Test driving the world’s most famous 4x4, the, Quarter-ton 4x4 truck - Willys Overland Model MB and Ford Model GPW - of World War Two
If you had to compile a list of the world’s top ten most influential cars, along with things like the Model T Ford, the VW Beetle, the Mini and the ‘67 Mustang, the flat-fender Jeep would have to be on it. This is with good reason, as the Jeep’s wartime origins are almost the definition of the saying, ‘necessity is the mother of invention’. There’s no doubt that difficult situations inspire ingenious solutions and, when it came to the difficulties of cross-country motoring, the Jeep was certainly an ingenious solution.
In the few years, from its origins in a US Army Quartermaster Corps specification to being an important part of the transport of victorious armies, the humble Jeep - ‘mechanical mule’ to many - made a lot of friends.
Dwight D Eisenhower, supreme commander of Allied forces in Western Europe during World War Two said: “Four pieces of equipment that most senior officers came to regard as among the most vital to our success in Africa and Europe were the bulldozer, the Jeep, the 2.5 ton truck, and the C-47 airplane. Curiously, none of these is designed for combat.”
