HOW WE ROLL – Conserving a Classic: 1953 Willys Aero Lark
BY RICHARD DRYER PHOTOGRAPHY BY RICK COOPER
Melanie Coulliette and Hansson Henneburg work on cars all week long, so on the weekends they simply want to enjoy the ride.
Occasionally, they get to do that in their 1953 Willys Aero Lark, which they purchased from a customer of Bay Town Tires in Panama City. Melanie and Hansson are owners of Bay Town as well as Road Mart Tires in Lynn Haven.
Melanie’s father founded Road Mart Tires on Highway 77 in 1987. Melanie spent time in the shop with her dad and helped him work the business, so her love for cars old and new developed naturally.
Last year around Valentine’s Day, one of Hansson’s customers who owns several classic cars came in with the Willys for repair work. “I was joking around with my wife about buying the car, and I asked the gentleman if he would be interested in selling it,” Hansson recalls. “He said, ‘Yeah, I’ve got tons of cars and I don’t really need another one. My wife wants me to get rid of some of these.’”
This is the couple’s first vintage car and Melanie was much more enthusiastic about buying it than Hansson. “I work on cars all day. I really don’t want to work on them when I go home,” he says.
The Willys Aero Lark is very rare. According to Hansson there were less than 7,000 Willys Aero Larks in production over a three-year period in the 1950s. He estimates there are less than 300 on the road today. The original 2.6 liter, straight 6 cylinder engine has been rebuilt professionally. Documentation of the work includes photos depicting every part with its original part numbers and condition.
The restoration took several years and presently has about 22,000 miles on the odometer. The car is original except for the new interior upholstery. Trim and paint are original.
Between working two full-time businesses and raising three children, Melanie and Hansson find it tough to enjoy their Willys. They reserve that pleasure for local drives in the winter when the weather is most comfortable. The Willys does not have air conditioning, so Hansson says “It is not a lot of fun” to drive it in the summertime when it’s hot.
The Willys Aero Lark production was started in 1952 continuing to 1955 in Toledo, Ohio by the Willys Overland Corporation. Willys engineers knew they would have a hard time in the full-size car market so they developed an all-welded-unit body/frame design that was available in a twodoor hard top model and a four-door model the following year. Both models weighed around 2,800 pounds and were able to transport six passengers comfortably. They were known to have very good acceleration and good gas mileage of 35 MPG while cruising at highway speeds of 80 miles per hour.
“Surprisingly, it runs very smooth,” Hansson says, but Melanie does not drive the car very fast or very far, and she can only drive it on days when it is not raining because the windshield wipers do not work. The mechanism that operates them is long out of production. Back when the Aero Lark was built, blinkers were optional, so whenever the driver needs to make a left or right hand turn, a hand signal must be used.
In its current condition, Hansson estimates the Aero Lark’s worth between $8,000 and $10,000. The couple would consider selling it at some point later in life, but right now they are enjoying it too much to think about it. And Melanie and Hansson love that others enjoy it, too.
“People often stop and ask us questions and take pictures,” Hansson says. “The reception to it is very warm.”
VEHICLE HISTORY:
In 1908 John Willys purchased the Overland Automotive Division of the Standard Wheel Company and in 1912 renamed the company to Willys-Overland Motor Company. From 1912 to 1918 Willys was the second largest producer of automobiles after the Ford Motor Company.
Willys designed and produced the Jeep for the World War II effort for military use. After the war ended Willys-Overland continued to produce civilian jeeps and re-entered into the passenger car market, producing the Willys Aero lineup of the Lark, Wing, Falcon, Ace, and/or Eagle.
Even today the Willys Military Vehicles and civilian Jeeps and passenger cars are sought-after vehicles for original restorations, restomods and drag race cars. The Willys “Gasser” drag cars are very popular with all ages. Reproduction steel and fiberglass bodies are also available today.