was, the vehicle was rated to pull a 3,500-pound trailer at highway speeds, with a maximum drawbar pull of 900 pounds.
Numbers Crunching and Press Commentary
89 After testing the first few prototypes from Ford, Bantam, and Willys during 1941, the army decided to give each of the companies a contract for 1,500 more vehicles. The 4,500 total vehicles would be tested further, and a winner would be chosen that would receive the big contract everyone wanted: 16,000 Jeep vehicles. Apparently, more vehicles were ordered because in the end Ford built more than 3,500 of its GP prototypes (the exact number is still debated); Bantam produced 2,674 of its MK II and its improved Bantam BRC-40; and Willys built 1,555 of its MA, making the Willys prototype (aka pilot cars) the rarest of the early Jeep vehicles.
90 According to company records, regular production of the Willys MA Jeep commenced on June 5, 1941, with serial number 78401; it ended on September 19, 1941, with serial number 79907.
A small notation to the records says that the company also produced serial numbers 85501 to 85550, which may be experimental units with four-wheel steering or some other low-volume prototype variation. They may also be Willys civilian pickup trucks beefed up for military duty because Willys was eager to sell the army its pickups, and it’s known that a small number were built.
91 The contract that Bantam, Ford, and Willys were struggling to win was set at 16,000 vehicles. In the final round, Ford bid $782.59 per vehicle, Bantam came in at $788.32. Willys made the low bid of just $748.74 per vehicle. Despite presenting the lowest bid (and for a superior vehicle, no less), the Quartermaster recommended accepting the Ford bid! He claimed that Ford was the only builder that could deliver the vehicles in quantity and on time.
At this point, William S. “Big Bill” Knudsen, the former GM president who was now in charge of military vehicle procurement, stepped in and refused to accept the Ford bid, saying that in his opinion Willys was a competent source of supply for the vehicles, and he was not about to reject the low bid. Because Knudsen was considered to be the world’s foremost authority on vehicle production (one of the reasons he was asked to oversee it for the military), the question was settled, and the contract went to Willys.
Within days, an additional 2,600 Jeep vehicles were added to the order with instructions that it had to be completed by January 18, 1942. War seemed ready to break out at any time, and the army was rushing to prepare for it.
92 A memo in Willys-Overland files provides the following information concerning the production of the Willys Model MB military Jeep:
• 1941 series production began on November 6, 1941, with serial number 100001.
• 1942 series production began on January 1, 1942, with serial number 108640.
• 1943 series production began on January 1, 1943, with serial number 199970.
• 1944 series production began on January 1, 1944, with serial number 293801.
• 1945 series production began on January 1, 1945, with serial number 402501.
When the Allies liberated Paris, they drove in triumphantly in Jeeps that were quickly thronged with grateful Parisians.
93 Once America became involved in the war, Ford Motor Company was given production contracts to supplement the vehicles being produced by Willys. Ford was instructed to produce a standardized vehicle using the Willys blueprints, so the Ford product, previously known as the GP (General Purpose) was designated the GPW (General Purpose Willys).
Both Willys and Ford were allowed to supply vehicles to Allied forces. Huge quantities of Jeeps were shipped to Great Britain, Africa, India, and China; pretty much anywhere forces were fighting for freedom. More than 80,000 Jeeps were sent to Russia, which were used to spearhead the ultimately devastating mobilized campaign against the German army.
94 Company records indicate that during 1943, Willys-Overland produced 91,777 Jeep vehicles; of that total, 1,000 were special firefighter units.
The flag of free France flew again over the Eiffel Tower as victorious GIs liberated our oldest ally.
95 According to an official report issued by Kaiser Jeep Corporation, Willys-Overland Company and its successor companies’ military Jeep production from 1940 through 1963 was as follows:
• Willys MA 1,800 vehicles built 1940–1941
• Willys MB 368,714 vehicles built 1941–1945
• Willys MC (aka M38) 60,345 vehicles built 1950–1952
• Willys MD (aka M-38A1) 90,529 vehicles built 1952–1963
That’s a total of 521,388 Jeeps plus the two Willys Quad prototypes. Some reference sources claim the MD went out of production in 1955, not 1963. The memo referenced above may include M-170 models in the MD totals because the M-170 is basically a lengthened and reengineered Jeep MD.
96 Popular legend has it that Ford built more Jeeps during World War II than Willys did. You’ll even see it stated as fact in many books, and I can’t count the number of times people have told me this as fact. However, if you compare the numbers for 1940 to 1945, Willys produced 370,514 production models (MA and MB) while Ford built 283,767 units (GP and GPW). So Willys was clearly the leader.
97 Although the military Jeep MB quickly earned a reputation for being able to go anywhere, less is said about how fast it was. Top speed was reported to be about 60 mph, which doesn’t sound very fast today, but it was considered outstanding back then, especially for a four-wheel-drive vehicle that was classified as a quarter-ton truck. Many civilian trucks had a much lower top speed, even 6-cylinder jobs with two-wheel drive. Earlier four-wheel-drive army trucks were lucky to do 40 mph. The Quad trucks of World War I topped out at about 20 mph. So it’s no wonder the military was impressed by the little Jeep.
98 As things turned out, the Jeep arrived just in the nick of time. Willys MB production began on November 18, 1941. A mere three weeks later, Japanese bombers launched a sneak attack on the US Navy base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, even as representatives of the government of Japan were in Washington, supposedly negotiating to prevent a war that they had already decided to start. The level of treachery and dishonesty that was displayed by the empire of Japan is unequaled in history.
99 Jeep vehicles were meant to haul military supplies to the front, so it’s not surprising that there was a lot of demand for Jeep trailers during World War II. Several companies were contracted to produce them. Nash Motors built many, as did Bantam Motors. Willys-Overland built 78,731 Jeep trailers between 1942 and 1944.
100 In many books about Jeep history you see photos of the American Motors Mighty Mite, but you don’t see it here. Why not? Because the Mighty Mite is completely unrelated to Jeep. It’s not a Jeep and has no business being in a Jeep book. You also do not see the M-151 Mutt in this book because it too has no relationship to Jeep. The M-151 was designed and built by Ford (though Willys did build about 18,000 of them after underbidding Ford for a small contract). In fact, it was the M-151 that replaced the Willys Jeep during the late 1950s.
101 A lot of people don’t know that optional equipment was offered even on the military MBs. The options included a 12-volt conversion kit for radio use, an arctic conditions kit, a hot weather kit, a front-mounted capstan drive winch, big 7.50-16 flotation tires,
