The Jeep was also converted into an amphibious car to ford water sources by way of a special boat-like hull fitted around the chassis and special attachments fixed into place for air intake and exhaust of the engine. The design could run on roads at speeds of 60 miles per hour, climb 40-degree slopes, achieve a turning radius of 30 feet and tilt up to 50-degrees to either vehicle side without tipping over. The vehicle was also issued with a fold-up cloth roof to protect occupants against the elements but offered little in the way of protection from battlefield dangers.
BANTAM TRAILER DIMENSIONS MANUAL
The engine was coupled to a three-speed manual transmission system with a four-wheel-drive transfer case and high / low gears. The vehicle proved a compact, 4x4 wheel drive vehicle powered by a 4-cylinder gasoline-fueled engine running at 4,000rpm for hours on end. The Ford mark was given the long form designation of "Government 80-inch Wheelbase Reconnaissance Car". Between Willys and Ford Motor Company, 634,569 "jeeps" were produced during World War 2 (1939-1945). Ford Willys vehicles were further designated "GPW" to indicate their Willys origins and were largely copies of the competing design. Ford Motor Company then agreed to build from the Willys design plan (as the "GP" for "Government Pygmy" based on its original vehicle submission to the US Army) and Bantam, sadly, was charged with nothing more than manufacture of Willys compatible trailers. New prototypes were then ordered from the remaining two companies to which Willys ultimately won a procurement contract in July of 1941. The initial contract went to Bantam, but their manufacturing limitations soon saw the US military hand over its plans to both Ford and Willys. Only three companies responded: Ford Motor Company, Willys-Overland and American Bantam Car Company. M416 varaint for Signal Corps, with tool chests.In 1939, the United States Army invited some 135 to 165 manufacturing companies to submit design proposals within a 75-day timeframe for a new multi-purpose logistical military vehicle to replace its aging fleet of motorcycles and Ford Model T trucks. Trailer, Maintenance: Telephone Cable Splicere, 1/4 ton (G857). M100 varaint for Signal Corps, with tool chests. Trailer, Maintenance: Telephone Cable Splicer, 1/4 ton (G747). Trailer, Telephone Cable Splicer, 1/4 ton, Single Axle, K-38 MB-T (Willys) and T3 (Bantam) Trailer, 1/4 ton for WW II jeeps (G-529) Wheels and tires were the same on the jeep and the trailer, providing more capability to recover from a flat tire or damaged wheel. Since the original jeep development in 1940, each model of jeep had a 1/4-ton trailer designated to be used with the vehicle for additional cargo space or more specialized uses. Military trailers with 1/4-ton capacity are designed to be used with the Truck, 1/4-ton 4x4, best known as the jeep. Gomez of the 1300th Military Airlift Squadron, stands by an M151A1 jeep and M416 trailer as he monitors a parachute drop made by members of the US Army 193rd Infantry Brigade during an airborne training mission at Venado Drop Zone, Howard AFB, Panama, May 1977. Chart of Military Vehicle Trailers with 1/4-ton Capacity