Willys Overland Knight Registry

John N. Willys told his dealers that the Whippet title was intended as a generic name for the broad class of vehicles of which this is the forerunner, ie a light, fast, economical and stylish yet inexpensively priced car.  The opportunity was at hand, Willys continued, to do in the light car field what Duco did in the lacquer field or what the Eastman Kodak Company did in the camera field.  Salesmen were urged to get the motoring public to talk of the new type of light car as a WHIPPET type.  Here was a car with 4 wheel brakes, water pump cooling and pressurised lubrication - all strong technical features for the time.  Styling was said to be European, a compact yet roomy body, low centre of gravity, good looks, performance and economy.

Surprisingly enough, especially in the light of all this hype about the Whippet name, it wasn’t until January 1927 that the Whippet name was really emphasised on the vehicle itself.  Until then it had Overland hub caps and an Overland radiator badge.  However, advertising and in fact all printed material such as manuals emphasised the fact that this was a Whippet or an Overland Whippet and never just as an Overland which still tended to bring up memories of the Overland Four in peoples minds.  This naming convention was reinforced when the six cylinder Overland 93 was quickly restyled and renamed as a Whippet 93A - also for January of 1927.

There were a host of changes during the production run of the Whippet 96.  Some were cosmetic but most were to reduce production costs.  (See how much the advertised prices varied below !)
These changes can help in dating a vehicle and assist in identifying which parts are the correct ones to fit but the most obvious ones were the external ones listed below;

• 1926 cars have "Overland" badging on hub caps and radiator.
• 1927 cars have "Whippet" badging and beaded fenders.  Closed cars have an extended roof line for visor.
• 1928 cars have "Whippet" badging and plain or "full crown" fenders.  Closed cars have a cadet or "military" style of visor.

Production of the Whippet Model 96 ended on 3rd December 1928 - it's replacement being the Whippet Model 96A.  The 96A had a 3/8 inch longer stroke but it was the basic Model 96 engine with the same 3 1/8 bore x 4 3/8 stroke (albeit in revised form and producing more horsepower) that powered the Willys 77 during the depression years and the Willys Jeep for World War 2.
 
 

Note:  The serial number of 110345 is listed in the W.O.K.R. Roster as the official (factory sourced) break point between 1927 and 1928 vehicles, however factory change information indicates it should be closer to 136000.  It also suggests that 1926 vehicles would have serial numbers up to about 50000.