Jeep

The mutli-purpose Jeep utility vehicle.

In 1939 the U.S. Army invited between 135 and 165 companies to submit proposals within 75 days for a new military vehicle to replace its aging fleet of motorcycles and Ford Model T trucks. Only three companies responded: Ford Motor Company, Willys-Overland, and American Bantam Car Company. The initial contract went to Bantam, but their vehicle proved to be a failure under rigorous testing.

New prototypes were then ordered from the other two companies. Willys ultimately won the contract in July 1941. Ford agreed to build from Willys' plans and Bantam built trailers for the Willys vehicle.

The Ford entrant in the design competition was called the "GP," which in Ford parlance stood for "Government 80 inch wheelbase Reconnaissance Car." (Willys called their design the "MB.") When slurred, "GP" led to the name "jeep," which stuck to the small four-wheel-drive vehicle even though the Willys design actually won the competition and Ford ended up building the Willys design. Some sources mention the meaning of GP to stand for 'General Purpose', a term designated as a specification for the Army-based requirement.

The Willys Jeep was powered by a four-cylinder engine that could run at 4,000rpm for straight hours of operation. The transmission was a three-speed manual, with a four-wheel-drive transfer case with high and low gears. The vehicle also featured a fold-up cloth roof.

The Jeep could run on-road at 60mph, climb a 40-degree slope, achieve a turning radius of 30 feet, and tilt up to 50 degrees to either side without the vehicle tipping over. It could even run under water with special attachments for air intake and exhaust.

Following the World War Two, public demand was so high that Willys continued producing the Jeep in tremendous numbers, re-designated as the "CJ-2A" ("CJ" for "Civilian Jeep"). The vehicle was produced for the Army in continually improved versions until 1981, when it was replaced by the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (aka - the "Hummer").

Over 350,000 Jeeps were built to fight in World War II. The Willys assembly line turned out one Jeep every 90 seconds. The Jeep would go on to see combat duty in the Korean War as well as the Vietnam War in all degrees of conduct.

Official Jeep designations during the war were Willys MA, Ford GP, Willys MB and Ford GPW. The Willys company would go on to produce over 363,000 whilst the Ford Motor Company produced over 280,000 jeep-types during the war.