November 13, 1940 – Willys-Overland delivers its prototype Jeep to the Army
On this day in 1940 Willys-Overland delivered to the US Armed Forces its prototype for a highly capable vehicle that would soon become known as the Jeep. The design was based off the Bantam BRC, created by Karl Probst and submitted to the Army two months prior. The Army claimed ownership of the initial design and passed it to Willys, citing the company’s better production capability. The primary differences between the Bantam and Willys prototypes were that the latter offered a more powerful engine and four wheel steering.
The original Bantam prototype
Ford was recruited to join Willys in building the Jeeps. Together the two companies produced approximately 640,000 Jeeps for World War II, which was about 18 percent of all wheeled vehicles built by the US in that era.
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