy Jeep

A Frame Off Restoration

July 2011
Learning Curve | September 2011

Bought mixed breed Jeep

29/07/11 17:00
Wrong Engine
Our very first mistake was our very first action! We bought a 1953 M38A1 Navy Jeep (Seabees) with a M38 Engine! It turns out that M38A1’s had the “Hurricane” F-134 straight four overhead. Our jeep has a “Go-Devil” L-134 straight four flat head. The engine is in good shape and runs well. We plan to do the initial restore with the L-134 and then in the future replace it with the correct engine. For now we just enjoy the fact that this jeep has parts that were active during WWII, Korea, and the Vietnam era!
1953 M38A1 Navy Jeep

The Learning Curve

You cannot do a project of this size and not make some mistakes along the way. We hope this section will help future restorers forgive themselves for a few mishaps now and again.

We often learn more by our mistakes then by our successes. At any rate, we enjoy laughing at our blunders and hope you will too! This is not the total of our errors just the highlights. There were plenty of little foibles throughout the project.