No Formulae : WILLYS and Reflections on Design

WILLYS and Reflections on Design

Thursday, 18 June 2009 19:43

It all started about five years ago, when I graduated from college. My friend was looking forward to buy the first vehicle of his life. His demand was a little queer as he wanted a small jeep.

Back then, all I knew about Jeeps was that it was the vehicle used by the police, army and a handful of civilians. He was looking for a particular type of Jeep called the WILLYS. The name was totally unheard of, he managed to get a lead and we went and saw one.
It was small and beautiful, like nothing I had ever seen before.

Somehow the deal never materialized but the first impression left a longing desire to have one of my own someday. Years went by but the name and sight of the WILLYS always ignited a hedonistic desire to own one someday.

At times Design, with its mere form, seduces you so much; Love at first sight!

A few months back, like a chronic ailment the desire sprung up, and this time it was greater than ever before. I could not suppress it. And soon I wanted a WILLYS, wanted one really bad. So bad, that I convinced myself that I needed a vehicle for commuting locally and a WILLYS would solve the purpose best. With even the slightest amount of rational thinking anyone can conclude it does not solve the purpose. It is open leading to a torture to face the hot Indian climate, susceptible to theft, not the right kind of vehicle to take everywhere .You look at it with a cynical eye and the list will go on!

Having spent 6 years in the engineering field, I have a fair expertise in logical and rational thinking and I figured out all of these.

But as you know, we humans are salves to our emotions!

Emotions have such power.

More and more people are researching on emotions. Neuro-marketers have established that most buying decisions are taken on an emotional level. Emotions surpass all logic.
The old school economics definition stating that man is a rational being is getting faded as we are coming to terms with the importance of emotions.

Well, drifting to the sinful desire to get hands on a WILLYS, I started looking for one. Contacted friends, family and all the enthusiast in my social circle. Soon news started pouring in, the conclusions were

WILLYS jeep had become a ubiquitous craze for some time now and the prices have gone up considerably.
There are a lot of remakes of the original WILLYS, people have remodeled and modified other manufacturer’s jeeps to make them resemble the WILLYS.

The news was not good, but it did not bring in any set back to the burning desire of owning a WILLYS.

Design to evoke desire!

It is amazing to learn that how a Design can become so desirable that it almost becomes an obsession.
Design is often referred as an activity where the message is encoded in such a way that it generates the desired emotion. I wonder how it would be if all the products and services are designed such that they are able to evoke such strong desires.

I started reading more about the WILLYS. The internet is a quick help for topics of all sorts, though my research went on to talking to enthusiasts, surfing thru old books and magazines and even watching war movies.

Stories and Experience

With every bit of information that I assimilated I got more involved in the topic.
Stories are strong markers of experience. They help you imagine and dream. The more I read, the more I got engaged. I learned all about the different models, the MAs, the MBs, the CJ2a,CJ2B,all the models, the differences and details, I got every possible bit of information that was possible to get hold of.

The most interesting were the stories from the World War II. How a strong need of the U.S. Army to build a small all-purpose, off-road vehicle was met by Bantam and how the order went to WILLYS which produced the first ever “JEEP” of this planet in 1941.
Stories are what connect to our emotions, they are richer than mere facts, Well, I still don’t remember the height, weight, and speed etc. of my vehicle and none of the other vehicles that I have owned so far.

We love to hear stories as much as we love to tell them. And suddenly I was jumping on every opportunity to start some talks about the WILLYS with my friends. It gave me as much pleasure as it amused them.

WOW! is when the outcome far surpasses your expectations

Zenith drew on the excitement when I eventually got hold of a WILLYS, an original with little modifications.WOW! Followed when I learned that the WILLYS that I had got hold was a 1942 WILLYS MB, a WW2 Model.

Not even in my wildest dreams had I thought of a WILLYS MB. I was more hopeful for getting my hands on some WILLYS CJ low bonnet, the post war civilian jeep. After all it is also a treasure and people take pride to ride even remakes and replicas of it. Finding a WILLYS MB was totally out of question.

It took me some time and disbelief to digest that fact that I had become the owner of a WILLYS MB. It was almost like striking oil in your backyard. But once I had it the MAGIC multiplied.

It’s all about keeping the magic alive!

In today’s world of commoditization and materialism, there are so many products present and so many joining everyday that the mysticism and pleasure attached with one’s latest purchase seldom stays for long.

It is said that a chemical called dopamine is responsible for the felling of immediate bliss and gratification and when we see something which our brain perceives as desirable a dose of dopamine is released in the brain and in that euphoric state, our emotions take over our rationality.

As a result even while our rationality reminds us of the departing finances, we make the purchase. With the WILLYS it must have been something more than dopamine. The Magic kept going on!

When I think about it while writing this post I think the magic was alive due to a combination of

Learning about the product and appreciating it, it was something that I was getting familiar with for the first time. But then when I bought my first iPod there was this exposure to a new product too, but it did not last so long.
One more aspect that might be there is that it has the exclusive factor, it is something that not everyone has or can have. Human beings are behaviorally inclined to accumulate artifacts that they can display and show –off to give them a sense of superiority. This has been linked to the biological reasons to progress the human race.Well the WILLYS certainly is a head-turner. A thorough classic icon!

When Design Connects

It is said that products and services become more experiential when they are engaging, the urge to learn more about the WILLYS, track its history and the urge to revert it back to its original design(remember I told you ,it has some modifications) have kept me engaged.

I would say the Design of the WILLYS has helped me create a bond with it. I’m still amused and amazed by its simple, functional design, the beautiful form, the built quality and the smart innovations; Most of all it amazes me more when I think that the object that has kept my attention was designed 67 years ago. At a time when Design was not what it is today.

Well the ride has just begun and I cannot find a conclusion to this post, I have started watching WW2 movies, seeing videos of the WILLYS MB on YouTube and even looking for books and posters of that era.
I feel I can relate closely to all of these, which I think might be an outcome of my Mirror Neurons at work!