Willys MB
| Willys MB Ford GPW | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | 1⁄4 ton[nb 1] 4x4 utility truck |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1941 until varying per country |
| Used by | USA and its allies of World War II |
| Wars | World War II Korean War Various post 1945 conflicts |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Karl Probst, Delmar G. Roos |
| Designed | 1940 through early 1942 |
| Manufacturer |
|
| Produced | 1941–1945 |
| No. built |
|
| Variants | Ford GPA "Seep": 12,778 |
| Specifications (MB and GPW same[3]) | |
| Mass | 2,453 lb (1,113 kg) curb weight (with engine fluids and full fuel) 2,337 lb (1,060 kg) dry weight |
| Length | 132+1⁄4 in (3.36 m) |
| Width | 62 in (1.57 m) |
| Height | overall, top up: 69+3⁄4 in (1.77 m) reducible to 52 in (1.32 m) |
| Crew | 3 to 4 |
Main armament | designed to mount .30 or .50 caliber machine guns swiveling on post between front seatbacks |
| Engine | 134 cu in (2.2 l) Inline 4 Willys L134 "Go Devil" 60 hp (45 kW; 61 PS) gross / 54 hp (40 kW; 55 PS) net[1][2] |
| Power/weight | 49 hp/ST (54.0 hp/t) |
| Payload capacity | 1,200 lb (540 kg) on-road; 800 lb (360 kg) cross-country |
| Transmission | 3 speed x 2 range transfer case |
| Suspension | Live axles on leaf springs front and rear |
| Ground clearance | 8+3⁄4 in (22 cm) |
| Fuel capacity | 15 US gal (12.5 imp gal; 56.8 L) |
Operational range | 300 mi (482.8 km) |
| Maximum speed | 65 mph (105 km/h) [nb 2] |
The Willys MB and the Ford GPW, both formally called the U.S. Army Truck, 1⁄4-ton, 4×4, Command Reconnaissance,[4]Zaloga 2011[page needed] commonly known as the Willys Jeep[nb 3], Jeep, or jeep,[6] and sometimes referred to by its supply catalogue designation G503,[nb 4] were highly successful American off-road capable light military utility vehicles built in large numbers to a standardized design for the United States and other Allied forces in World War II from 1941 to 1945.
The jeep became the primary light wheeled transport vehicle of the United States military and its allies, with President Eisenhower once calling it "one of three decisive weapons the U.S. had during WWII."[7] It was the world's first mass-produced four-wheel drive car; almost 650,000 units were built, constituting a quarter of the total U.S. non-combat motor vehicles produced during the war,[nb 5] and almost two-thirds of the 988,000 light 4WD vehicles produced, counted together with the Dodge WC series. Large numbers of jeeps were provided to U.S. allies, including Soviet Union at the time — aside from large amounts of 11⁄2- and 21⁄2-ton trucks, some 50,000 1⁄4-ton jeeps and 25,000 3⁄4-ton Dodges were shipped to Russia during WWII — more than Nazi Germany's combined total production of their best performing similar vehicles, the Kübelwagen and the amphibious Schwimmwagen.[10]
Historian Charles K. Hyde wrote: "In many respects, the jeep became the iconic vehicle of World War II, with an almost mythological reputation of toughness, durability, and versatility."[8] Not only did it become the workhorse of the American military, as it replaced the use of horses and other draft animals (still heavily used in World War I) in every role, from cavalry units to supply trains, but improvised field modifications also made the jeep capable of just about any other function G.I.s could think of.[11] Moreover: military jeeps were adopted by countries all over the world, to this day – so much that they have become the most widely used and recognizable military vehicle in history.[12]
The jeep was considered such a valuable vehicle that General Eisenhower wrote that most senior officers regarded it as one of the five pieces of equipment most vital to success in Africa and Europe[nb 6] General George Marshall called the vehicle "America's greatest contribution to modern warfare."[14][15][16] In 1991, the MB Jeep was designated an "International Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark" by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.[2]
After WWII, the original jeep continued to serve, in the Korean War and other conflicts, until it was updated in the form of the M38 Willys MC and M38A1 Willys MD (in 1949 and 1952 respectively), and received a complete redesign by Ford in the form of the 1960-introduced M151 jeep. Its influence, however, was much greater than that — manufacturers around the world began building jeeps and similar designs, either under license or not — at first primarily for military purposes, but later also for the civilian market. Willys turned the MB into the civilian Jeep CJ-2A in 1945, making the world's first mass-produced civilian four-wheel drive. The "Jeep" name was trademarked, and grew into a successful, and highly valued brand.
The success of the jeep inspired both an entire category of recreational 4WDs and SUVs, making "four-wheel drive" a household term, and numerous incarnations of military light utility vehicles. In 2010, the American Enterprise Institute called the jeep "one of the most influential designs in automotive history". Its "sardine tin on wheels" silhouette and slotted grille are perhaps even more instantly recognizable than the VW Beetle and has evolved into the currently produced Jeep Wrangler long after the demise of the original Jeep design.[16]
"Flying Jeep" photos like this one inspired posters and perhaps the 'Leaping Lena' nickname.
History[]
The design challenge and achievement[]
The idea of the jeep originated with the infantry, which needed a low-profile, powerful vehicle with four-wheel drive and it was turned over to commercial companies (chiefly Bantam, Willys, and Ford) to deliver -the development repeatedly being described as a "design by committee".[17][18][19] In fall 1941, Lt. E.P. Hogan of the U.S. Quartermaster Corps wrote: "Credit for the original design of the Army's truck 1⁄4-ton, 4x4, may not be claimed by any single individual or manufacturer. This vehicle is the result of much research and many tests."[20] Hogan credited both military and civilian engineers, especially those working at the Holabird Quartermaster Depot.
Officially, on 7 April 1942, U.S. patent 2278450 for the WW II jeep, titled "Military vehicle body" was awarded to the U.S. Army, which had applied for it, listing Colonel Byron Q. Jones as the inventor on the patent, though he had performed no work on the design of the vehicle.[21] Filed on 8 October 1941, stating in the application that "The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalty thereon",[22] the patent relates to a "small car vehicle body having convertible features whereby it is rendered particularly desirable for military purposes" and describes the purpose as being "a convertible small car body so arranged that a single vehicle may be interchangeably used as a cargo truck, personnel carrier, emergency ambulance, field beds, radio car, trench mortar unit, mobile anti-aircraft machine gun unit, or for other purposes."[22]
First motorizations and World War I[]
For centuries, horses were used for reconnaissance, communications, and pulling loads, whenever wars were fought, but after the start of the 20th century, motorcycles were the first motor vehicles eagerly adopted by the military, either to replace mounted/ridden cavalry horses, or to motorize infantry.
The armies of World War I relied massively on marching men, horses, and railways for movement but its new technologies introduced motor vehicles: the first tanks, armoured car, and artillery tractors. Motorcycles were the most prolific motor-tools in the Allied arsenal.[23]
Cavalry, mounted infantry, scouts and messengers could now be mobilized in combat with much greater speed, agility, and near tireless machines,[24] exactly what was wanted for relaying critical orders, getting munitions to machine guns, and scouting miles ahead of advancing units. The quick and nimble motorcycle, "ridden hard through shot and shell to secure victory", has made itself irreplaceable in specific roles on the battlefield to this day.[23]
But motorcycles also had serious limitations. One could be fast on a decent road, but many roads were still so bad, that the U.S. already had a Good Roads Movement in the late 19th century, as increased usage of bicycles required improving the surfaces of existing wagon and carriage trails. The motorcycles of the era were not idea; only the best motorcyclists could endure a muddy battlefield trail, control the bike and keep it from stalling, damage, or flipping over; and driver training was both costly in terms of time and money.[25][23] They had poor off-roading ability and lacked payload capacity. Adding a sidecar provided more stability, but payload and cargo space remained very limited, and having only one powered wheel out of three, still meant the combination got stuck a lot. Both British and American 3x2 WW I motorized tricycles, with two driven rear wheels were devised[citation needed] Royal Page Davidson used patents of Charles Duryea to modify chassis, with machine-guns and armor shield, from 1898.[nb 8]
At the same time, the arrival and growing use of automobiles led to various individuals pioneering cross-USA vehicle trips, followed by the first transcontinental trips by whole convoys of vehicles. After the U.S. Army purchased its first truck in 1907, of 5-ton payload capacity,[26] in the late summer of 1913, the Army Medical and Quartermaster Corps (QC) took a 3/4-ton QC field-truck, on a 922 mi (1,484 km) multi-leg experimental trek through Alaska for the state's Road Commission – both to try the truck's bad-road supply and maintenance abilities, and test the state of several important overland connections in the rough territory.[27] In 1915 followed the first successful transcontinental motor convoy, traveling the entire Lincoln Highway, from New York City to the Panama-Pacific World Exhibition in San Francisco, taking four months – for making a film about it. Starting 1916, the Quartermaster Corps was servicing over 100 'motor trucks', of as many as 27 'varieties'; and in March that year, the U.S. Army decided to form its first two motor companies, to be used immediately in the Pancho Villa Expedition in Mexico,[26] starting 14 March 1916. One company got 27 four-wheel drive, 2‑ton, Jeffery off-road Quad trucks. The other got 27 heavy-duty, 11⁄2‑ton, long wheelbase, rear-wheel drive White trucks.[26] The U.S. War Department procured the vehicles as rolling chassis, which the manufacturers had to expedite to El Paso, Texas. The wagon bodies for the chasses came from the Quartermaster Depot. The most suitable truck capacity found the Quartermaster General for Army use to be 11⁄2‑ton, matching both the country roads nature, the strength of bridges, as well as the existing troops supply system, at the time also using standard 11⁄2‑ton, four-mule wagons.[26]
Meanwhile, World War I was raging in Europe since 1914. More than five years before, Ford had launched his Model T. ".. its speed, durability, stamina, and ease of maintenance (compared to a horse) had already won over many civilians,"[28] and British and French forces also wanted them. Henry Ford however, was an isolationist, and wouldn't sign contracts with the overseas governments. Local dealers however sold over 50,000 Fords to the European forces, who militarized them locally, most famously into ambulances.[28] When the U.S. entered the war in 1917, Ford sold directly to his country, delivering another 15,000 cars before peace was signed.[28]
Britain, France, and Russia were already buying American-made four-wheel drive trucks from the Four Wheel Drive Auto Company, and Jeffery / Nash Quads, because on the muddy roads and European battlefields, they wouldn't get stuck all the time.[29]
The United States procured thousands of motor vehicles for its military, including some 12,800 Dodges,[30] plus thousands of four-wheel drive trucks: 11⁄2‑ton Nash Quads, and 3‑ and 5‑ton FWD trucks. General John J. Pershing viewed horses and mules as acceptable for the previous three U.S. wars, but in the new century, his cavalry forces had to move quicker, with more range and more personnel.[31] He was the first to deploy motorcycles, in the Mexican Border War, predominantly a cavalry campaign over wide regions of the Southwest, where Harley-Davidson motorcycles provided to the Army gave the U.S. the advantage over the horse-mounted Mexicans.[23] The U.S. Army was so pleased with further innovations, like a sidecar as platform to mount machine-guns, that the U.S. procured many more motorcycles than 4WD trucks for World War I. "Entire infantry units were mobilized on motorcycles, and they also provided an ideal way to rapidly deploy machine gun crews into position. Medical units used them to evacuate wounded on stretcher-equipped sidecars, and to return medical supplies and ammunition"[23]
"By the end of the war, the whole world saw the horse as hopelessly outclassed."[28] Nevertheless – crucially – using four-wheel drive still remained tied to heavier trucks, of 11⁄2-ton to 5-tons. All through World War I — there weren't any light four-wheel drive vehicles yet.[32]
Interbellum tests, and formulating the need for a standardized, 4x4, quarter-ton[]
Immediately after World War I, the future use of motor vehicles was considered. In 1919, the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps recommended the acquisition of a new kind of military vehicle, ".. of light weight and compact size, with a low silhouette and high ground clearance, and possess the ability to carry weapons and men over all sorts of rough terrain." [35] The U.S. Army started looking for a small vehicle suited for reconnaissance and messaging, while at the same time searching for a light cross-country weapons carrier.[36] However, after World War I, U.S. military budgets were drastically cut, and so any development of a light 4WD car was curtailed until the late 1930s.[37]
At the same time, there was a drive for standardization. By the end of World War I, U.S. forces overseas had a total of 216 different makes and models of motor vehicles to operate, both foreign and domestic, and no good supply system to keep them running.[20]
Various light motor vehicles were tested — at first motorcycles with and without sidecars, and some modified Ford Model Ts.[38][39] But what was needed was a very light, small, battlefield utility vehicle to replace motorcycles (with or without sidecar) — more user-friendly to control,[32] but just as easy to get in and out of. In the early 1930s, the U.S. Army experimented with a bantam weight "midget truck" for scouts and raiders. A 1,050 lb (480 kg), low-slung mini-car with a pick-up body, provided by American Austin Car Company,[40] was shown in a 1933 article in Popular Mechanics magazine.[41] One of the pictures showed that the vehicle was light enough to be man-handled — four soldiers could lift it from the ground entirely. But it was still only rear-wheel drive.
After 1935, when the U.S. Congress declared World War I vehicles obsolete, procurement for "remotorization of the Army" gained more traction,[42] but pre-war, peacetime budget restrictions meant that the U.S. Comptroller General imposed open bidding on every additional / incremental procurement. Each time, the Army was forced to award the contract to the lowest bid that met requirements or specifications,[43] often different makers – however, saving a small percentage initially, on the procurement, overall proved "penny wise, pound foolish" because it led to problematic diversity of the fleet, requiring too much training of operators and mechanics for maintenance and repairs, and too many non-interchangeable spare parts – bad for war logistics, and preventing the repair of one vehicle by scavenging parts off another. And the Army could still only get multi-axle drive on trucks, "requiring the greatest battlefield mobility".[43]
Meanwhile, in Asia and the Pacific, Japan had invaded Manchuria in 1931, and was at war with China from 1937. Its Imperial Army used a small, three-man crew, four-wheel drive car for reconnaissance and troop movements, the Kurogane Type 95, produced in limited numbers from 1936.
In 1937 Marmon-Herrington presented five 4x4 Fords, and American Bantam (previously American Austin) once again contributed — delivering three Austin derived roadsters in 1938.[44][34] The U.S. Army itself had also built an experimental light, low-profile scout and gun mover, the Howie-Wiley Machine Gun Carrier, ordered by General Walter Short, then Assistant Commander of the Army's Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia, and built by Captain Robert G. Howie and Master Sergeant Melvin C. Wiley. Completed in April 1937, with a driver and a gunner laying prone, operating a .30 caliber machine gun, the vehicle was nicknamed the "belly flopper".[45]
By 1939 the U.S. Army began standardizing its general-purpose truck chassis types by payload rating, initially in five classes from 1⁄2 to 7+1⁄2 short tons (0.45 to 6.80 t). The Quartermaster Corps saw that the Army needed truck chassis to be standardized in crucial basic functional 'types' (body models), and within 'payload capacity' classes. Additionally, some crucial features could not be equipped by the QC to commercial trucks after procurement. Cross-country capabilities, like increased ground clearance and multi-axle drive, had to be designed and built into the trucks from factory.[43] The Quartermaster Corps Technical Committee concurred, and in June 1939 requested the Chief of Staff's approval, to start standardizing truck chassis and bodies procured for the Army into five payload classes: 1⁄2‑ton, 11⁄2‑ton, 21⁄2‑ton, 4‑ton, and 71⁄2-ton and all tactical trucks had to have (part-time) all-wheel drive capability.[43] Furthermore, to achieve the needed level of standardization, the Quartermaster General urged trucks should be bought en masse from there on. Acting Chief of Staff, George C. Marshall, approved the procurement policy in the summer of 1939. The Quartermaster Corps also wanted to require the truck industry to use dimensionally interchangeable components, but further standardization measures were not approved until 1940.[43]
However, in 1940 the categories were revised. For the first time, a quarter-ton truck chassis class was introduced, at the bottom of the range, and the 1⁄2-ton category was supplanted by a 3⁄4-ton chassis.[46]
By the eve of entering World War II, the United States Department of War had determined it needed a 1⁄4-ton, cross-country reconnaissance vehicle. Although 1⁄2-ton four-by-fours had outperformed 1+1⁄2-ton 4x4 trucks during testing in 1938,[47] the half-ton 4x4 trucks – both from Marmon-Herrington Ford, and the 1940 Dodge VC series – still proved too large and heavy, and insufficiently agile off-road.[48][36] Anxious to have a quarter-ton truck in time for America's entry into World War II, the U.S. Army solicited proposals from domestic automobile manufacturers. Recognizing the need to create standard specifications, the Army formalized its requirements on 11 July 1940, and submitted them to 135 U.S. automotive manufacturers.[citation needed]
Development start – Bantam Reconnaissance Car[]
In the early 1930s, the Infantry Board at Fort Benning became interested in the British Army's use of the tiny Austin 7 car in a reconnaissance role, and they obtained a car from the American Austin company in Pennsylvania which built them under license. By 1938 American Austin had gone bankrupt and reorganized as American Bantam. They had loaned 3 cars to the Pennsylvania National Guard for trials during summer maneuvers. Bantam officials met with chiefs of Infantry and Cavalry and suggested a contract to further develop a military version of their car. A subcommittee of army officers and civilian engineers was tasked with creating detailed specifications for the proposed vehicles. One of the first things they did was to visit the Bantam factory and look at their existing compact cars. By the end of June 1940 specifications had been drawn up[49]
By now the war was underway in Europe, so the Army's need was urgent and demanding. Bids were to be received by 22 July, a span of just eleven days. Manufacturers were given 49 days to submit their first prototype and 75 days for completion of 70 test vehicles. The Army's Ordnance Technical Committee specifications were equally stringent: the vehicle would be four-wheel drive, have a crew of three on a wheelbase of no more than 75 in (191 cm), later upped to 80 in (203 cm), and track no more than 47 in (119 cm). The diminutive dimensions were similar in size and weight to Bantam's compact truck and roadster models.[51][unreliable source?] It was to feature a fold-down windshield, carry a 660 lb (299 kg) payload, and be powered by an engine capable of 85 lb⋅ft (115 N⋅m) of torque. The most daunting demand, however, was an empty weight of no more than 1,300 lb (590 kg).[citation needed]
Initially, only American Bantam and Willys-Overland entered the competition. Ford joined later.[52] Although Willys was the low bidder, Willys was penalized for requesting more time, and Bantam received the contract, as the only company committing to deliver a pilot model in 49 days and production examples in 75.
Bantam's chief engineer, Harold Crist, who had previously worked on the first Duesenberg, and been an engineer at Stutz Motor Company of Indianapolis for 18 years,[51][16] drafted freelance Detroit designer Karl Probst to collaborate. Probst turned down Bantam initially, but agreed to work without pay after an Army request and began work on 17 July 1940.[53]
Probst laid out full design drawings for the Bantam prototype, known as the Bantam Reconnaissance Car, or BRC, in just two days, and worked up a cost estimate the next day. Bantam's bid was submitted, complete with blueprints, on 22 July.[54] Bantam was struggling after bankruptcy trying to sell very small cars licensed from the British Austin Motor Company. But their design was able to leverage commercial off-the-shelf components as much as possible. Bantam adapted body stampings from its car line: the hood, cowl, dash, and curvy front fenders. As the Bantam engines only made 22 hp[55] the engine was chosen to be a 112 cu in (1.8 l) Continental four-cylinder engine making 45 horsepower and 86 lb⋅ft (117 N⋅m) of torque.[56] Custom four-wheel drive train components including the transfer case to send power to front and back axles were provided by Spicer. The axles were modified from units from the Studebaker Champion to four-wheel drive, the transmission was from Warner Gear.[57]
Using off-the-shelf automotive parts where possible had partly enabled drawing up the blueprints quickly. By working backward, Probst and Bantam's draftsmen converted what Crist and a few others had put together into drawings.[16] The hand-built prototype was then completed in Butler, Pennsylvania,[58] and driven to the Army vehicle test center at Camp Holabird, Maryland. It was delivered on 23 September 1940. The vehicle met all the Army's criteria except engine torque. The Bantam pilot (later also dubbed the "Blitz Buggy" or "Old Number One"[citation needed]) presented Army officials with the first of what eventually evolved into the World War II U.S. military jeep.
Enter Willys and Ford – pre-production jeeps[]
As Bantam did not have the production capacity or financial resources to deliver on the scale needed by the War Department, the other two bidders, Ford and Willys, were encouraged to complete their own pilot models for testing. The contract for the new reconnaissance car was to be determined by trials. While Bantam's prototype underwent testing at Holabird from 27 September to 16 October, Ford and Willys technical representatives were invited and given ample opportunity to observe the vehicle and study its performance. To expedite Ford and Willys' production, the War Department forwarded the Bantam blueprints to them, claiming the government owned all designs contained in the proposals submitted to it in the bidding contest. Bantam chose not to dispute this, because of their precarious finances.[citation needed]
By November 1940, Ford and Willys each submitted prototypes to compete with the Bantam in the Army's trials. The pilot models, the Willys "Quad" and the Ford "Pygmy", were similar to the Bantam, and were joined in testing by Bantam's entry, now updated into a Mark II called the "BRC 60".[nb 10][nb 11]
By then the U.S. armed forces were in such haste, and allies like Britain, France, and USSR were urging to acquire these new "Blitz-Buggies",[nb 12] that all three cars were declared acceptable and orders for 1,500 units per company were given for field testing and export. At this time it was acknowledged the original weight limit (which even Bantam could not meet) was unrealistic, and it was raised to 2,160 lb (980 kg). On 22 January 1941, the Quartermaster Corps Technical Committee advised standardization of the jeeps across all manufacturers.[60]
For pre-production runs, each vehicle received revisions and a new name. Bantam's became the "BRC 40".[nb 9] Production began on 31 March 1941, with a total of 2,605 built up to 6 December — the number ordered was raised because Britain and the USSR already wanted more of them supplied under Lend-Lease.[12][61][50]
The BRC 40 was the lightest and most nimble of the three pre-standardized models, and the Army lauded its good suspension, brakes, and high fuel economy. However, as the company could not meet the Army's demand for 75 vehicles a day, production contracts were also awarded to Willys and Ford.[17]
After reducing the Quad's weight by 240 lb (109 kg), through many painstaking detail changes, Willys renamed their vehicle "MA", for "Military" model "A". Some 1,555 MAs were built, most of which went to the Soviet Union under Lend-Lease. Only 27 units are still known to exist.[50]
Ford's pre-production model went into production as the "GP", with "G" indicating a "Government" contract, and "P" chosen by Ford to designate a car with a wheelbase of 80 in (203 cm).[nb 13] The Ford GP was not only the most numerous (about 4,458) pre-standardised jeeps[50] — it was also the first jeep fielded in some numbers to U.S. Army units. The Ford's overall design and quality of construction had advantages over the Bantam and Willys models, but the GP's engine, an adaptation of their Model N tractor engine, was underpowered and not sufficiently reliable. Ford built fifty units with four-wheel steering, of which four have survived.[50]
Eventually, virtually all of the Bantam- and Willys-built jeeps were provided to Britain and USSR, as well as most of the Ford GPs, leaving under 1,000 GPs for the home troops.[12]
Full production – Willys MB and Ford GPW[]
By July 1941, the War Department desired to standardize and decided to select a single manufacturer to supply them with the next order for 16,000 vehicles. Willys won the contract mostly due to its much more powerful 60 hp engine (the L124 "Go Devil"), which soldiers raved about, and its lower cost and silhouette. The design features in the Bantam and Ford entries which represented an improvement over Willys's design were incorporated into the Willys, moving it from an "MA" designation to "MB". Most obvious is the front design from the Ford GP, with a wide, flat hood, and the headlights moved inward from the fenders to under the hood, protected by a single wide, straight front grille and brushguard.
The jeep, once it entered mass production, introduced several new automotive technologies. Having four-wheel drive for the first time introduced the need for a transfer case, and the use of constant-velocity joints on the driven front wheels and axle, to a regular production car-sized vehicle.[62]
Early October 1941, it became clear that Willys-Overland could not keep up with procurement needs, and Ford received government contracts to build 30,000 jeeps as well,[63] according to Willys' blueprints, drawings, specifications, and patents, including the more powerful Willys engine.[64] When Ford offered to increase the displacement and power of the tractor engine in their GP model, the government declined and insisted on Ford duplicating jeeps identical to the Willys, both for the much stronger engine, and for complete commonality / interchangeability of the components. Willys received no license fees, and Ford complied. The Ford was designated "GPW", with the "W" indicating the "Willys" licensed design and engine. Ford retooled at a cost of $4 million to build Willys engines, and produced the first GPW as quickly as 2 January 1942. Just days before, in late December 1941, the Quartermaster Corps had ordered another 63,146 GPW.[63]
One extra condition to Ford's jeep orders, was to manufacture them in several different Ford assembly plants, in addition to Ford's primary 'River Rouge' plant in Dearborn (Michigan). The QC expressly demanded Ford to decentralize their jeeps manufacturing to facilitate the Army's logistics, shipping from all three coasts. Besides Dearborn, Ford also assembled jeeps in their Louisville, Chester (Pennsylvania), Dallas (Texas), and Richmond (California) plants. Ford's Edgewater (New Jersey) plant also built jeeps in the first four months of 1943.[63]
During World War II, Willys produced 363,000 Jeeps and Ford some 280,000. Some 50,000 were exported to the USSR under the Lend-Lease program.[10] Ford's assembly across plants distributed as: River Rouge 21,559; Dallas and Louisville almost tied at 93,748 and 93,364 units respectively; Chester 18,533, and Edgewater just 1,333 units.[65] Bantam stopped further jeep production and made two-wheel jeep trailers. This was sufficient to keep the firm going it was taken over in 1956.[66]
Ford built jeeps with functionally interchangeable parts and components, in part facilitated by using components from common sources: frames from Midland Steel, wheels from , and axles and transfer-cases from Spicer.[64] However, Ford had replaced the welded grate front grille by a single pressed / stamped sheet steel part, with nine vertical open slots to ventilate the radiator, and circular openings in front of the lights, to simplify production, and save costs. Willys also adopted this in their production of the MB after unit 25,808. Predictably, there were still many minor differences; the Ford chassis had an inverted U-shaped front cross member instead of a tubular bar, and a Ford script letter "F" was stamped onto many small parts.
Many body detail differences remained for as long as January 1944, when a composite body, fabricated by American Central, was finally agreed by both Ford and Willys. American Central had been making the jeep's bodies from the first 1500 units order for the Willys MA, and had also built Ford's jeep bodies for two years already, but until January 1944, Ford and Willys contracts retained detail differences. However, from then on features of both designs were integrated.[50] Through the chaotic circumstances of war, sometimes peculiar deviations from regular mass-production came off the assembly line, that are now prized by collectors. For instance: the earliest Ford GPWs had a Willys design frame, and in late-1943, some GPWs came with an unmodified Willys body; and in 1945 Willys produced some MBs with a deep mud exhaust system, vacuum windshield wipers, and a Jeep CJ-style parking brake.[67]
The Ford GPA, the amphibious jeep[]
A further roughly 13,000 amphibious jeeps were built by Ford as the Ford GPA (nicknamed "Seep" for "Sea Jeep"). Inspired by the larger DUKW, the vehicle was produced too quickly[citation needed] and proved to be too heavy, too unwieldy, and with insufficient freeboard. In spite of participating with some success in the Sicily landings in July 1943, many were passed on under the Lend-Lease program; some 3,500 to the USSR alone.[68] The Soviets were sufficiently pleased with its ability to cross the many rivers and swamps in their territories, to develop their own version of it after the war, the GAZ-46.
Accessories and equipment fittings[]
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Unlike the Dodge WC series, Willys and Ford jeeps were all the same from factory, and specialization happened only through standardized accessories, field kits, and local modifications. Frequently made additions to the standard jeeps were to fit weaponry, communications equipment, medical gear, wire cutters, or rudimentary armor.
Jeep trailer[]
Some 150,000 1⁄4-ton trailers were made by over ten different companies, specifically built to be towed by the jeep – most of them by Bantam and Willys. These doubled the jeeps nominal payload. They were hardly modified after the war, and versions of them remained in use for jeeps, into the 1990s.[citation needed]
Radio gear[]
The jeep's primary command and reconnaissance roles of course necessitated fitting many kinds of tactical communication equipment. The first standard production fitting was for the SCR-193 radio, placed on either side in the rear of a jeep, on top of the rear wheel well. For proper reception, this included radio interference suppression shielding, so indicated by a suffix 'S' on the jeep's hood registration number. In 1943/1944, the Army shifted to FM radios, and new fittings were developed for those. At least fourteen Signal Corps Radio set fittings were standardized, including for the SCR-187, SCR-284, SCR-499, SCR-506, SCR-508, SCR-510, SCR-522, SCR-528, SCR-542, SCR-608, SCR-610, SCR-619, SCR-628, SCR-694, SCR-808, SCR-828, and VRC-l.[69]
Gun mounts[]
Two of the original uses of the 1⁄4-ton truck were reconnaissance, and the support of infantry with machine-guns. These roles led to the desire to mount automatic rifles, to be fired from the jeep. To mount either a .30-caliber M1919 Browning machine gun or .50-cal (12.7 mm) M2 Browning heavy machine gun, the M31 pedestal, a tubular pedestal with bracing in three directions, was developed. This was the most common factory jeep machine-gun mount during the war, with 31,653 produced. It was followed by the improved M31C in March 1945, but this came too late for much combat in World War II. Besides these, units often created their own pedestal mounts in the field, or adapted other pedestal mounts as available. Additionally, in 1943 the M48 bracket mount was standardized, to attach the .30-cal. machine gun or .30-cal. M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle in front of the passenger seat. Like with the pedestals, troops improvised many gun-holding brackets in the field.[70] Troops frequently preferred a .30 cal machine gun on a pivot, to fire from the front passenger seat.
Aside from actual fielding intentions, the jeep was widely used for various weapons mounts trials during World War II, simply because the jeep was a handy platform to test all kinds of ring mounts, multiple gun mounts, as well as different weapons. The widespread adoption of the jeep in other armies also meant many different armaments. The most rigorous efforts were by the British. Perhaps the most well-known are the jeeps modified by the SAS for the 1942 desert raids in Egypt. These had several armaments, commonly using twin 0.303 inch Vickers K machine guns on the passenger side. These also served as a pattern for the later British airborne jeeps, armed with single Vickers K guns.[citation needed]
Field kits[]
Many field kits originated as locally made modifications and additions, for which standard kits were later produced by both the U.S. and Britain. Frequently used examples were rear baggage racks, ambulance litters and frames to transport lying wounded on jeeps, and wire cutters. Soldiers frequently ran into (literally) wires — either inadvertently, inconveniently strung communication wires, or deliberately placed by the enemy, to injure or kill motorcycle and vehicle personnel. The typical countermeasure was to mount a tall vertical steel bar to the front bumper, that would either cut offending strings, or deflect them over the heads of the jeep crew. This was first used in Tunisia, 1943, but became frequent in Italy (1943–1945), and especially necessary in France (1944).[71]
More specific kits were created to enhance off-roading and mechanical capabilities, dealing with extreme climates, and technical support applications, like laying communication cables, or a field arc welder kit.[72]
Many solutions made the jeep run on rails, popular in the Pacific theater with U.S., Britain, and Commonwealth troops, especially in Burma. A-frames on the front bumper enabled two jeeps to tow heavy trailers (for 21⁄2‑ton trucks) in tandem. For desert cooling, radiator surge tanks were used in North Africa in 1942. Equally, there were winterization kits, even snowplows, and the jeep's go-anywhere capability was further aided with deep water fording kits, tire air compressors, and a winch option. For communications, jeeps were modified with rear ditch plows and cable laying reels, such as the RL-31 reel unit.[71]
Off-road enhancements[]
To disembark jeeps in amphibious landings, in 1943 a deep water fording kit for the jeep was produced. This enabled jeeps to be driven off landing craft like the Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM), wading into relatively deep water, without flooding the engine or short-circuiting the electrical system. After several interim kits were issued, the U.S. Army standardized the universal WV-6 kit (later G9-5700769) which served all WWII 1⁄4‑ton to 21⁄2‑ton trucks. The kit contained flexible hoses for both the exhaust and the air intake, as well as proper waterproofing equipment. Westinghouse developed a T1 air compressor, to be used in conjunction with special tires, to deflate the tires off-road, in soft mud or snow, and be able to pressurize them again after. It could be fitted under a maintenance work order, from October 1944. There was even a small capstan winch field kit made for the jeep, driven off the motor, for self-extracting, or pulling other jeeps trapped in mud or snow.[71] The winch was very small, and made hand-cranking of the jeep impossible. The latter two gadgets remained very rare.
Arctic weather measures[]
Willys developed a winterization kit for very cold climates. This included a cold-starting stove, crankcase ventilator, primer, hood insulation blanket, radiator blanket, a body enclosure kit, defroster/de-icer, and snow chains. These kits were however frequently unavailable, so units took their own measures in the field, particularly improvising various body enclosures, to protect the crew from extreme weather. In addition, two companies fabricated snow-plows for the jeep. Geldhill Road Machinery Company made the 7T1NE plow, an angled single blade, while the JV5.5E was a V-shape design. The Wausau Iron Works built two similar designs, designated as the J and JB snowplows. Neither of these seem to have been commonly issued in combat. Photos of snowplows in use in the European theater mostly show improvised plows, likely adaptations of snowplows locally found at hand.[71]
Further development of the jeep[]
Although no other light jeeps were taken into production, it was not for lack of trying. Both key military men, who had been championing the development of military vehicle concepts they had formulated for years – sometimes already since World War One – had led to conclusions about the logic of military mechanization, as well as automakers large and small, who now saw that in wartime, all of a sudden there were budgets available to work with. Of course, this was primarily true for the firms involved so far.
After losing out on mass-production of the four-wheel drive 1⁄4-ton, Bantam built the Army one 4x2 quarter‑ton chassis in 1942, but to no further consequence.[73]
Lightweight jeeps[]
After the initial design specification of a maximum 1,275 lb (578 kg) weight had been raised to almost double that in production, to achieve the necessary ruggedness on the main 1⁄4‑ton, the Army still wanted a truly lightweight model for airborne missions, and use in the jungles of the Pacific theaters. In 1942 and 1943, at least five companies proposed designs: Crosley, Chevrolet, Ford, Willys, and Kaiser. The Crosley CT-3 "Pup" prototypes were superlight, one- or two-passenger, but still four-wheel-drive buggies, that were transportable and air-droppable from a Douglas C-47 Skytrain. Six of the 2-cylinder, 13 hp, 1,125-pound (510 kg) Pups were deployed overseas after undergoing tests at Fort Benning, Georgia, but the project was discontinued due to several weak components. Seven of 36 Pups built are known to survive.[74][75]
Most of the competitors' models were more similar to standard jeeps, just lighter and smaller. Willys managed to reduce the weight on their 'MB-L' (MB Lightweight) to some 1,570 lb (710 kg) in 1943; and Army engineers were impressed by the Chevrolet and its advanced features: a single center spar frame, and an integrated gearbox and transfer case.[76] Kaiser created six 1,300–1,400-pound (590–640 kg) prototypes with a 42 hp engine, but including some unfavorable design trade-offs.
Willys eventually produced even more radical designs. The Willys WAC (Willys Air Cooled) had three seats, built around a centrally mounted 24 hp Harley Davidson engine, weighed only 1,050 lb (480 kg), but was noisy and not user-friendly. Still, it showed promise, and was further developed, eventually resulting in the Willys JBC, or 'Jungle Burden Carrier'. By early 1945 this had turned into a mere 561 lb (254 kg) motorized wheeled load-carrying platform, with a single seat, that preceded the 1950s Willys M274 'Mechanical Mule'.[76]
In Britain, Nuffield Mechanizations and Aero cut down a Willys MB in length and width, and stripped it for minimum weight, to serve airborne forces. The Airborne Forces Development Centre in Wiltshire oversaw an entire modification program for jeeps in airborne units, involving many modifications to reduce both weight and or size, including to wedge them into Horsa gliders, for operation Market Garden.[citation needed]
Antitank jeeps[]
Besides towing 37mm antitank guns, it was also tested mounted directly on the quarter‑tons. In early 1941, the US Army's Tank Destroyer Command was urgently looking to make their antitank guns more mobile, to better serve their tactical doctrine. One of the first prototypes, the T2 37mm Gun Motor Carriage (GMC), mounted a standard 37mm gun and gun shield on a Bantam BRC-40, aiming forward over the hood. Seven of these were built and tested, starting in May 1941, but were found awkward. So instead, eleven T2E1 GMC units aimed the 37mm gun rearwards for trials. Shooting rearwards had advantages, but this configuration also proved difficult to man and operate the gun. The units were all dismantled to regular jeeps. In 1942, the larger 3⁄4‑ton Dodge WC-52 was converted and standardized as the M6 Gun Motor Carriage, with a rear-aiming 37mm M3 gun, but these also worked poorly in the field, and most were rebuilt back to regular WC-52 trucks. Further designs were tried with stretched 6-wheel jeeps, but by 1943, the 37mm guns had become largely ineffective against German tanks.[citation needed]
Late in the war, in 1945, the first large-caliber recoilless rifles became available, and the first jeep-mounted tests were performed, but they only came to fruition after World War II. One rare exception was Operation Varsity, for which two 75-mm. recoilless rifles were issued to the 17th U.S. Airborne Division, that could be mounted on their jeeps, proving useful in anti-tank fights.[77]
Rocket jeeps[]
The jeep being too light to mount substantial guns, it was more suited later in the war, as a platform for rocket artillery, that didn't have the enormous recoil as conventional tube artillery. The California Institute of Technology developed two different 4.5-inch jeep-based rocket launcher systems for the U.S. Navy. Several other initiatives all used 4.5-inch rockets and tubes. Testing was also done by both U.S. Army and Marine Corps, but none of the jeep-mounted rocket launchers were built in any significant number, because it was more efficient to use larger trucks that could carry more rockets. The Soviet Red Army deployed twelve units fitted with 12-rail M-8 82mm rocket launchers in the bed of a jeep, from December 1944 in the Carpathian Mountains.[78]
Stretched and uprated jeeps[]
To extend the jeep's luggage space, the simplest, and frequently used method was the addition of a rear baggage rack. In exceptional cases, units would actually stretch both body and frame of a jeep, to give it more passenger and luggage space, but for this usage, a Dodge WC model was available in many cases. Nevertheless, building stretched, 6x6 jeeps with 3⁄4‑ton cross-country payload, was explored with much interest. As early as July 1941, after the unsuccessful testing with the T2 and T2E1 37mm antitank guns mounted on Bantam jeeps, the U.S. Quartermaster Corps (QMC) thought to lengthen 1⁄4‑ton jeeps into 6WD for specialized roles, including the 37mm gun. Willys was contracted that month for both a T13 and a T14 Gun Motor Carriage, based on the Willys MA – one firing forward, and one rearwards, like the earlier Bantams. In reality, two models of rearward firing T14 were built, based on Willys MBs, one slat grille in late 1941, and one or more stamped grilles, by January 1942.[79] Although the Willys T14 was actually found to be the best of several 37mm tank destroyers tested by the U.S. Army, by that time the M6 Gun Motor Carriage (based on the|Dodge 3⁄4‑ton) had been standardized for the Tank destroyer battalions.[citation needed]
Nevertheless, the QMC and Willys kept developing the 3⁄4‑ton 6x6, in various versions, as the "Super-Jeep". By March 1942, the T14 GMC was revised as a cargo / prime mover, named Willys 'MT-TUG', that could compete in some roles with the 3⁄4‑ton Dodges. The Army tested these in various configurations, up to a 1-ton rated version, as a light, multi-purpose tractor truck, cargo, or personnel carrier. For the Army Air Force / (US)AAF, several MT-Tug units were built with a fifth-wheel coupling on the cargo floor, for various Fruehauf trailers, and loaded with sandbags on the cargo bed, even as aircraft tugs. The Marine Corps also wanted a beefier truck, using standard jeep components, with higher fixed side body structure, as a personnel or mortar squad carrier, or an 'MT-CA' field ambulance.[citation needed]
The Willys MT models had the same 3⁄4‑ton rating as the new for 1942 Dodge WC series, but weighed only 3,100 lb (1,400 kg), with a 300 miles (480 km) range, and a top speed of 55 miles per hour (89 km/h). Willys pointed out that every 6x6 'Super Jeep' would save 2,000 lb (910 kg) of steel for their construction, as well as 40% in fuel usage, compared to the Dodge trucks.[80] Moreover, it comprised 65% unaltered standard jeep components, and many of the other parts were also just modified standard jeep parts. By January 1943, the Willys MT-TUG was further evaluated by the Army Transport Command at Camp Gordon Johnston, FL. It was positively reviewed there for its effortless operation in deep sand. Although the Willys 3⁄4‑ton's performance was even called 'exemplary' by some,[81] the U.S. Army nevertheless abandoned the Willys MT in favor of the already produced 3⁄4‑ton and 11⁄2‑ton trucks, because the Willys was 'surplus to requirements'.[citation needed]
Fifteen 6x6 Willys MT(-Tug)s alone were built as "Truck, 3⁄4-ton, 6×6, Tractor", under Ordnance production contract W‑303‑ORD‑4623, production order T6620,[79][82][83] and even a maintenance supplement for the "6x6 Willys MB‑Tug" was printed with the 1943 TM10‑1513 technical manual. Including miscellaneous test units, a total of 24 units are believed to have been built, with six known survivors.[80]
An even smaller number of 1⁄2‑ton jeeps with a slightly stretched wheelbase were built as the Willys MLW(−1) through MLW-4 "Jungle Jeep". LW stood for Long(er) Wheelbase, to accommodate significantly larger wheels and 7.50–20 tires with a tractor-like profile, with the objective to serve in the jungles of the Pacific theater, after a September 1943 request from the South West Pacific for a truck with payload and mobility over mud and swamps of jungle terrain, superior to that of the regular jeep.[84][nb 14]
Tracked jeeps[]
Several tracked jeep prototypes were built, because of such a need in Alaska and Canada. After America had entered the war, a Japanese attack on the Aleutians made the Alaskan military base there suddenly a zone of great military importance. The snow-rich circumstances created a need for tracked, jeep-like, all-purpose vehicles, and the Canadian Bombardier company created the T29 jeep half-track out of one of the existing 6–6 Willys MT chassis. Due to Willys' workload, International Harvester helped assemble a further five T29E1 prototypes. Under the steering front wheels, skis could also be mounted. An Aberdeen test report critiqued that the T-29E1 was difficult to steer, as the tracks could not be controlled independently, and that prolonged use caused excessive track component wear. The only known surviving half-track WWII jeep is named Willys T28 'Penguin'.[85] Further (fully) tracked "jeeps" were also armored, and developed for, and by Canada — see armored jeeps.
Armored jeeps[]
Many jeeps received added armor in the field, especially in Europe in 1944–1945. Frequently, a rear slanting armor plate was added in front of the grille, and replacing the windshield, as well as the sides, in place of where doors would be. The upper, biggest part was typically made of a single, large, 5/16th inch steel plate, folded in three, with two different sight openings in the front.[citation needed]
Since reconnaissance was one of the jeep's primary purposes, there was a demand for some armor from the start of production. Starting April 1942, the second T14 GMC 6x6 Willys MT-Tug chassis was converted to the . Though performing well in trials, the T24 was abandoned in the autumn in favor of the M8 & M20 Light Armored Car. Concurrently, the Ordnance Corps was pushed to work on a lightly armored reconnaissance design, based on the standard Willys 4x4 jeep. Different armor configurations were tested on the T25 through T25E3 prototypes respectively. For all 4x4 armored jeeps, the significant weight increase reduced their payload, and adversely affected their mobility.[citation needed]
Canada created two small series of light, tracked, armed, armored vehicles using largely Jeep automotive components. In late 1942, the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND)'s Directorate of Vehicles and Artillery (DVA) began work at No.1 Proving Ground in Ottawa on a small tracked vehicle successively named: 'Bantam Armoured Tracked Vehicle', the 'Light Recce Tank', and finally: the 'Tracked Jeep', or Willys TJ. Main roles included: intercommunication (running messages over contested ground), armored reconnaissance, and engaging unarmored enemy troops in airborne and combined operations.[86] Willys and Marmon-Herrington were contracted for five more prototypes, Willys for power train components, and M.H. for hulls and running gear. The Tracked Jeep showed excellent cross-country performance over all terrain types, especially soft mud. Its up-hill mobility was deemed superior to all other light tracked utility vehicles, while its amphibious capability was adequate, despite its low freeboard.[86] There were however serious shortcomings with the running-gear and tracks. Work to fix this delayed testing until late 1944, and British insights demanded such fundamental changes, that a Mk.2 version was developed, of which another six units were fabricated, and not ready until after the war had ended. The problems with tracks and running gear were still not sorted out, and development halted. America had observed the Canadian effort, but saw no advantages, compared to the M29 'Weasel' Tracked Cargo Carrier.[citation needed]
Flying jeep[]
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The most extreme concept tried was to turn the jeep into a rotor kite (or gyrokite), similar to an autogyro – the Hafner Rotabuggy (officially Malcolm Rotaplane). Designed by Raoul Hafner in 1942, and sponsored by the Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment (AFEE), after their Rotachute enjoyed some success, a passive rotor assembly was added over the jeep cabin, along with a lightweight tail, for stabilization. This jeep could be towed into the air by a transport or bomber tug. The Rotabuggy would then be towed to the drop zone as a rotary-wing glider. It took until autumn 1944 to achieve a decent test flight, and other military gliders, particularly the Waco Hadrian and Airspeed Horsa) made the Rotabuggy superfluous. Incidentally, it was first named the "Blitz Buggy", but that was soon dropped for "Rotabuggy".
Etymology[]
There is no consensus among historians as to how the U.S. Army's World War II quarter-ton reconnaissance car became known as the "jeep", let alone how the word originated in the first place. Explanations have proven difficult to verify. With certainty, the term "jeep" was already in use before the war, designating various things, while the 1⁄4-ton jeeps at first had many different designations and nicknames.
Eugene the Jeep and prior usage of "jeep"[]
According to some sources, the word "jeep" was used as early as World War I, both as U.S. Army slang for new, uninitiated recruits or other new personnel who still had to prove their mettle. It was also used by mechanics, to refer to any new prototypes or untested vehicles.[89][90] Later, in mid-March 1936, a character called Eugene the Jeep was created in E. C. Segar's Popeye cartoons.[7] Eugene the Jeep was Popeye's "jungle pet" and was small, able to walk through walls and move between dimensions, and could go anywhere and solve seemingly impossible problems.[91][92] The Eugene cartoon character brought new meaning to the Jeep name, diverging from the initial, somewhat pejorative meaning of the term, instead changing the slang to mean a capable person or thing.[93]
Eugene the Jeep's go-anywhere ability resulted in various industrial and four-wheel drive vehicles getting nicknamed "Jeep" in the late-1930s. Around 1940, converted 4WD Minneapolis-Moline tractors, supplied to the U.S. Army as prime movers, were called "jeeps",[94][95][nb 15] and Halliburton used the name for an electric logging device,[89][96] or for a custom built four wheel drive exploration/survey vehicle.[93] A small, anti-submarine, escort aircraft carrier was called a "jeep carrier" in the U.S. Navy in WWII,[97][98] and also several aircraft – prototypes for both Kellett autogyros, and for the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress,[93][99] as well as the 1941 Curtiss-Wright AT-9 were called "jeeps". Additionally, in 1936/1937, Canadian soldiers had received a 1⁄2‑ton Marmon-Herrington half-track, and called it a "Jeep" (with a capital 'J').[100]
By 1940–1942, soldiers generally used "jeep" for half-ton or three-quarter-ton Dodge Command Reconnaissance cars, with the three-quarter-ton Command Cars sometimes called "beeps" (for "big Jeeps"), while the quarter-ton cars were called "peeps", "son of jeep", "baby jeep", or "quads" or "bantams".[89][95][96] A seven-page article in Popular Science (Oct 1941) headlined introducing the quarter-ton as "Leaping Lena" – also one of the nicknames of the ubiquitous, same length Ford Model T – and further called it a buggy, or just a bug.[62] Originally, "peep" seemed a fitting name, because the quarter-ton was considered primarily a reconnaissance (peeping) car.[96]
The early-1940s terminology situation is summed up in the definition given in Words of the Fighting Forces by Clinton A. Sanders, a dictionary of military slang, published in 1942, in the Pentagon library: "Jeep: A four-wheel drive car of one-half to one-and-one-half-ton capacity for reconnaissance or other army duty. A term applied to the bantam-cars, and occasionally to other motor vehicles (U.S.A.) in the Air Corps, the Link Trainer; in the armored forces, the 1⁄2 ton command car. Also referred to as 'any small plane, helicopter, or gadget'". "Jeep" could still mean various things, including light wheeled utility vehicles other than the jeep.
In the first years of the war, this usage of the term 'jeep' logically meshes with the ratios of U.S. light wheeled military trucks production. In 1940, the U.S. government took delivery of 8,058 light trucks – 6,583 of which were 1⁄2‑tons, 4x4, Dodge G-505 VC- and WC-models (82%).[101] The 1⁄4‑ton jeep was yet to be designed. The half-tons provoked two insights: the military wanted many more of them, but also needed another vehicle – even smaller, lighter, and more agile. In 1941, Dodge ramped up the 1⁄2‑ton WC-series, delivering some 60,000 units, compared to some 15,000 quarter-tons, almost all still pre-production units, built by three different manufacturers. Even in 1942, when production of the standardized 1⁄4‑ton jeep really got up to speed, it didn't catch up to the WC-series' numbers — the 170,000 jeeps built still only amounted to half of the total 356,000 light trucks the Army had received by end of that year. It took until early 1943 for the Ford and Willys jeeps to outnumber the 1⁄2‑ton and 3⁄4‑ton Dodge WC models in service.[102]
Whether "jeep" was derived from "GP"[]
One of the most frequently given explanations is that the designation "GP" was slurred into the word "Jeep", in the same way that the contemporary HMMWV (for "High-Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle") has become known as the 'Humvee' — either from the initial Ford model "GP" – or from the military 'G.P.', for "General Purpose" (vehicle). Although prior existence of the term "jeep" dismisses this as an etymology in the strict sense, it may well have contributed to the marriage of the term with the WWII quarter-ton vehicle.[citation needed]
The first version, based on the Ford "GP" model code, was already given in an article in the San Francisco Call-Bulletin in late 1941,[103] and is to an extent plausible, because the pre-standardized Ford GP was the first of the 1⁄4-ton jeeps to reach GIs by the hundreds, starting from early 1941. So it is possible "GP" could have evolved into "Geep" and then "jeep".[56]
The latter 'GP'-based explanation though this does appear in the TM9-803 Manual,[3] and the car is designated a "GP" in the TM9-2800 Manual — these were published in late 1943 and early 1944, and their influence on the jeep's name is dubious. One reason being: the jeep wasn't the only of the Quartermaster Corps' "general purpose" vehicles – so if this was the source, people would have nicknamed others "geeps" or "jeeps" as well,[105] as they did before.
More influential perhaps, was the 1943 short propaganda / documentary film The Autobiography of a 'Jeep', by the U.S. Office of War Information, in which the jeep itself literally propagates this origin story of its nickname.[106]
Willys-Overland's positions and promotion[]
Joe Frazer, Willys-Overland President from 1939 to 1944, claimed to have coined the word jeep by the initials G.P.,[99] possibly related to Willys-Overland's 1943 trademark and 1946 copyright claims to the Jeep name. However, the company handling Willys' public relations in 1944 wrote that the jeep name probably came from the fact that the vehicle made quite an impression on soldiers at the time, so much so that they informally named it after the go-anywhere Eugene the Jeep.[103]
In early 1941, when the test cars went by names like BRC / "Blitz-Buggy", Ford Pygmy and others, Willys-Overland staged a press event in Washington, D.C., a publicity stunt and Senate photo opportunity demonstrating the car's off-road capability by driving it up and down the U.S. Capitol steps. Irving "Red" Hausmann, a test driver on the Willys development team who had accompanied the car for its testing at Camp Holabird, had heard soldiers there referring to it as a jeep. He was enlisted to go to the event and give a demonstration ride to a group of dignitaries, including Katherine Hillyer, a reporter for the Washington Daily News. When asked what it was, Hausmann said "it's a Jeep". Hausmann preferred "Jeep", to distinguish the Willys rig from the other funny-named quarter-tons at Camp Holabird.[95] Hillyer's syndicated article appeared in the newspaper on 20 February 1941, with a photo showing a jeep going up the Capitol steps and a caption including the term "jeep". This is believed to be the most likely origin of the term being fixed in public awareness. Even though Hausmann did not create or invent the word "Jeep", he likely contributed to its mainstream media usage indicating the quarter-ton vehicle.
Convergence from mixed origins and media coverage[]
It is plausible that the origin was mixed and converged on "jeep" from multiple directions. Ford Motor Company pushed its Ford GP hard, to get the military contract, putting the term "GP" into use. Military officers and G.I.s involved in the procurement and testing of the car may have called it jeep from the WWI slang. Civilian contractors, engineers, and testers may have related it to Popeye's "Eugene the Jeep" character. People may have heard the same name from different directions, and as one person heard it from another, put their own understanding and explanation on it.[107] Overwhelming presence of the nickname 'jeep' in the public's opinion was probably the deciding factor.[93]
From 1941 on, a "constant flow of press and film publicity",[20] as well as Willys advertising as of 1942, proclaiming it had created and perfected the jeep, cemented the name "Jeep" in the civilian public's mind,[96][19] even when "peep" was still used at many army camps,[20] and President Roosevelt spoke of the vital role the "peep" had to play in defending the shores of Fort Story, Virginia (04-1942).[citation needed]
One other particularly influential article may have been the January 1942 full review of the military's new wonder buggy in Scientific American, reprinted as "Meet the Jeep" in Reader's Digest, the best-selling consumer magazine of the day.[108] Author Jo Chamberlin was duly impressed by the "midget combat car" and wrote:
Our Army's youngest, smallest toughest baby has a dozen pet names such as jeep, peep, blitz-buggy, leaping Lena, panzer-killer. The names are all affectionate, for the jeep has made good. Only a year old, it stole the show in Louisiana. Now the Army plans to have 75,000 of them.[citation needed]
In a prescient footnote, Chamberlin wrote: "Some army men call the bantam a "peep", reserving "jeep" for the larger command car in which the brass hats ride. However, the term 'jeep' (born of GP, an auto manufacturing classification) is used by newspapers and most soldiers, and apparently will stick'".[109][110]
Grille[]
Willys made its first 25,000 MB Jeeps with a welded flat iron "slat" radiator grille. It was Ford who first designed and implemented the now familiar and distinctive stamped, vertical-slot steel grille into its vehicles, which was lighter, used fewer resources, and was less costly to produce.[111] Along with many other design features innovated by Ford, this was incorporated into the design and implemented by April 1942.
In order to be able to get their grille design trademarked, Willys gave their post-war jeeps a seven slot grille instead of the Ford nine-slot design.[111] This applies both to Willys' "Civilian Jeeps", as well as the M38 and M38A1 military models. Through a series of corporate takeovers and mergers, AM General Corporation ended up with the rights to use the seven-slot grille as well, which they in turn extended to Chrysler when it acquired American Motors Corporation, then the manufacturer of Jeep, in 1987.[citation needed]
Ford design, stamped steel, nine-slot grille on a 1945 Willys MB
Seven-slot grille on the CJ-2A, Willys' first civilian Jeep
Due to Willys' trademark, Ford had to use a different design on their M151 ¼-ton 4×4 utility truck, opting for horizontal slots.
Through corporate history, the Humvee manufacturer AM General also had rights to fit the seven-slot grille.
Other manufacturers used slotted grilles on their vehicles, in this case a 1st generation Suzuki Jimny.
Service[]
| External image | |
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 Over flat terrain, the jeep would transport up to six soldiers} with backpacks, if necessary. |
The USA provided jeeps to almost all of the Allies in World War II. Britain, Canada,[nb 17] Australia, India, the Free French, USSR and China all received jeeps, mostly under the American Lend-Lease program.[15] Some 182,500 units were provided to Allies under Lend-Lease alone. Almost 105,000 to the British Empire,[nb 18] including Australia and India, plus over 8,000 to Canada, and some 50,000 to the Soviet Union.[10] The Free French (almost 10,000) and China (almost 7,000) were medium takers, and many other countries received a small number.[10] America shipped a total of 77,972 various "jeeps" to the Soviet Union – consisting of 49,250 1⁄4‑tons,[nb 19] 25,200 Dodge 3⁄4‑tons,[nb 20] and 3,520 Ford GPA.[112][10][68]
Within the U.S military, jeeps were used by every branch. In the U.S. Army, an average of 145 units were assigned to each infantry regiment.[113] Around the world, jeeps served in every overseas theater of operation, in every environment, under all weather and climatic conditions — in North Africa and the Pacific Theater, the Western Allied invasion of Europe in 1944, as well as the Eastern Front. From deserts to mountains, from jungles to beachheads, jeeps could be pulled out of thick mud by their riders, en was even flown in light glider planes.[12]
Jeeps became so ubiquitous in the European battle theater that some German troops believed that each American soldier was issued their own jeep.[114][nb 21]
In the deserts of the North African campaign, the jeep's abilities so far surpassed those of British vehicles that it wasn't unusual for jeeps to rescue a three-ton truck stuck in the sand. In combat, the British would use their jeeps in groups of up to fifty or sixty to raid Rommel's supply lines by surprise, exploiting the jeep's low silhouette; able to remain unseen, hide behind dunes, and surprise the enemy.[117]
Jeeps served as indefatigable pack horses for troop transport and towing supply trailers, carrying water, fuel, and ammo, and pulling through the most difficult terrain. They performed nimble scout and reconnaissance duty, were frequent ambulances for the wounded, and did hearse service. They also doubled as mobile field command headquarters or weapons platforms – either with mounted machine guns or pulling small artillery pieces into "unreachable" areas over inhospitable terrain.[16] The Jeep's flat hood was used as a commander's map table, a chaplain's field altar, the G.I.s' poker table, or even for field surgery. Some of them had a wire cutter as protection against taut-wire traps. Fitted with flanged steel wheels, they could pull railroad cars.[14][15][16]
Despite some shortcomings, the jeep was generally well-liked, seen as versatile, maneuverable, reliable, and almost indestructible.[15] The seats were found uncomfortable, sometimes caused the so-called "Jeep riders' disease" and cramped in the rear, but many soldiers enjoyed driving the nimble jeep, appreciating its powerful engine; and with its light weight, low-cut body sides, bucket seats and manual floor-shifter, it was as close to a sportscar as most GIs had ever driven.[14] Enzo Ferrari called the Jeep "America's only real sports car."[114] Nazi generals admired the jeep more than any other U.S. materiel, and it was the vehicle the most liked to capture for general use.[118]
In the cauldron of war, the jeeps served every purpose imaginable: as a power plant, light source, improvised stove for field rations, or a hot water source for shaving. Hitched-up with the proper tools, it would plow snow, or dig long furrows for laying heavy electrical cable along jungle airfields – laid by another jeep following it.[16] Battle-hardened warriors learned to weld a roof-top height vertical cutter-bar to the front of their jeeps, to cut any trip wires tied across roads or trails by the Germans, placed to snap the necks of unsuspecting jeepers.[14] Pulitzer Prize–winning war journalist Ernie Pyle wrote: "It does everything. It goes everywhere. It's as faithful as a dog, as strong as a mule and as agile as a goat. It constantly carries twice what it was designed for, and still keeps on going."[8]
General George S. Patton's jeep — Bastogne, Belgium (1945)
World War II jeeps in Batavia, Indonesia (1947).
Wire catcher on front of improvised attack jeep, used by Samson's Foxes Israeli commando unit in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War
Post-war[]
Willys-Overland filed to trademark the "Jeep" name in 1943.[119] From 1945 onwards, Willys marketed its four-wheel drive vehicle to the public with its CJ (Civilian Jeep) versions, making these the world's first mass-produced 4WD civilian cars. Even before actual civilian purpose jeeps had been created, the 3 Jan 1944 issue of Life magazine featured a story titled: 'U.S. Civilians Buy Their First Jeeps'. A mayor from Kansas had bought a Ford GP in Chicago in 1943, and it performed invaluable work on his 2,000 acre farm.[120]
Already in 1942 industrial designer Brooks Stevens came up with an idea on how to make a civilian car called Victory Car on the jeep chassis.[121] It never went into production, but Willys liked the idea and gave Brook Stevens notable design jobs, including the 1946 Willys Jeep Station Wagon, 1947 Willys Jeep Truck, and 1948 Willys-Overland Jeepster, as well as the 1963–1993 Jeep Wagoneer.[122]
In 1948, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission agreed with American Bantam that the idea of creating the Jeep was originated and developed by American Bantam in collaboration with the U.S. Army as well as Ford and Spicer.[123] The commission forbade Willys from claiming, directly or by implication, that it had created or designed the jeep, and allowed it only to claim that it contributed to the development of the vehicle.[90][17] The trademark lawsuit initiated and won by Bantam was a hollow victory: American Bantam went bankrupt by 1950 and Willys was granted the "Jeep" trademark the same year.[123][124]
The first CJs were essentially the same as the MB, except for such alterations as vacuum-powered windshield wipers, a tailgate (and therefore a side-mounted spare tire), and civilian lighting. Also, the civilian jeeps had amenities like naugahyde seats, chrome trim, and were available in a variety of colors. Mechanically, a heftier T-90 transmission replaced the Willys MB's T84 in order to appeal to the originally considered rural buyer demographic.
In Britain, Rover were also inspired to build their own, very jeep-like vehicle. Their first testing prototype was actually built on the chassis of a war-surplus jeep, on the Welsh farm of then Rover chief engineer Maurice Wilks and by his older brother, managing director Spencer Wilks. Production of their "Land Rover" started after its presentation model was well received at the first post-war Amsterdam International Auto show or 'AutoRAI' in 1948.[16]
Willys-Overland and its successors, Willys Motors and Kaiser Jeep continued to supply the U.S. military, as well as many allied nations with military jeeps through the late 1960s. In 1950, the first post-war military jeep, the M38 (or MC), was launched, based on the 1949 CJ‑3A. In 1953, it was quickly followed by the M38A1 (or MD), featuring an all-new "round-fendered" body in order to clear the also new, taller, Willys Hurricane engine. This jeep was later developed into the civilian CJ-5 launched in 1955. Similarly, its ambulance version, the M170 (or MDA), featuring a 20-inch wheelbase stretch, was later turned into the civilian CJ-6.
Before the CJ-5, Willys offered the public a cheaper alternative with the taller F-head, overhead-valve engine, in the form of the 1953 CJ-3B, simply using a CJ-3A body with a taller hood. This was quickly turned into the M606 jeep (mostly used for export, through 1968) by equipping it with the available heavy-duty options such as larger tires and springs, and by adding black-out lighting, olive drab paint, and a trailer hitch. After 1968, M606A2 and -A3 versions of the CJ-5 were created in a similar way for friendly foreign governments.[nb 22]
In 1976, after more than two decades, Jeep complemented the CJ-5 with a new CJ model, the CJ-7. Though still a direct evolution of the round-fendered CJ‑5, it had a 10 in (25 cm) longer wheelbase. And, for the first time, a CJ had doors, as well as an available hardtop. Since then, new evolutions were derived from the CJ-7 – from 1987 onwards as Jeep "Wranglers". Nevertheless, these are considered direct descendants of the WWII jeep.[125] The 2018 Wranglers still have a separate, open-topped body and ladder-frame, solid live axles front and rear, with part-time four-wheel drive, and high and low gearing. The compact body retains the Jeep grille and profile, and can even still be driven with the doors off and the windshield folded forward.
Licenses to produce jeeps, especially for CJ-3Bs, were issued to manufacturers in many different countries, starting almost straight after WWII, with the Willys MB pattern. Some firms, like Mahindra and Mahindra Limited in India, continue to produce them in some form or another to this day. Chinkara Motors of India produces the Jeepster,[126] with FRP body. The Jeepster can be delivered a diesel engine or the 1.8L Isuzu petrol.[127]
In France, the army used Hotchkiss M201 jeeps – essentially licensed Willys MBs, and in the former Yugoslavia, the arms manufacturer Zastava rebooted their car building branch, making 162 Willys jeeps. In Japan, Mitsubishi's first jeeps were versions of the CJ-3B, and in 1950 Toyota Motors was given an order by U.S. forces to build a vehicle to Jeep specifications, resulting in Toyota's BJ and FJ series of utility vehicles, slightly bigger and more powerful jeep-type vehicles.[16] After the CJ-3B, several countries also built the Willys MD / M38A1 under license. For instance, the Dutch built some 8,000 "NEKAF" jeeps, which remained in service for some 40 years. In Israel, AIL continues building military derivatives of Jeep Wrangler models for the Israeli Security Forces, ongoing since 1991. Their current AIL Storm III models are based on (AADS) of Gibraltar's Jeep J8 model.
The compact military jeep continued to be used in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. In Korea, it was mostly deployed in the form of the MB, as well as the M38 and M38A1 (introduced in 1952 and 1953), its direct descendants. In Vietnam, the most used jeep was the then newly designed Ford M151, which featured such state-of-the-art technologies as a unibody construction and all-around independent suspension with coil-springs. The M151 jeep remained in U.S. military service into the 1990s, and many other countries still use small, jeep-like vehicles in their militaries.
Apart from the mainstream of — by today's standards — relatively small jeeps, an even smaller vehicle was developed for the U.S. Marine Corps, suitable for helicopter airlifting and manhandling, the M422 "Mighty Mite". [check quotation syntax] Eventually, the U.S. military decided on a fundamentally different concept, choosing a much larger vehicle that not only took over the role of the jeep, but also replaced all its other light wheeled vehicles: the HMMWV ("Humvee").[nb 23]
In 1991, the Willys-Overland Jeep MB was designated an International Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.[2]
Postwar conversions[]
Filipino jeepney[]
When American troops began to leave the Philippines at the end of World War II, hundreds of surplus jeeps were sold or given to local Filipinos. The Filipinos stripped down the jeeps to accommodate several passengers, added metal roofs for shade, and decorated the vehicles with vibrant colors and bright chrome hood ornaments.
The jeepney rapidly emerged as a popular and creative way to re-establish inexpensive public transportation, which had been virtually destroyed during World War II. Recognizing the widespread use of these vehicles, the Philippine government began to place restrictions on their use. Drivers now must have specialized licenses, regular routes, and reasonably fixed fares.
Argentine Autoar[]
Starting in 1950, a Jeep-engined utility vehicle was produced by Autoar in Argentina. Starting from 1951, a new sedan was introduced using the same 2199 cc Jeep engine and manual transmission. It was fitted with overdrive to compensate for the Jeep's low axle ratio. In 1952, a new overhead valve 3-litre six-cylinder was announced, but was probably never built. At that time, Piero Dusio returned to Italy. In the 1950s, production was sporadic, and models built included a station wagon with a Jeep-type 1901 cc engine.
Commemorative edition[]
Inspired by the U.S. Army Willys MB, Jeep produced about 1000 Willys editions of the 2004 Wrangler TJ, and hoped to sell twice that number for the 2005 model year.[128]
Production numbers[]
| This section does not cite any sources. (September 2021) |
| Model | Year | Number built |
|---|---|---|
| Bantam pilot | 1940 | 1 |
| Bantam Mk II / BRC-60 [nb 11] | 1940 | 70 |
| Ford Pygmy | 1940 | 1 |
| Ford Budd | 1940 | 1 |
| Willys Quad | 1940 | 2 |
| Bantam BRC-40 [nb 9] | 1941 | 2,605 |
| Ford GP | 1941 | 4,456 |
| Willys MA | 1941 | 1,553 |
| Willys MB | 1941–1945 | 361,339 (335,531 + 25,808 "slats") |
| Ford GPW | 1942–1945 | 277,896 |
| World War II Total | 1940–1945 | 647,925 |
| Other | ||
| Ford GPA "Seep" | 1942–1943 | 12,778 |
| Post-war | ||
| Willys M38 (MC) | 1950–1952 | 61,423 |
| Willys M38A1 (MD) | 1952–1957 | 101,488 |
| Willys M606 (CJ-3B) | 1953–1968 | ? (part of 155,494 CJ-3Bs produced) |
| Willys M170 | 1954–1964 | 6,500 |
In popular culture[]
Television and film In Disney/Pixar's Cars films, the character Sarge (voiced by Paul Dooley) is a 1941 Willys MB that served in the Battle of the Bulge.[citation needed]
Music The Grateful Dead's song "Sugar Magnolia" contains the lyric "Jump like a Willys in four wheel drive".
Video games In Fallout 76, a retrofuturistic military vehicle heavily based on prototype jeeps such as the Willys MA can be found in various locations, though it cannot be used.
In Grand Theft Auto Online, the "Vapid Winky", a fictional vehicle based heavily on the Ford GPW ("Vapid" being the Grand Theft Auto universe's equivalent of Ford), was added in "The Cayo Perico Heist" update. The vehicle can only be purchased in olive drab and can be modified to closely resemble an actual military configuration of the Jeep.
The 1945 Willys MB is available in several of the Forza racing games.[129]
Gallery[]
Ford pilot jeep "Pygmy" – note grille sides extend to support front fender edges
Bantam pre-production model (BRC 40)
Ford GP pre-production model
Willys MA pre-production model
Early Willys MB ft. slat grille stationed in Alaska; period photo
Willys MB left rear quarter: split combat rims, spare gas can and spare wheel
Winston Churchill in a jeep at the German Reichstag touring the ruins of Berlin, 16 July 1945
Ford GPA amphibious jeep. Not liked much by Western forces, but well received by Russia
U.S. Army Willys MB at Virginia War Museum
Rail Jeep conversion to a switch engine in Australia, 1943
Sheikh Hamad bin Hamdan Al Nahyan with largest model Willys Jeep (scale 4/1)
Japanese American WW II veterans in jeep in memorial parade
See also[]
- Austin Champ
- The Autobiography of a 'Jeep'
- Einheits-PKW der Wehrmacht#Leichter geländegängiger PKW
- Fath Safir (Iran)
- Ford GTB 'Burma jeep'
- List of U.S. military vehicles by supply catalog designation
- GAZ-64 and GAZ-67
- Hafner Rotabuggy
- Hotchkiss M201
- Jeep trailer
- Jeep train
- Land Rover (original series)
- List of U.S. military jeeps
- Mahindra Thar
- M151 Truck, Utility, l/4-Ton, 4×4
- M422 Mighty Mite
- Ñandú (vehicle)
- Suzuki Jimny
- Universal Carrier
- Volkswagen Kübelwagen
- Volkswagen Schwimmwagen
- Willys FAMAE Corvo
Notes[]
- ^ Quarter-ton (about 225 kg) was the nominal off-road payload rating — the payload supported was much higher.
- ^ Although the dashboard caution plate indicated only 60 mph (97 km/h) in 3rd high.[3]
- ^ The company owner and founder of Willys-Overland, John North Willys, always pronounced Willys as /ˈwɪlɪs/, like in Bruce Willis, as opposed to "Willy's" or "Willies".[5]
- ^ According to its U.S. Army Ordnance Corps Supply Catalog designation, 'G-number', or SNL nr. — a group number for ordering parts, based on a Standard Nomenclature List.
- ^ Counting 2,382,311 trucks across the four main payload classes,[8] plus 116,394 tractor trucks (34,295 military, and 82,099 commercially procured), and some of the 224,272 other vehicles, for a total of roughly 2.6 million units.[9]
- ^ Jump up to: a b The others being the bulldozer, the DUKW amphibious truck, 21⁄2‑ton trucks, and the Douglas C-47 Skytrain transport airplane.[13]
- ^ Phil Patton was a design journalist, curator, and author. He wrote regularly about automobile design for the New York Times.
- ^ Davidson was the leading pioneer of armored military vehicles in the U.S. of his time.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c New research into identification of the earliest jeeps suggests Bantam referred to these as the '41 BRC.[59]
- ^ from "Bantam Reconnaissance Car".
- ^ Jump up to: a b New research into identification of the earliest jeeps suggests Bantam actually called these the '40 BRC (for 1940).[59]
- ^ Contemporaneous nickname in 1940/1941 British Empire and Canada.[citation needed]
- ^ Ford's GP designation did not represent "general purpose" – that was a government description.
- ^ Although uprating from 1⁄4‑ton to 1⁄2‑ton seems like doubling, the 1⁄4‑ton standard rating is nominal — the real standard jeep rating was 1,200 lb (540 kg) on road, and 800 lb (360 kg) off-road.[citation needed]
- ^ Willys had owned Moline, but sold it long before the war.[96]
- ^ "Larry" is Seaman 2/c Lawrence Meyer, the first Seabee to receive the Silver Star at the Battle of Guadalcanal.[104]
- ^ Canadian utility vehicle production during the war included some 800,000 (mainly) right-hand drive Canadian Military Pattern light and medium trucks from 1/2 ton upwards – for British and Commonwealth, and Soviet use – but 1⁄4‑ton jeeps.
- ^ U.S. report terminology
- ^ Including early, pre-production models.
- ^ Almost all WC-51/WC-52 Troop & Weapons Carriers
- ^ By war's end, in 1945, in the European theater U.S. forces had close to one motor truck (jeeps included) for every four men [115] — worldwide it had one vehicle per seven American GIs.[116]
- ^ In the early 1980s, the Canadian Army took delivery of 195 militarized units of the CJ-7. These were put into service as a stopgap measure between the retirement of the M38A1 and the introduction of the Volkswagen Iltis. They were codified by the Canadian Forces with the Equipment Configuration Code (ECC) Number 121526.[citation needed]
- ^ The HMMWV was generally very successful, but a few U.S. military units kept a small number of M151s in reserve for applications where the Humvee was simply too large or too heavy
References[]
- ^ Willys Jeep – Autozine.org
- ^ Jump up to: a b c American Society of Mechanical Engineers (1991).
- ^ Jump up to: a b c TM9-803 (1944) pp 10–14
- ^ U.S. Ordnance Standard Nomenclature List – G-503 (Willys MB / Ford GPW). War Department. pp. 11–15 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "J.N. Willys pronounced his name 'Willis,' local Jeep historian says". Toledo Blade. The Blade. 2 February 2002. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
“I talked to many people, now deceased, including his private secretary, and all said emphatically that he pronounced it `Willis,' said Ron Szymanski, local Jeep historian. “I can attest to the fact that Willys' relatives all say `Willis.'”
- ^ TM 9-2800 – Standard Military Motor Vehicles. U.S. War Department. 1 September 1943. pp. 136–137.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Vehicle Profiles: Jeep Willys". The ClassicCars.com Journal. 2 July 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Hyde, Charles K. (2013). Arsenal of Democracy; The American Automobile Industry in World War II (Ebook ed.). Detroit: Wayne State University Press. p. 152. ISBN 9780814339510. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
- ^ Thomson & Mayo (2003), page 296.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e U.S. Ordnance Corps (31 December 1946). "III-B "Ordnance – Motor Transport Vehicles", Part I". Quantities of Lend-Lease Shipments (PDF) (Report). U.S. War Department. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 December 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
- ^ Elphick, James (5 May 2017). "7 Tools that Helped America win WW II". wearethemighty.com. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Warfare History Network (21 August 2018). "Why America's Best World War II 'Weapon' Isn't What You Think It Is". The National Interest. Washington, D.C.: Center for the National Interest. p. 1. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
- ^ Eisenhower, Dwight D. (1948). Crusade in Europe. Doubleday (US) / Heinemann. p. 163/164. ISBN 9780801856686. OCLC 394251.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Foster, Patrick R. (2014). Jeep: The History of America's Greatest Vehicle. Motorbooks. pp. 11–13. ISBN 9780760345856. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
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- ^ Jump up to: a b c Pulos, Arthur J. (1988). The American Design Adventure, 1940–1975. MIT Press. p. 20. ISBN 9780262161060. Retrieved 26 May 2015 – via archive.org.
- ^ Ackerson (2006) pages=7–8 "...several military officers who regarded the Jeep as "a universal idea, which no one person invented, created or discovered ... an evolution not an invention ... the fruit of specifications defined by the military over a long period."
- ^ Jump up to: a b Patton, Phil (23 April 2012). "Design by Committee: the Case of the Jeep". Phil Patton blog. Retrieved 27 January 2018.[nb 7]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Hogan, Lt. E.P. (1941). "The Story of the Quarter-Ton, The Army's Smallest Car Known as a "Jeep"" (PDF). The Quartermaster Review. Vol. XXI no. 2. Washington D.C.: The Quartermaster Association. pp. 53–54, 82–84. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ "75th Anniversary of the Original Jeep Patent". 7 April 2016.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Patent 2,278,450: Military Vehicle Body". Retrieved 30 January 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Aaron Cortez (4 August 2015). "History of Military Motorcycles". Spring Valley, CA: BikeBandit. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
- ^ P. Findlay (2006). Man and Jeep (documentary); time = 3:45–4:18
- ^ P. Findlay (2006). Man and Jeep (documentary); time = 4:00–4:34
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Truck Makers Supply Both Men and Cars for Army" (PDF). The New York Times. 19 March 1916. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
- ^ "Army Officers Try Alaska Auto Run" (PDF). The New York Times. 18 January 1914. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Six WWI Vehicles That Helped Create Our Modern Mechanical World – Haynes Manuals
- ^ PBS, 2007: Jeep: Steel Soldier. Time = 2:02–2:40
- ^ Allen, Jim (7 December 2016). "1943 Dodge WC-51 Weapons Carrier, Power & Glory: Backward Glances". FourWheeler.com. Extreme Ventures, LLC. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
- ^ Senefsky, Bill (31 July 2007). "1916 To 1975 Dodge Diesel Engines – Dodge's First Diesels". Truck Trend. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b PBS, 2007: Jeep: Steel Soldier. Time = 2:40–3:00
- ^ Crismon, Fred (1983). "U.S. Military Wheeled Vehicles". via WarWheels.net. Crestline. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Fisher, Lindsey (11 August 2014). "Vintage Monday: Marmon-Herrington Trucks; The Jeep's Grandfather". Off Road Xtreme. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
- ^ Ackerson (2006), Page 8.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Foster, Patrick R. (15 July 2014). Jeep: The History of America's Greatest Vehicle. Minneapolis, MN: Motorbooks. pp. 22–23. ISBN 9780760345856. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ PBS, 2007: Jeep: Steel Soldier. Jim Allen (4x4 writer) from 3:18–3:35
- ^ "The History of Jeep". links4jeeps. 24 February 2007. Archived from the original on 17 July 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
- ^ "Jeep 1941 – 2001". difflock.com. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
- ^ PBS, 2007: Jeep: Steel Soldier. Bantam Austin mini truck, like in Popular Mechanics, is shown at 4:00 min.
- ^ ""Baby" Truck Aids Army Scouts and Raiders". Popular Mechanics. Vol. 60 no. 5. November 1933. ISSN 0032-4558. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
- ^ Thomson & Mayo (2003), p. 270.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Blackburn, Marc K. (1996). The United States Army and the Motor Truck: 'A Case Study in Standardization'. Contributions in Military Studies Number 163. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 98–99. ISBN 9780313298080. ISSN 0883-6884.
- ^ Fowler, Will (1993). Jeep Goes to War – a pictorial chronicle. Courage Books. ISBN 9781561382354.
- ^ Johnson, Wendell G. (November 1937). "The Howie Machine-Gun Carrier" (PDF). Infantry Journal. U.S. Army (6: Nov–Dec): 529–531. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 February 2010 – via Willys-Overland.com.
- ^ Hyde (2013), pages 147–148 .
- ^ Doyle, David (2019). Chevrolet G-506 – 1 1/2-ton 4x4 Development, Production and Variants in WW2. Branchville, NJ: Portrayal Press. p. 8. ISBN 9780938242062. Archived from the original on 8 April 2019.
- ^ Ackerson (2006), Pages 16–17.
- ^ Army Research and Development Magazine January–February 1978: 20 years to develop -The Jeep. 1978. p. 14.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "Jeeps in Olive Drab". MotorTrend. 1 October 1999.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Redgap, Curtis. "Austin, Bantam, and Willys: Birth of the Jeep". Allpar Forums. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
- ^ Borth, Christy (1945). Masters of Mass Production. p. 220. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
- ^ "Jeep History Through The Years". Everyman Driver. 8 April 2016. Archived from the original on 12 November 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
- ^ "The Military Jeep". Cossor.com.au. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 12 March 2010.
- ^ Auto Editors of Consumer Guide (17 July 2007). "1938–1941 American Bantam". HowStuffWorks.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Allen, Jim (10 January 2016). "Origins Of The Jeep: Birthing A 75-Year Legend". FourWheeler.com. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ Auto Editors of Consumer Guide (13 December 2007). "1906–1939 Jeep". HowStuffWorks. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
- ^ "Invention of the Jeep – Pennsylvania Historical Markers". Waymarking.com. 9 March 2006. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Smith, Stephen H. (7 December 2015). "Earliest Jeeps Built 75-Years Ago for WWII". York Daily Record. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ Hyde (2013), page 150 .
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- ^ Jump up to: a b Thomson & Mayo (2003), page 277–278.
- ^ Hyde (2013), pages 150–151 .
- ^ Georgano, Nick (2000). Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. London: HMSO. ISBN 1-57958-293-1.
- ^ The Jimmy's Ancestry; The CCKW in Detail and The Collector's Syndrome — Bryce Sunderlin in Army Motors #47, p.19 (MVPA)
- ^ Jump up to: a b Eilers, David. "Exploring the World in a Ford GPA SEEP". warjeeps.com.
- ^ Zaloga (2011), p. 20–22.
- ^ Zaloga (2011), p. 20–2.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Zaloga (2011), p. 39–41.
- ^ "Arc Welder Kit for G503. Installation manual for MB/GPW. 20 pages". www.portrayalpress.com.
- ^ Summary Report – Tank-Automotive Materiel (1945), p. 55.
- ^ Jackson, David D. "Crosley – American Automobile Industry in World War Two". Retrieved 1 May 2018.
- ^ "More on the Crosley "Pup" Jeep". eWillys. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Zaloga (2011), p. 17–20.
- ^ "SHOP TALK: Three Jeeps". The National WWII Museum | New Orleans.
- ^ Zaloga (2011), p. 33–37.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Vanderveen, Bart, ed. (1992). "Willys MT-TUG – 6×6 Super-Jeep". Wheels & Tracks. Old Harlow, Essex, UK: After The Battle publication. pp. 25–33. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 24 September 2020. Full article at 12.08.2012 02:34:41
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- ^ Summary Report – Tank-Automotive Materiel (1945), p. 62.
- ^ "Willys-Overland Motors in WWII". usautoindustryworldwartwo.com.
- ^ "Willys Jeep, Ford jeep". www.milweb.net.
- ^ Askew, Mark (2008). "The History of the Willys Half-Track Jeeps- the T-29 and T-29 E1". www.milweb.net. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Canadian Tracked Jeep (Willys)". 16 August 2014.
- ^ "Reconnaissance Carrier – Canadian War Museum".
- ^ Doyle, David (2011). Standard Catalog of U.S. Military Vehicles – 2nd Edition. Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications. p. 85. ISBN 9781440225727.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Zaloga (2011).
- ^ Jump up to: a b Ware, Pat (2010). Military Jeep Manual: An insight into the history, development, production and role of the US Army's light four-wheel-drive. Haynes. p. 39. ISBN 9781844259335.
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- ^ Borth, Christy (1945). Masters of Mass Production. Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill. pp. 208–236.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Will The Real Jeep Please Stand Up". www.offroaders.com.
- ^ The Industrial Jeep – 1943 NTX – Minneapolis-Moline's – Hemmings Motor News
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Morr, Tom; Brubaker, Ken (2007). Jeep Off-Road. MotorBooks International. p. 11. ISBN 9781610590563. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Massey, Ken; Zatz, David. "How the Jeep got its name". allpar.com. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
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...from an article by Marsh Maslin in the San Francisco Call-Bulletin of November 22, 1941: 'Do you know why those swift little army cars are called 'jeeps'? It's Model G-P produced by that automobile manufacturer — and G-P easily becomes 'jeep'.'
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.., because they [the U.S. Army] gave me a nickname. From the words 'General Purpose', they took the 'G' and the 'P'. They called me "Jeep" !
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The Jeep Wrangler has [...] its ancestry back to its lowercase-"jeep" forefathers, [...] back to before America entered World War II, [...] that share its uncomplicated, irreplaceable DNA.
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General references[]
- Ackerson, Robert C. (2006). Jeep CJ 1945–1986. Veloce Publishing. ISBN 9781904788966. Archived from the original on 12 May 2019.
- Jeep: Steel Soldier (documentary). "Toledo Stories": PBS. 27 September 2007. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
- P. Findlay (writer, director) (2006). Man and Jeep (documentary). Barna-Alper Productions. Discovery Times.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
- American Society of Mechanical Engineers (23 July 1991), The Jeep MB, An International Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark (PDF), Toledo, Ohio: Jeep House, code H152, archived from the original (PDF) on 30 October 2007
- TM 9–803 1/4-ton 4x4 truck (Willys-Overland model MB and Ford model GPW), War Department, 22 February 1944 – via Scribd
- TM 9–804 1/4-ton 4x4 Utility Truck M38 (Willys-Overland), War Department, September 1950 – via Scribd}}
- Zaloga, Steven J. (2011) [2005]. Jeeps 1941–45. New Vanguard 117. Bloomsbury Publishing (Osprey). ISBN 9781780961477. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
- Thomson, Harry C.; Mayo, Lida (2003) [1960]. "Chapt. XII – Motor Transport Vehicles". The Ordnance Department: procurement and supply (PDF). United States Army in World War II; The Technical Services. Washington, D.C.,: Center of Military History, U.S. Army. p. 270. LCCN 74014697 – via hathitrust.org.CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bantam BRC pilot car, BRC 40, BRC 60. |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ford GP. |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Willys MA. |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Willys MB / Ford GPW. |
- The history of Jeep – How Stuff Works — links further to several detailed chapters
- Origin of the Military Jeep – Historic timeline on Olive Drab
- The U.S. Veterans Memorial Museum: Military jeeps
- Bill Stephens (writer); Jim Barisano (producer) (2004). Jeep: The Unstoppable Soldier (4:3) (One hour documentary). WheelsTV. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
- History: Automobiles: Jeep (16:9) (45 min documentary). A&E Television. 7 April 2010. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
- British Army Jeep Research – Non-profit resource on the jeep in British service
- The Jeep – One of the Most Famous Vehicles in the World – is Celebrated at its Birthplace. - Voice of America
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- Jeep
- World War II vehicles of the United States
- Military trucks of the United States
- Motor vehicles manufactured in the United States
- Military light utility vehicles
- Ford vehicles
- Willys vehicles
- Military vehicles introduced in 1940–1944