Jeep's story begins in 1941
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| Jeep's story begins in 1941 |
Jeep's story officially begins in
1941 when Ford and Willys-Overland Jeep began manufacturing vehicles at its
plants in Ohio, USA. It was in 1938 when he planned how he would be
the Jeep. In 1940 the U.S. Army asked American vehicle manufacturers to submit offers
for a small vehicle with four-wheel drive that could be used for different
tasks and missions, with outstanding performance capabilities, stability,
autonomy, reliability and maintenance. This request was made more urgent when
the Axis forces began to gain victories in Europe and North Africa, for which
the U.S.
military would accept only proposals that could be completed within a period of
49 days.
The U.S. government's original
specifications were as follows: maximum weight of 1,310 pounds (594.20 kg),
four-wheel drive, a wheelbase of less than 2,032 mm and a wheelbase of less
than 1.193 mm, the minimum distance the floor should be of 158 mm and should be
capable enough to carry 605 lb (274.42 kg) in weight without overheating the
engine to go at low speeds.
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| Jeep's story begins in 1941 |
Bantam engineer Karl Probst
commissioned the design of the new vehicle that would later become the
legendary Jeep. Probst began work on July 17, 1940 and completed the original
plans in just two days. Bantam gave the army the envelope with vehicle designs on
July 22, Bantam curiously stated that the vehicle complied with the required
specifications but actually exceeded the weight limit.
Completed his first prototype
Bantam handmade the September 21, 1940, meeting within 49 days. The army
vehicle subjected to various tests on routes totaling more than 5,500 km, of
which only 400 were paved. They concluded that the vehicle showed a great power
and met the requirements of the U.S. Army.
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| Jeep's story begins in 1941 |
Delmar "Barney" Roos,
owner of Willys-Overland, gave a positive to offer Willys rejected saying
"it is impossible for any vehicle to be strong with a weight of 1300
pounds." He explained that the greatest HJ Lawes, the officer in charge of
procurement and contracts Camp
Holabird and suggested
that Willys-Overland built his own model to test pilot. It also helped that the
army left aford and Willys "inspect" the Bantam model, improving both
brands their models, looking suspiciously ran Bantam prototype.
Read more : Jeep's
story begins in 1941 (part 2)