The Real Story of the Jeep

The Willys MB and the Ford GPW, both formally called the U.S. Army Truck, 1⁄4 ton, 4×4, Command Reconnaissance, commonly known as the Willys Jeep, or just Jeep,  and sometimes referred to by its Standard Army Supply number G-503, were highly successful American off-road capable, light military utility vehicles. Well over 600,000 were built to a single standardized design, for the United States and the Allied forces in World War II, from 1941 until 1945. This also made it (by its light weight) the world's first mass-produced four-wheel drive car, built in six-figure numbers.

The 1⁄4-ton jeep became the primary light, wheeled, multi-role vehicle of the United States military and its allies, with President Eisenhower once calling it "one of three decisive weapons the U.S. had during WWII."

WHATS IN A NAME?

According to sources, the word "jeep" was used well before World War II; as casual U.S. Army slang for new, uninitiated recruits, as well as used by Army motor pool mechanics, about any new, unproven vehicles,  also describes use as an adjective: "jeepy," similar to 'cooky' or 'goofy,' to mean anything insignificant, silly, awkward or foolish.

Later, in mid-March 1936, a character called Eugene the Jeep was created in E. C. Segar's Popeye cartoons. Eugene the Jeep was Popeye's "jungle pet" and was small, able to walk through walls and move between dimensions, and could go anywhere and solve seemingly impossible problems. The Eugene cartoon character brought new meaning to the Jeep name, diverging from the initial, somewhat pejorative meaning of the term, instead changing the slang to mean a capable person or thing.

Eugene the Jeep's go-anywhere ability resulted in various industrial and four-wheel drive vehicles getting nicknamed "Jeep" in the late-1930s. Around 1940, converted 4WD Minneapolis-Moline tractors, supplied to the U.S. Army as prime movers, were called "jeeps”. All three light U.S. 4x4 trucks, were nicknamed "jeeps" in World War II – the Willys MA 1⁄4 ton, and Dodge WC 3⁄4 ton and 1⁄2 ton.

In 1940–1942, soldiers initially used "jeep" for half-ton or three-quarter-ton Dodge Command Reconnaissance cars, with the three-quarter ton Command Cars later called "beeps" (for "big Jeeps"), while the quarter-ton cars were called "peeps", "son of jeep", "baby jeep", "puddle-jumper", "bug"; or "bantams" or "quads".  Originally, "peep" seemed a fitting name, because the quarter-ton was considered primarily a reconnaissance (peeping) car.

The early 1940s terminology situation is summed up in the definition given in Words of the Fighting Forces by Clinton A. Sanders, a dictionary of military slang published in 1942, in the Pentagon library: "Jeep: A four-wheel drive car of one-half to one-and-one-half-ton capacity for reconnaissance or other army duty. A term applied to the bantam cars, and occasionally to other motor vehicles (U.S.A.) . Also referred to as 'any small plane, helicopter, or gadget'."

 The term "Jeep" could still mean various things, including light-wheeled utility vehicles other than the jeep.