Categories: This Day

January 10, 1942 – Ford earns WWII Jeep contract

A Ford Jeep on Utah Beach, photography on July 18, 1944.

Prior to the US entering WWII, the U.S. Army contacted 135 companies asking for prototypes of a four wheel drive reconnaissance car. Only two responded, American Bantam and Willys-Overland. After American Bantam delivered their working model for testing on September 21, 1941, the Army found it met nearly all of their criteria, except for a few issues with underperformance, such as engine torque. The Army was adamant about producing a vehicle that met very strict standards. 

The blueprints for the American Bantam vehicle, which the Army took ownership of, were sent to Willys and Ford, along with a list of hopeful improvements. Ultimately, Willys hit the mark and the Willys MB earned a production contract. As the United States joined WWII, it became clear the Army needed more vehicles than Willys could manufacture alone. To boost production of the vehicle that would become known as the Jeep, Ford received a contract to build copycat versions of the Willys design on this day in 1942. 

A Willys Jeep

The contract required Ford to build 15,000 GPWs, or General Purpose Willys, at a cost of $14,623,900, about $975 each. The Army believed American Bantam, the original designer of the vehicle, could not produce vehicles fast enough. In the end they received contracts to build various light items, such as trailers. Ford would ultimately go onto build some 300,000 Ford Jeeps.

Modern History of Jeep

As the war came to an end, Willys wanted to continue producing a similar vehicle for civilian use. Using the trademarked name Jeep, they did just that. With multiple models running for decades at a time, Jeep has become synonymous with ruggedness and outdoorsy vehicles. Today, Jeep is a subsidiary of Stellantis, which includes Chrysler and Dodge. It remains headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, where it’s been since its inception.

The Willys and Ford Jeeps of WWII are truly American Icons. Get it here and represent!

Sign up for the This Day in Automotive History newsletter!

Brian Corey

Recent Posts

April 23, 1947 – The 1,000,000th Packard is built

1947 Packard Super Custom (Not the actual 1,000,000th Packard. By Rex Gray- fvr2, CC BY…

1 hour ago

April 22, 1996 – Mercedes SLK class debuts at Turin

Since its inception, the Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class (R170) has epitomized the essence of a compact luxury…

1 day ago

April 21, 1983 – C4 Corvette is introduced

The C4 Chevrolet Corvette, which debuted nationally on this day in 1983, marked a significant…

2 days ago

April 16, 2014: Mazda Honors a Quarter-Century of Driving Joy with the 25th Anniversary MX-5 Miata

By Alexander-93 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=132180377 On April 16, 2014, the vibrant…

7 days ago

April 15, 1964 – Who bought the first Mustang?

On this day in 1964, two days before the official Ford Mustang on-sale date, one…

1 week ago

April 8, 2004: A Million Strong – The Skoda Fabia and the Legacy of Czech Ingenuity

Skoda Fabia VRs. By Andrew Bone from Weymouth, England - Skoda Fabia vRS, CC BY…

2 weeks ago