A BEGINNERS BUYERS GUIDE TO BUYING A WAR TIME WILLYS MB/FORD GPW 1941
TO 1945.
By our expert Mark Askew of Jeep World Magazine
History
The
Willys MB ‘Slat Grill’ 18th November 1941 To 6th March 1942
After
winning the contract for the standard production of this new military
1/4 truck (the MA), the original order was for 16,000 units, so back
to the drawing board Willys went. The selection of Willys MA standardised
the design on the Willys chassis, though the final product incorporated
the Ford’s square hood design and grill made up of heavy bars,
as well as flat fenders. The Willys name was no longer stamped on the
front edge of the bonnet and the head lamps were now set into the grill
area. The final standard version was dubbed the Willys MB. After a run
of nearly 25,808 Slat Grill units by the end of March 1942 the new MB
made its debut, the grill design was revised yet again to the 9 slotted
grill stamping that we all know and love today.
The
Slat Grill was named for its welded steel grill (not unlike the Ford
GP). The early production MB’s were definitely ‘works in progress’.
Many running changes appeared during their production, all of which
evolved into the final version of the MB. An early production Slat Grill
is an entirely different animal to a late production Jeep. At least
5,112 Slat Grills were built without glove boxes (although the dash
plates were still in the same place), and around 3,545 of the very early
production models used a shorter MA style windscreen. Most early MB’s
also have a very noticeable squared-off fuel tank sump different from
the later rounded look. Other smaller differences included the black-out
light, which was mounted on the left front wing. A round exhaust muffler
was used on these early models, instead of the familiar oval one in
later years. AC air filters were used instead of the later Oakes unit,
rubber bonnet bumpers where used instead of the later wood. Most early
MB’s had solid disc wheels (not the combat spilt rims, seen on
later models). There is a noticeable lack of a spare Jerry can holder,
and no trailer light connector.
Today,
you can still find some Willys Slat Grills around (more so here in the
UK), and even though not so many were made, their value is still similar
to that of standard grill design. The reason appears to be that most
Jeep owners or buyers are looking for that well known standard grill
look rather than the one they don’t know much about, so hence they’re
not really sought after, although in my mind they should be. It would
appear that most of these early Slat Grills were sent overseas (under
lend-lease programs). As for the USA, they estimate that there are only
around 300 that survive there today.
Since
the Willys MA had the ‘Willys’ logo on the grill, the new
MB grill did not have the room for it. So Willys stamped the ‘Willys’
name on the rear left of the body tub. This also carried over to the
early stamped grilled MB’s, and the same was also done on early
Ford GPW’s, these became known as script bodies. Today many people
ask ‘why’ were the name(s) removed? ‘Well’ the answer
to that is very simple, the US government did not wish to see any ‘Free’
advertising on any of its military equipment, so Willys and Ford were
told to remove their logos as soon as they could. So hence the Slat
Grill and Script bodied MB’s and GPW’s are becoming more sought
after today.
The
Willys MB/Ford GPW. Bantam and Ford were frozen out of the action for
the moment, though events would soon alter that. On December 7th, 1941,
Japan launched a murderous sneak attack on the American naval base at
Pearl Harbour, Hawaii, sinking or disabling several of the Navy’s
largest ships and killing hundreds of young American boys in uniform.
Despite American efforts to remain on the sidelines, they were suddenly
placed into the war. The need for the new military car was now going
to be greater than the most optimistic had envisioned. Besides the US
Army needs, thousands of new scout cars would eventually be supplied
to allied armies in virtually every theatre of the war.
Events
picked up speed. The previous Jeep orders, which had seemed so lucrative,
now seemed insignificant. Even the 16,000 unit order that went to Willys
paled in comparison to what the military was now calling for (which
was of course the Slat Grill, of which some 25,808 were made). Along
the way, and acutely before the attack on Pearl, Ford won the right
to also produce Jeeps for the military. The Quartermaster still wanted
a second source of supply. A compromise was reached by having Ford agree
to produce the Willys design under license. Willys would turn over copies
of all the designs so that the Ford could now build the standardised
Jeep. The Ford product would be designated the GPW (for General Purpose
Willys or G for Government and P for 80 inch wheel base, W for Willys)
which indicated that it was a Ford GP, but built to the Willys standard
design. Willys however never received any fees or remuneration for this.
The standardised stamped grill Willys MB appeared on the 12th June 1942
and finished in September of 1945. However Ford’s GPW came from
their factory on 6th January 1942 and ended on 30th July 1945. The reason
for Willys MB’s later arrival was due to the fact that they were
still building the Slat Grill model.
One
of the major differences in both early Willys and Ford models was the
‘Script’ logo on the rear body tub, just below where the Jerry
can holder sits. This stamped out ‘Ford’ or ‘Willys’
logo featured on around 17,000 early Fords, and around the same numbers
on Willys models. But by late 1942 these were removed by government
order.
Bantam,
however, was now out of consideration for Jeep production. The army
reported that Ford offered to expand the large amounts of money necessary
to set up production of critically needed Jeep components, particularly
the constant velocity joints needed for its front-end drive, items which
had created a bottleneck in production lines. Bantam was financially
unable to do the same, although it did submit a plant, to have additional
suppliers put the components into production. Again, Bantam’s small
size and precarious financial condition served to deny the company its
rightful role in Jeep production. As the army saw things, with two large
production sources, Willys and Ford, building Jeeps, there was no need
for a third supplier. There is a hint in all the official papers that
some military officers were just plain determined to see that Ford be
a part of the project, despite Bantam’s role as the designer of
the original prototype. Looking back, it seems blatantly unfair that
Bantam didn’t get to share in the abundant Jeep contracts after
working so hard to see the thing through its birthing, but back then
the people involved were consumed by the urgency of the times. Bantam
was given contracts to build Jeep Trailers. This work kept them in business
for the time being, but did nothing to help keep them in the auto business
in the post-war market.
Buying
By
the end of the war, Willys had built some 359,489 units, while Ford
built some 277,896. As both companies were using the same design and
parts, this meant that all parts were interchangeable. Both Jeeps had
the 2.2 litre flat head 4 cylinder Willys or Ford side valve engine
(named as the Go-Devil), and both were mated to the 3 speed manual gear
box. For most of their war days they both came with 6 volt electrics,
although some were made with 12 volt towards the end of the war, or
may have been converted by individual armies depending on their needs
and usage. There are a number of differences between the Willys and
Ford Jeeps, and most ‘so called Jeep experts’ would tell you
that it is the front chassis cross member. On the Willys it was a round
tube section and on the Ford it was an inverted U channel section. In
most cases this is true, but during the war both companies were running
out of spares to build the Jeeps quick enough for the world wide armies
demand. A company by the name of O.H. Smith was producing chassis for
Willys and by 1943 Ford were also buying from that same company, so
hence Ford was using the Willys style chassis and not their own, so
the two differences may or may not be correct. But one major difference
between the two was the fact that Ford used only bolts with the ‘F’
stamp on them, and they also stamped a number of panels with the letter
‘F’.
It
seemed altogether fitting then that when officers representing the military
forces of Imperial Japan set out to sign the articles of surrender in
September 1945, they were driven part of the way in a Jeep. The war
in Europe was already over, in fact World War Two was now completely
finished, and at this point so was the production of the military Jeep,
although it was to continue life as a civilian version.
Later
on, there would be arguments about exactly who invented the Jeep. Senate
hearings were even held to look into the claims made by the parties
involved, as well as to investigate the military contracts that were
awarded for its production. But during the war, Willys, then-president
Joseph W. Frazer shrewdly had the Jeep name copyrighted, as a Willys
brand and that copyright settled who would be selling Jeeps after the
war (this was later registered in 1950). For Willys it was the coup
of the century. They would never again have to worry about sweating
out a profit on economy car sales. With the Jeep as their main post-war
product, they could at last conduct their business in an end of the
market that had no real competition. Ford never really had a chance
anyway, since the Ford GPW was a copy of the Willys. Poor little Bantam
never re - entered the automobile market and eventually faded away.
So credit for the original design can only go to Karl Probst and Bantam.
Karl later wrote
"There
was no way I could have visualised the succession of events which would
see Willys and others get credit for the Jeep’s development, as
well as production contracts, while we at Bantam would get little of
either."
Many
have tried to copy the Jeep over the many years since its birth and
some with success, but they all, should always remember this - ‘Jeep,
was the original 4x4xFar by far, and we have over 60 years of off road
experience’.
Rust
and parts
Rust
has always been a major problem with Jeeps, full stop. None more so
than the war time Jeeps. The front wings (fenders), windscreen surround,
body tub, fuel tank and floor pans are the first to go. But replica
panels, tubs, wings, grills etc are now readily available today, as
are some ‘new/old’ stocks. With a large number of suppliers
here in the UK, parts are never going to be a problem. Although when
buying a war time Jeep, do check out the engine, as the block has a
tendency to crack, and the gear box ‘although very strong’,
does have a tendency to jump out of 2nd gear, hence a gearbox rebuild
may be in order.
Good
WW2 Jeeps are getting hard to find, but we estimate that there are around
4,000 Willys/Ford Jeeps here in the UK (Note, all are left hand drive).
Why so many? Well remember that most Jeeps during the war were shipped
overseas, with a large number coming here, and the British Forces used
them until the late 1950’s. In fact in the USA, Jeeps are less
common, as they did not have a huge need for them back home, and most
of their Jeeps were sent to world-wide US Army bases, so hence they
command more money over there, than they do here.
As
for accessories, the Jeep did not have many; axe, shovel, tilt canvas
top, Jerry can, spare wheel, fire extinguisher, tools, rifle rack and
that was about it. Although in later years, armies and enthusiasts have
fitted; side screens, radios, machine guns and mounts, and some come
with the added bonus of a Bantam Jeep trailer. As for markings, well
this will vary from Jeep to Jeep as owners may have put their chosen
markings on them or even painted them in unusual colours i.e. US Navy,
101 Airborne, SAS, Ambulance, Para’s etc.
Prices,
well this will vary from condition, to full kit, to those with trailers,
early models and so on. You may find an early Willys MB ‘Slat Grill’
selling for £6,000 in good condition, yet a late Ford GPW in good
condition may fetch £8,000. Yet you may come across a not so good
Willys MB with script body for around £4,000 to £5,000.
Please remember, this is only a rough price guide for you to follow.
WW2 Jeeps have often been referred to as the poor mans classic car,
but in recent years prices have started to go up, in fact we have seen
them fetch as much as £10,000, so not so much a poor mans classic
car anymore.
Finally
do not be fooled by a Hotchkiss M201 Jeep (although there is nothing
wrong with Hotchkiss Jeeps), for differences and their price guide please
see issue number 22 of Jeep World.
If
you are new to this military and Jeep buying game, your best bet would
be to come along to the War & Peace Show, as there will be over
500 on show, with many for sale, either private or trade. Here you will
get a good chance to learn all about them form other Jeep owners, find
out where to get the parts from (via the hundreds of trade stands).
Mark Askew of Jeep World Magazine will be having a stand at the show
Row 1A, number 7, so do pop in for a chat and get free friendly advice.
Mark can supply you with the nessasary Books/Manuals and back issue
copies of Jeep World magazine which would help you further in your research
into buying a Jeep.
Not
forgetting of course your chance to win a Jeep in the War & Peace
Show annual 'Win a Jeep, Raffle'. Just another
great reason for you to visit the world's largest military show.
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