Episode Six: All Second World War jeeps were not created equal. 

Thank you for all the wonderful positive comments, all very much appreciated. For those few who seem a tad confused, and to save your need to post: Yes, we're all aware of Bantam's significant role in the history of the WW2 jeep. No, this particular video does not focus on Bantam but rather on the two jeeps that are physically featured in the video. Enjoy!

Look, no lifts or huge tires.

Don't ever think you are going to bore this community with details. More the better!

Like a lot of equipment designed and manufactured during war, it is easier to see that the initial design and manufacturer was probably based on the capabilities of and equipment used within the initial manufacturer. The capital cost of buying a "Press" to stamp out the grill for the Willy's jeep would not have been justifiable given the initial low production run. Ford, when taking over production would have already of had a Press capable of making the Grill and would simple of had their "Machine Shop" make a different die to stamp it out. Excellent video by the way

The first vehicle I ever owned was a 1952 M-38 A1 (I believe) milsurp Jeep with the rounded windshield. I bought it in the crates, and under my uncle's supervision I put it together and rewired the 24V system to 12V. I ran two 12V batteries in parallel for extra cranking power. I obtained a rag top, then later built a hardtop from sheet steel. I kept the RT-70A radio because it was on the six meter Amateur Radio band and I used it for hilltopping comms. I had that Jeep for twenty years or more before I got bored with it, and in 1988 I stupidly sold it. I wish now that I had never parted with it as they now sell for over $10,000 in unrusted shape with the original glass windshield. I loved that Navy painted grey Jeep, and it took me places that most trucks could never go because trucks are too wide and too long for off road use. If you have a Jeep, keep it up, take care of it, and never sell it because you will regret it later as I have regretted selling mine.

Great story and video, Steve! Some time ago, a rich-but-dumb guy I was working for bought (for way too much money) what was purported to be an "all original" 1941 GPW Jeep. He did ZERO due-diligence. After a while, he wanted to sell it (and make a profit!), and so tasked me to come up with an ad and a price. Doing a little research, I quickly discovered that Ford put their little script "F" on just about every part on the vehicle. Lo and behold, I found precious few "F's." Most of the parts on the Jeep were repros, and some (front bumper) were not even correct. The data plate on the dash was an aftermarket restamp. I had to give my boss the bad news: He'd been had. His "all-original" Jeep was basically...you know...not. We put a cleverly-worded (but not dishonest) ad with pictures up on the internet, and people started contacting us from near and far. Savvy buyers knew the right questions to ask. Nobody bought it. My boss ended up just taking it up to his hunting camp and using it as a runabout. Last I heard, it was still there. Moral: Even rich guys who think they're very smart sometimes get taken by shysters.

Those Two Jeeps look better than All the cars in the background!

I think it's important for WW 2 Jeep restorers to understand that during and immediately after the war, Jeeps were pretty much considered to be made from pretty much entirely interchangeable parts by the mechanics who worked on them. My father worked for the American Army in Germany immediately after the war and new parts were often harder to get than broken or damaged Jeeps. So parts were commonly swapped to make one working jeep from multiple damaged jeeps. The same was true of other military vehicles too where possible. Obviously, when new parts were available, they were used, but also with disregard to who made them. Expediency, fit and function were all that mattered. So.... it is very possible that you may find a Jeep that may not be factory correct, but was very much operationally correct. I mean that the way you find it is the way it actually served during and after the war. By restoring the vehicle to factory correct specs and parts, there is a good chance that you might be destroying it's actual provenance. In other words, the grill may have been replaced in Normandy and the gas tank may have been replaced in Hamburg before or shortly after the war ended. Historically the Jeep would have been "most correct" the day it left military service, not the way it left the factory. I'm not saying that finding a Jeep in pristine, as it left the factory condition wouldn't be nice. But I would tend to be suspicious that that Jeep either never actually saw service or has been restored after the war. I'm not suggesting that a mix and match Jeep is better than a factory correct one, but before you write off a Jeep that doesn't look right, consider that it might actually be a veteran that gallantly served it's country in the precise configuration you find it in. Just a thought to ponder.

There was a guy in Georgia that had some earlier jeeps than these. Even had a Bantam prototype. Nice guy, pretty much gave a tour and let me go through his stock to find what all I needed. Had lots of nos parts. Visited him when I was rebuilding my T84. Ron Fitzgerald was a great help as well. Been out of it a while now, sold my GPW to put a down payment on my house.

I drive my 42 Willys MB on, almost, a daily basis during the summer. In years past, I would be frequently approached by WW II veterans, who would relate their “Jeep stories .” Sadly, that no loner happens, as all of those heroes have passed on. I am so proud of my 82 year old “veteran.”

Very much enjoyed your video. I purchased my first vehicle in 1967, a 42 Willys MB. Through life's twists and turns I was somehow able to keep my beloved Jeep, though life often demanded its sale to keep my domestic life afloat. With todays availability of accurate replacement parts I hope to do a frame up restoration soon. In the mean time I will continue to drive a piece of history that, as I drive, removes all the negatives of life.....

I had a '54 Willys in high school and drove it all over the woods of north Florida in 1971. A few years ago I bought a '47 CJ2a and now do the same thing on my property in Montana. They must have built quite a few GO-DEVIL engines during WWII because that's what was put in my '47. In case nobody has mentioned it already, Ford gave Willys permission to use their 9-slot stamped grill until the war ended. The grill was so iconic by then that Willys wanted to continue using it postwar but Ford said no, so Willys came up with the 7-slot grill instead.

You're not boring us! Love WW2 jeeps

Never understand why the US military did not keep a small versatile vehicle like the jeep. The Humvee is nice but large and expensive so there are far fewer. My dad was the company clerk and radio operator situated in the middle of Guam at the main comm receiving station for the Pacific theater the last 6 months of the war. The unit had so many jeeps he had one assigned so he could go to the air bases on company business. He was very popular with all the rest of the men since he could get them out of the jungle and to civilization. Also my Uncle was an Army jeep acceptance officer who went to work for Post Office after the war when they were getting surplus jeeps.

My buddy in the RAF had an original Willys. 4 of us used to share a house as we lived off base and we would take turns driving to the base - to share cars. Well tis was midwinter and when it came to HIS turn we had to travel to work his VERY BASIC Jeep with just a canvas tilt NO SIDES and no heater. So 4 airmen in great coats and flying jackets frozen going to work! Great video about the different types - great examples. Im still looking for a genuine LRDG/ SAS Jeep. I know some are around people have modded with twin Vickers and a browning but FEW original desert vehicles.

My friend has a GPW serial #906 I was borrowing it for the National Military Vehicle show and guys were crawling all over it and they were all in agreement that it WAS serial#906 .

I had a Jeep issued to me while deployed from Okinawa as an USMC Amtrack Platoon Commander in 1974-75. I didn't appreciate how special riding in "my own" Jeep was at the time. But it went everywhere, and it was great to have. Thanks for education!!!

Cool stuff. Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed day.

Loved my '51 Willys Jeep. Was the first vehicle I drove to high school. Not a chick magnet lol

I live in Butler Pennsylvania. Actually the home of the Jeep made by Bantam. Every year we have the Jeep festival here in Butler. You would love it. 1940... but Bantam could not meet production. So it was outsourced. Also the original Bantam Jeep made in Butler Pennsylvania was under powered. They threw us a bone when the war started and we made the Jeep trailers which were important for the war effort. Again every year in Butler Pennsylvania we have the Jeep festival. Totally cool and war time Jeeps and Jeeps of all makes and years.

I've had my (March) '42MB for over 15 years and I learned something new!

I read or heard somewhere that the German army believed that each soldier being outfitted was issued a jeep!! there were so many of them. I found that amusing since they still used a lot of horses. Great video! My father was in WWII starting 2 mos after Pearl Harbor. He was put into the Army Air Corps and went on to stay through Korea and Vietnam beginning, 24 years in the USAF. I have a pic of him here on my desk posing next to his jeep, sometime in WWII in Europe, and he has just got himself a rabbit for dinner!

Growing up it was commonplace to see one of these old jeeps on a farm or at a hunting camp. They rarely had license plates or traveled on the highway. Most were ordered from magazine ads. The saying was buy two because some were missing parts. They came in a wooden crate! 1950-1960’s

Jeep is doing some retro stuff with styling as a salute to to the Willies era. This was a great watch……..thanks.

As far as I know, the original JEEP concept came from BANTAM who made prototypes before the United States entered WWII. But the U.S. military did not believe Bantam had sufficient industrial capacity to support sufficient production. So they relegated Bantam to making trailers and handed over the production of Jeeps to Ford and Willis.

My uncle was a chapel in WWII. He was issued a Ford Jeep. The machine was not a good one and one day he "accidently" left it parked on a road being shelled. He was then issued a Willys Jeep, which he found to be a better.

Jeep = Just Enough Essential Parts 👍🏻🇬🇧

After WW11..both my grandfather and my Father served in the war,on our Ranch here in Central Texas we had Jeeps (taught how to drive at the age of 6) ,Power Wagons and 3 command cars the hired hands used everyday for fencing, windmill repairs and the such.I saying as much they were tough as hell and boy i had huge biceps when steering the power wagons when backing up at a slow speed .now over the years most are gone thru reckless drunk deer hunters destroyed on of oower,wagons all are gobe and sold for parts,what,a shame my child hood memories are in tact the hell and toughness i witness howxthey get up bluffs and canyons,river crossings etc that today's junk could not do 😢

The image of the Jeep will always have a place in my book. Great little machines for their time. In many ways the father of Humvee.

I bought what I thought was a 47 CJ-2A and when I got to working on it, found out it was mostly a 1945 GPW. All the parts had the Ford script on it. Was pretty cool. Had Willy’s engine in it, but was mostly the Ford Army jeep. Got it repaired to useable, had a lot of adventures with it, and sold it in the late 1990’s.

This jeep is the most beautiful creation of man in this world.

Restored a 44 GPW years ago. Loved it. Bantam actually made roughly 2,000 Jeeps

I was told that they had no keys during the war. Didn't want people running around trying to find the key when it was time to move out fast.

Weren't the larger ammeters gauges because some of the Jeeps were designated for radios. My M 38 A-1 jeep was 24 volt originally. The ood tube type radios required more power to run back then.

Thank you Steve. Excellent report. Nothing like an early Jeep.

Very good video Steve. Very interesting topic. I remember when i was about 8 years old a early twenties man worked for the City of Grand Rapids. He had a WWII jeep and was subject of a news article talking about the jeep and putting it together. This was back in 1964. I never seen the jeep in person but there was a photo of it. I have also seen some jeeps and other WWII in the Netherlands. The vehicles were grabbed up or purchased after the war ended. Imagen all the jeeps and trucks that were just left there. I would be interesting to me on some of the things the soldiers did with the jeeps when they were out in the field. I am sure there were some interesting inventions made.

Back in the late 1970's the US Government still had Jeeps stockpiled. Don't know years of production. Friend of mine told me you could purchase Jeeps for $100.00 each in their Shipping Crate. You had to purchase a minimum of 100 crated Jeeps - I think. Don't know about shipping costs. But we thought of buying and assembling them as a business. Thought that $1,500.00 at least could net us $150,000.00 - $10,000.00 & other expenses: Shipping/Transportation, Storage & Land, and Assembly Costs. At the time there were old, closed brick warehouses with adjacent rail service. So, we just 'Cracked-open' a couple of beers and pondered a potential business opportunity within Boston, MA. USA. Thanks for the Podcast.

Didn't find this boring at all! Great Vid...

Couldn't bore me to death! I could watch and listen to you explain every minor difference between the two

Nice presentation, thank you for sharing your knowledge. Greatly appreciate your time in preparing and the excellent presentation

The split rims support a flat tyre rendering the vechicle easier to controll in a combat situation. The well rims though easier to change the tyre would let the bead ride over the rim and clog up the drive shafts, brake lines ect.

I do not know if the early Willys jeep from 1941 ever come to Australia. The one I have for about 53 years is a Willys MB Jeep from 1944. model. One of the best designed 4-wheel drive vehicles at that time. This design was the beginning of all basic 4-wheel drive vehicles in many Countries.

Thank you for taking the time to do this video! Wonderful content!

Reminds me of those picture/puzzles …. “There are 10 differences between the two pictures, can you find them?” Quite fun.

How about the fact that the American Bantam car company went bankrupt designing the jeep and our government said thanks, took all the tooling, blueprints, R&D documents, etc. And so this company exists no more, this goes on and on

Super interesting that it was Ford that actually invented the Jeep grill style.

"What could go wrong with THAT in wartime?"

Not sure why this popped up in my feed, but that's super cool. The Ford version definitely looks superior overall, but the old Willys is cool, too.

The first Jeep ever! I had a 1942 in 1982 that had a 225 Buick V-6 from a Skylark. Mine had a transfer case reduction gear that would allow the stock transmission to handle 60mph. This made mine have four gear shift levers. 😁

The Ford shows that it was tweaked by a company with way more resources than Willys has. The fuel tank and grille have fewer parts. making for faster assembly. Plus it shows that Ford used some parts that were already in profuction for their cars and trucks. Maybe a heavier duty generator for example.

A buddy of mine had one of the Ford prototypes of the Jeep. It had the 4 cylinder overhead cam all aluminum engines in it. I told him I would give him $500 for it if he ever decided to get rid of it. When his family moved, his stepdad sold it and a lowered and frenched '49 Ford for $50 each to a junkyard. It like to have broke my heart.

Neat tidbit of history. One may never had known that the classic Jeep grill is actually a Ford design. Imagine that. One might think Jeep lovers are in denial and might be cringing right now lol.

Great video from you, thanks! It was helpful to recognise the differences

I often thought about buying one of these jeeps. You see I started driving at age 8 one of these army jeeps. My grandad ran an army camp in New Brunswick Canada after the war called Camp Utopia. I was the only child in the camp and had fee reign. On the weekends I drove a jeep which there was lots of. The only time I was caught is when the military police called provost caught me driving into the local town with an army major who at the time was dating my mom. He got into a lot of sh_t and could have been court marshalled if he was not a highly decorated hero. I have no idea what the model it was. This was 1952-53

I knew an old WWII vet who said the Willy we hell to start in the cold and the Fords would start right up.

We have a 41 Willy at the Idaho Military Museum. It's fully restored and runs great.

Great video, I learned more about WW2 jeeps than I ever thought I would. So glad I stumbled across this channel

AS ex R.E.M.E.plant and vehicle electrician on national service in Hong Kong 1955/56 worked on quite a few of them. Great fun to drive.

cool. First time I've ever heard split rim described as an advantage.

Way back in time my bother supplied all the WWII jeeps, White halftrack and Bedford trucks for the film The Eagle Has Landed. There were 13 jeeps used mostly hired in from owner collectors, who must have been very worried, but anything termed dangerous was carried out with production owned jeeps. Thats how I became involved as my neighbor had one sat at the bottom of his garden covered just with a canvas sheet. Well brother bought it and I transported it to the location in Maple Durham, near Reading UK. I stayed on a few as action driver and the most fun I had was driving the White half=track with a wooden look alike rear body housing the Brenn gun.

My dad bought a CJ-3 to commute to the airport[Idlewild],and I think that was in the mid 50's,the differental was that the fenders were straight front,unlike the 60's onward version with the curvature! Willy's then was still making Jeeps,and just when Ford ceased making Jeeps,I don't know,but the grill was the Ford stamped one!! Thank you for the information,and since I was a war baby,12/44,I missed a lot of the intriguing sidebars! Thank you 😇 😊!

very nice buddy,I have a 1961 cj5 willys Jeep ,hugs from Brazil.

I watched a YT video of a German team of 6 assemble that jeep in 3 minutes. That for me is the genius of it's design.

Learned something new. Thanks!

Jeeps were used in vietnam with mounted M-2 browning 50 cal Heavy MG mounted on a pipe with in back seat. These were used to trans port conveys inland alone with KING Cobra gun trucks with mounted quad 50's.4inf div. 1 calvery.

Great video. I've wanted to own a WWII version for a long time, but at my age that won't be happening. I at least got a chance to drive one in a parade once.

Absolutely thrilled to learn that Steve is a fellow Jeep nerd. Watched Steve doing F1 broadcasts for years and really valued his technical knowledge and insider info and banter with David Hobbs. Long way from the current crop of F1 presenters.

The pride and joy in my uncle's driveway.

Bravo! Excellently presented! My summer driver is a 1946 CJ-2A and I was with my parents when they bought it new. I don't remember it, but was told I was. I have left it absolutely stock and the critters love riding it as much as I do. Best of luck!

Great video! Very informative and worded concisely yet precisely.

I love these old jeeps so much. This was a great video for a casual Jeep lover.

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.

Great presentation. I’ve restored a ‘44GPW and use it when weather permits. (I’m old and not as agile as I was)

Very cool, thanks for sharing 👍

Low power, just fast enough. Dad said on Guam (1944) they head to the beach with almost a dozen guys in a jeep.

Some wartime jeeps were sold to the public for like $200 and I have seen a couple rusted out hulks on farms

Legend has it that a number of flat packed jeeps [and other surplus] were dumped in pit at RAF Sculthorpe in Norfolk England. The airfield is still under MOD ownership so maybe on day they could be recovered.

Also, the Willys has round tubular crossmember, Ford used square tubes crossmembers

Brilliant seeing you here Steve. It's been a few years since watching you with F1 and I wondered what you had your hand on now. I think "Motorments with Matchett" might be a good title.

Best cars ever build. And I would choose it before any other. Thank you for creating, producing and uploading. Thank you very much.

I grew up and was very luck to do so, on a WWII surplus jeep. You could buy one, still packed in a crate, a disassembled jeep for $50.00! Guess who's dad wouldn't allow to "waste" my $ on one? It would be worth a small fortune now. Those old keeps were awesome!

Great video. I learned a few things about these nifty vehicles watching this.

Very very informative and Interesting. Thanks.

I know a fellow that found an old WW2 GPW in pretty good original shape. Seller didn't know what it was worth, neither did the buyer. So he bought it for about $1K. Then he ripped out and threw away most of the original power train and the seats, put in a modern power train and crappy seats from some modern car, and as the finishing touch painted it purple.

Brilliant I love jeep's thank you for making it so easy to spot the differences Bear Hull

The stamped grille Ford came up with looks a lot better than Willy's slat grille, in my opinion. Just saying.

Good lord I thought you were gone! I miss you on Amerian F1 coverage. Glad to have you back!

Great video and info. Thank you.

Very very interesting. I did not know about this. Thank you for enlighten us.....

Because I'm not very much in to the Willys, I think the early, slat-grilled Willys isn't as attractive as the ones with rounded, stamped grilles. But I must say, owning either type would be such a joy, I'd think. They don't make 'em like they used to, haha!

The iconic Jeep grill, in use for 70+ years, was designed by Ford engineers. Wow!

There's also Jeeps out there that were cobbled back together in WWII. Saw an example and the owner preferred to leave it 'incorrect'.

I always wondered why some pictures of early Jeeps showed that slat grille, but there never was a mention about it - I thought it was for brush protection or something. Now I know the answer!

My "Off the top of my head" answer was How long does it take to create sheet metal stamping dies. My ' 59 SW and 64 CJ as well as neighbor's 51 SW all had stamped grills. All from a time when the vehicles were brought to production along an industrial path. Willys was taking over production of a hand built design with a a severe time crunch because the enemy is very rude about not postponing the war. Willys built cars so you used any parts you have on hand like gauges, and then whatever you could get from whatever your suppliers could give you. Willys was a small independent producer, and Ford was #2 and could and did sometimes produce not only every part even from the actual raw materials. It was no problem for Ford to add a provision for a glove box or parking lights to the stamping die while they are being machined.

Very cool information.

Thanks for sharing!

Hi from Aussie, A big thanks for your time very informative ( Liked )

I noticed that the Willys ID plates were brass and installed with screws while the Ford plates are steel and riveted on!

When my dad was in the US Army during the early 1990s he was part of a crew that helped prep vehicles, which he described as looking like a cross between a Jeep and an HMWV for shipping south of the border. I wish I could see pictures of these things and know their specs.

Well since I served in the Army, our Jeep’s weren’t WWII models so their upgrades were a bit different. The Jeep is a rugged automobile and it is able to go places that the Hummers can’t . When I can , I’ll see about buying an ole school military Jeep and and go trekking across America and later return to Germany for some cross mountain trips as we used to do when I was stationed there several times. Great informative video Señor. PROBST!