Postwar Jeeps
As World War two was ending, Willys
Overland recognized the importance of the Jeep and registered Jeep as
its own trademark and started to prepare for the production of civilian
jeeps or as popularly known as the CJ Jeep model. Willy knew the CJ
would serve a multitude of purposes for agricultural and commercial
tasks.]

In 1942 the Department of Agriculture researched and investigated the
agricultural possibilities for the Jeep. They looked at the GPW and an
MB. Each Jeep was evaluated in the use with plows and harrows. Overall,
the jeeps were thought not to be wide enough and too low to the ground.
In addition they though the Jeeps were geared improperly for this type
of use.
After some modifications George Ritter, Vice President at Willys worked
on putting together a Jeep vehicle suitable for farmers and general
commercial use. It was called the CJ1 AgriJeep. Soon thereafter the CJ2A
became the first mass-produced civilian jeep model. |