One of the most interesting places that I’ve ever stopped at on a road trip was in Toledo, Ohio. It was the old Willys-Overland factory where Jeeps were build for decades and decades before the modern factory that now produces them was constructed. I was there with Craig Fitzgerald and Dave Nutting. At the time, the place had been pretty well demolished but we did not know for what reason other than the fact that it was a collection of old buildings. The impressive smoke stack stood proudly, though.

Fast forward to this video and we learn that the old factory was being knocked over to make room for a complex that houses the primary Jeep suppliers. Companies like Dana and others will be in this new industrial park which is within virtual spitting distance of the current plant that is being used. With parts and brainpower being housed a short trip away from the factory, it helps to keep the quality control tight and the response time for any sort of issue minimal.

Fred and Dave end up there after building a Jeep at the shop of Mike Copeland (Diversified Creations) in Michigan to wrench on the thing for a couple of days and then they drove it to Toledo where the fun begins. This is not just idling around a muddy open space. These guys are crawling pallets, piles of concrete, old power poles, and there’s even interior donuts completed along with at least one sweet jump.

We dig this video because it not only is about horsing around in the Jeep, it highlights the fact that the Jeep has a home in Toledo for some time to come. These companies would not have built their warehouses there if it wasn’t going to be an Ohio product for the foreseeable future.