Back in the day, Willys, Kaiser, and American Motors supplied the US Military with the iconic 4WD Jeep.
But how about modern times?
Has/Does Jeep under ownership from Chrysler, Daimler Benz, and Fiat/Stellantis still make military spec vehicles?
Not for many decades.
My understanding is that what you would recognize as a “Jeep” hasn’t been used by the U.S. Army since the 1970s and early 1980s, and according to Wikipedia, it doesn’t look like Kaiser/AMC made military jeeps since the 1960s (the ones from the '70s and '80s were made by Ford).
AIUI, the Humvee (made by AM General), and various vehicles made by other manufacturers, notably Oshkosh Corporation, took on the role that the old Jeeps did.
They don’t.
“Jeeps” haven’t been part of DoD procurement since Viet Nam. And they weren’t AMC even then.
GM makes the HMMV. General Dynamics makes various other vehicles.
FWIW, Stellantis does have a “fleet” division, which sells variations on Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Wagoneer, and Ram vehicles for commercial and government fleets (including law enforcement). However, even their “Federal Government Fleet” offerings are simply their passenger vehicles and vans, with fleet trim packages.
For awhile after the M151 early 1960s jeep-like vehicle proved obsolete and the HMMV was embroiled in eternal delays, the DoD was buying what they called CUCVs = Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle - Wikipedia. Which at that time were pretty much early 1980s Chevy Blazers.
I had one issued to me back when I was fighting the commies and druggies in LatAm. Which was funny since my personal car was a GMC Jimmy of the same model year-group. Except for the nicer paint, and the air conditioner, and the AM/FM radio, my own Jimmy vehicle and the issue CUCV / Blazer were identical.
FYI - CUCV is pronounced “cuck-VEE”. As in “vehicle for guy who can’t get laid.” Among all the “cool” military ground vehicles to have or to drive, this was the loser cruiser of the lot. The M1 tank was the sought-after “I am sooo cool!!1!” ride.
Interestingly, that article on the CUCVs (what a name) indicates that while, over time, various models were supplied by Chrysler (in the 1970s, well before they bought Jeep and AMC), GM, and AM General, there were never any actual Jeeps involved.
The U.S. military may not use Jeeps, but other armies do:
In addition, Israel uses a locally manufactured version of the Wrangler called the Sufa (Storm) as one of its primary workhorses:
I once drove an armored version of the Sufa into a ditch. It was an experience.
Yeah, these days they’re using the Oshkosh JLTV (Joint Light Tactical Vehicle), which is pretty far removed from anything Jeep-like.
They’re surprisingly big, and apparently somewhat armored, or at least the ones I saw when my sons’ scout troop visited an Army base were. They look like they’d be extremely capable off road based on the tires, ground clearance, and suspension.
Yeah. A lot of US soldiers were killed/maimed by IEDs in Afghanistan and Iraq because a typical Humvee had no armor to speak of. The US public was getting upset about this so they invented armored Humvees and these other, newer vehicles which can protect the crew. The downside is they are big and heavy and expensive.
IIRC General Eisenhower was asked after WWII what the most important vehicle was for the US. He answered the Jeep. It didn’t have any protection but it was light, durable, cheap and easy to produce, could handle lots of different terrain, easy to dig out a stuck one (only weighed 1,000 pounds compared to the “light” JLTV at 22,500 pounds), easy to repair and incredibly versatile. There’s something to be said for that I think.
They could be shipped like in the picture below (very efficient) and assembled in something like an hour by a couple people. Great for airdrops.
A thousand kilograms roughly, or about as much as a Mazda Miata, if I might quibble. Great pictures and great post though.
Ah…I should have looked that up. I was going by the 1/2 ton printed on the shipping box in the photo (and assumed it was Freedom tons since it was American made).
ETA: On a closer look it might be 1/4 ton printed on there. Dunno what they are on about.
The truck is a “quarter ton”. Which means it can carry a load of 500lbs. Not that it weighs that much when empty.
That refers to the 1/4 ton carrying capacity. 500 lbs is enough to carry two soldiers and their gear. In a pinch it will carry a lot more, of course and you can find plenty of World War II photos with them carrying probably twice their rated loads. They were tough little bastards. I’ve never before seen a color picture of one in the crate though.
Mahindra & Mahindra, an Indian auto company, makes military Jeeps for the Indian army based on the Jeep CJ. They include the Major and the Rakshak.
See for example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtyDj7EsqSM
One of the comments in this video mentions that Willys apparently sent completely disassembled models to their dealerships as a promotional contest to see how quickly they could be put together.
I’d bet that the original use of the Jeep wasn’t in combat roles, but rather as a light utility vehicle. I mean, I never heard or read anything about unarmored jeeps being a problem until the Iraq war, when they were being used in more combat roles.
Considering just how big the JLTVs are (with the suspension up, they’re like eight or nine feet tall), it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if they introduced a smaller, lighter non-combat vehicle specifically to run around rear areas, etc…
“Amateurs talk strategy, professionals talk logistics” ~ General Omar Bradley
Jeeps are all about logistics.
Back when wars had front lines, it was comparatively easy to stay behind them.
When you’re fighting an insurrection and everywhere is both friendly and enemy territory simultaneously, it’s a lot harder to distinguish safe from unsafe areas.
The ever-advancing technology of remote control makes it a lot easier to create automated (or at least unmanned) ambushes than was possible in e.g. 1943.
I spotted a Mitsubishi Type 73 Light Truck near my office. The original type 73 was based on a Jeep design, but the current version is based on the Mitsubishi Pajero. These are used by the JSDF.
Leapin’ Jeeps!
Like every boy of a certain age, I loved Rat Patrol*. As I got older and wiser, I couldn’t figure out how they stayed alive past one episode.
*Joan Jett:
I love Rat Patrol
Throw another grenade at the jerries, baby!
I love Rat Patrol
Come and hit the dunes and leap with me!