WILL TO LIVE

PETER DENING'S EXQUISITELY CRAFTED WILLYS BURST ONTO THE SCENE IN 2000, SCOOPED UP A STACK OF AWARDS, THEN SEEMINGLY VANISHED. WE CHAT TO PETE AND THE CAR'S TWO SUBSEQUENT OWNERS TO GET THE FULL STORY

- CRAIG PARKER

BUILT by Pete Dening, this stunning, big block-powered 1941 Willys had a killer start to the new millennium. With its striking blue-green paint, widened rear guards, custom four-link and epic stance, it knocked everyone for six at Summernats 13 in 2000, snagging a spot in the Top 10 as well as winning Top Closed Hot Rod, Top Engineered Hot Rod, 2nd Top Bodywork and 2nd Undercarriage. It then went on to star on the December 2000 cover of Street Machine - the first pre-'48 car to do so!

But after that initial success, the Willys all but disappeared. In 2001, not long after its starring role on the SM cover, Pete sold it to Rob Palamara, and the car only occasionally broke cover during his 23 years of ownership.

In mid-2024, Rob finally succumbed to a couple of decades' of incessant nagging from current Drag Challenge 235 Aspirated champion Louis Younis, agreeing to sell the Willys to him.

Fortunately, the car Pete built a quarter of a century ago still looks like a million dollars, so we thought it was time to grab all three owners to find out more about its journey so far.

PETE DENING

Great car, Pete! What made you choose a Willys to build?

I saw it advertised and thought, "I'd like to have that." There was nothing else like it around at the time. It was just a floppy body, so we had to do everything - build a chassis, steel it out. We had to make everything. Ian Eliason from Lilow Auto Tech custom-built the narrowed, A-arm front end so the front wheels could turn.

How long did it take to build?