cj-5 vs cj-6

The various web sites tell me the cj-6 is 20 inches longer than the 5. Can anybody tell me where this extra length is? Did willys just add the extra length in the frame past the door cutouts? Or is it spread out over other areas?
I am thinking they lengthend the frame past the trans crossmember to get the extra wheelbase. I have never seen a cj-6 in person anywhere.

 

Forward from the kick-up that separates the front floor from the back, the CJ-6 is the same as the CJ-5. The frame is lengthened by making the straight part of the frame, behind the transmission crossmember, 20" longer. There's also a little extra reinforcing in the frame: a strap along the bottom of the rail. The CJ-5 body is basically cut in half and panels added to make the body longer when it was assembled. The cut in the body side panels is a little more complicated than a straight cut - here's a pretty good picture that shows how the body was assembled:



There are a bunch of pictures of my CJ-6 from when I bought it online here: http://www.nmr.mgh.harvard.edu/~reese/ResizedJeepIPics

hth!

 

Thanks for the info. That is a cool jeep. I eyeballed your pics, very nice. I am lax on taking pictures of my build , I should add it to my daughters chore list. Do you know if the cj-7 is similar from the crossmember back? Is a 7 the same width as a 5/6 ? This project of mine is gettin' more fun every day , I wish I would have started one years ago.

 

No, it is not similar from the crossmember back. The width of a CJ-7 frame is the same as the width of a CJ-5 frame of the same era. Earlier CJs have a much different frame from the CJ-7s and later CJ-5. Plus the CJ-7 WB is 10" shorter than a CJ-6, but 10" longer than a CJ-5.

The CJ-7 was introduced in 1976, and the last year for domestic production of the CJ-6 was 1975. Almost everything changed for the 1976 model year, and there are few parts that cross over.