History of the Jeep

Jeep vehicles have been the transportation preference for liberators and adventurers for more than 50 years. Here you'll discover the history of the Jeep vehicle from the launch of the Wrangler (TJ), and the development of the 1946 Willys Utility Vehicle into today's Cherokee and Grand Cherokee.

The innovative Jeep vehicle was born of necessity and hand-built in just seven weeks by means of hard labor and brilliance.

In view of the fact that as early as World War I, the U.S. Army had been looking for a quick, lightweight all-terrain scouting vehicle. In early 1940, equipment became urgent as the Axis powers began to score victories in Northern Africa and Europe and the need to quickly develop this means of transportation became more vital. The Army put a call out to car manufacturers asking for a running sample for such a vehicle in just 49 days.
The Bantam Car Company, which had supplied a number of previous scouting vehicles to the Army, and Willys-Overland were the only two manufacturers that replied to the Army's call, although over 130 companies had been invited to reply. The 49-day cut-off date was challenging, on the other hand, Willys-Overland asked for additional time to finish their vehicle. Bantam's only expectation to meet this deadline was to bring in outside help.

Bantam's rescuer turned out to be Karl Probst, a Detroit engineer who had worked for quite a few automotive firms. Enlisted by National Defense Advisory Committee head William S. Knudsen (former president of General Motors), Probst accepted the nationalistic challenge with no salary and went to work July 17, 1940. In just two days he had entirely laid out blueprints for the Bantam model, the forerunner of the Jeep® vehicle. On July 22, Bantam's offer was submitted total with blueprints of this original vehicle. The proposal claimed that the vehicle met the maximum load value of 1,300 pounds even though it was in fact a great deal heavier.

Bantam's first ever hand-built model was complete and running by September 21, 1940, meeting the 49-day time limit. The Army put this first of its kind vehicle through torturous testing, taking the Bantam Jeep vehicle more than 3,400 miles, all except about 250 of which were unpaved. The testers in the end concluded that "this vehicle verified sufficient power and all the requirements of this service."

In the end, Willys and Ford both submitted prototypes based on the Bantam plans supplied to them by the Army. The Willys "Quad" and the Ford "Pygmy" prototypes added their own changes and modifications to the fundamental Bantam plan.

During World War II, Willys and Ford filled more than 700,000 orders, with Willys Overland supplying more than 330,000 units.

We do know that overnight Jeep vehicles were known by military and civilians the same seeing that the vehicle that could go wherever and do everything. But where did the name Jeep come from?

Even though no one actually knows for sure, everybody has their preferred theory in relation to how Willys Quad came to be called the Jeep vehicle.

Another explanation, according to Col. A.W. Herrington, is that the name was used in Oklahoma as early as 1934 to assign a truck ready with particular gear for drilling oil wells.

No matter what the origin of the Jeep name, the Jeep brand of vehicles has become one of the most recognized brands in the world.

In 1950, Willys obtained a United States Trademark Registration for the Jeep trademark. Since after that, ownership of the Jeep trademark, which is also registered globally, has passed from Willys-Overland to Kaiser to American Motors Corporation, and most recently, to Chrysler Corporation. Today, Chrysler Corporation owns over 1,100 registrations for the Jeep® trademark all through the world.

The chariot of the liberators was the mighty Jeep vehicle which played an astonishing part throughout its first years in World War II. From the beginning, Jeep vehicles captured the mind and respect of people everywhere. They served their fatherland in the warfare in Europe and the Pacific, and led an astounding existence, helping to overpower the Axis powers and bring peace to all of humanity.

War journalist Ernie Pyle characterized the Jeep vehicle in this manner. "It's as faithful as a dog, as strong as a mule and agile as a goat."

Jeep vehicles were used by every division of the U.S. Military and a large number were also shipped to the Allied Forces of Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Jeep vehicles became a crucial element of every action on land. They were used to lay telephone communications, to transport the wounded, and as taxis to carry battle commanders, generals, prime ministers and presidents.

They were crated and freighted, broken down and built up, modified, converted and moved about by sea, rail, road and air. Transport crews could load a complete Jeep vehicle into a C-47 cargo plane, as they needed to be easily and rapidly deployed on the front lines where they were needed most.*

The CJ-2A and the first all-steel station wagon were the beginning of the Jeep vehicle line, and the forerunners of today's Wrangler and Cherokee.

As early as 1942, long before the war in Europe or the Pacific came to an end, Willys-Overland recognized that the popular Jeep vehicles could serve the civilian market as well. The phrase "the Jeep in Civvies" often appeared in Willys-Overland magazine and newspaper ads published on the home front during and just after World War II.