A WEIAND 6-71 SUPERCHARGER AND A TWIN 600 CFM CABURETTOR SET-UP WERE SOURCED FROM HOT HEADS...

While Hemis alone are cool, blown ones are even cooler. As you can imagine, back-up generators have no use for belt-driven intake manifolds. So, back to the States yet again to find one to jam onto the top of the ‘elephant’. A Weiand 6-71 supercharger and a twin 600 cfm Edelbrock carburettor set-up were sourced from Hot Heads in Lowgap, North Carolina.

“We drove up this gravel road for what seemed like for miles and found Hot Heads on their farm, great people.”

The blower and carbs were shipped home with some other bits and pieces — it made more sense to hand-pick all the components for the build themselves rather than order them from a book. If nothing else, it means this Willys Gasser is as authentic as it can be.

Now that Wayne had everything he needed to complete the blown Hemi swap, he called on good bastards Garry ‘Grease’ Martin and Andrew Rea of Early Time Motors. Wayne crews on the Martin and Rea nitro dragster so he knows first-hand the pair’s exceptional attention to detail and workmanship. Wayne thought there really wasn’t anyone else he could have trusted with the job.

He got talking to Garry about what he had and what he wanted, and, with a glint in his eye, Garry said “Bring it on up”.

Wayne didn’t need to be told twice! Andrew and Grease got working on the motor. Everything on the inside that needed replacing got replaced in preparation for the fitment of the glorious 6-71 huffer Wayne had patiently waited for, for more than 40 years. When the engine was completed, he couldn’t have been happier with what he was looking at.

He says the valve covers have been a constant talking point, with many saying they should have been stripped back and polished. Wayne disagrees. They were on the engine when he picked it up in Bakersfield and he feels he would be doing the engine a disservice if he cleaned them up; they tell a story of what the engine has been through during its life. We agree that they’ve more than earned the right to be in the engine bay.

Next move for the Willys was to Rocket Speed Equipment in ‘the Tron’. Wayne didn’t want anything protruding out of the hood, so the motor had to be low in the frame. However, that wasn’t enough so everything had to go up to make the Willys engine bay swallow all the Hemi goodness. Thus, the Gasser was born!

A lot of the hard work had already been done in the States. The stock Willys chassis had been boxed and a few more cross members stitched in for added rigidity. Dan and the crew at Rocket placed a heavy-duty Gasser straight axle kit from Speedway Motors up front to get the ‘snout in the air’ stance. While they were at it, they radiused the rear fenders to suit the larger rear rubber.

Wayne says, “When they built these Willys in the USA, they pushed the motor back in the frame for drag racing to fit the elephant motor, as they call it.”

So Dan and the boys did that, too.

As you can imagine, the interior is function over form. The bucket seats of unknown origin are slid back as far as they can go. When the car was bought there was a parcel shelf behind them but, given the engine and firewall’s radical rearward relocation, space inside was at a premium. Therefore, the shelf was removed in order for the driving position to be moved further rearward so Wayne could get his knees under the Gasser’s steering wheel — remember, he had every intention of racking up some serious street miles in the bloody thing!

Wayne says the interior is not quite finished yet — maybe some tuck and roll upholstery will find its way inside some time in the future — but for now he’s happy with how things are.

It may have taken more than 40 years for Wayne Tierney to finally build his dream car, but ask yourself: is there anything cooler than sitting at the traffic lights behind the wheel of a Willys Gasser, listening to the whine of a blown Hemi as you wait for the green light?

If Wayne decides to ‘tip the can’ with some magic fuel and start shooting header flames high into the night sky, he certainly knows the right people to make it happen. Watch this space!