The US Army did not start WW2 with a 1/4 tone vehicle already in service. The requirment was only specified after the war commenced. 1940, Bantam demonstrated the first of the 'jeeps' with the BRC-60. The US Army was impressed, however they asked for interest from other manufacturers. in Nivemeber 1940, The US Army issued contracts for a new 1/4 ton vehicle; Ford, Willys and Bantam each produced 1500 vehilces for the pilot.

in 1941, each company provided 1500 vehicles to the US army, Ford started production in Feb 1940 wth their version - the Ford GP, and delivered their last vehicle in May 1940. Willys delivered their first vehicle (the Willy's MA) in June 1940 and the last pilot vehicle in Aug 1940. Even though Willys offered the US Army Quartermaster Corps (QMC) the lowest per unit price, QMC wants to award the contract to Ford, due to the slow delivery of vehicles from Willys. The Office of Production Management (OPM) refuses.

The QMC does not give up and OPM finally agrees in October 1940 to allow another manufaturer to produce additional vehicles based on the Willy's MB design. Ford is selected as the second manufacturer in November 1940, and the first Ford produced MB (designated GPW - Government (G) 80 inch wheel base (P) War Stadardised (W).

To protect Ford from warranty claims (rumoured) and to acknoledge the parentage of the GPW, the majority of the parts were marked with a 'F' or 'GPW' and the Ford part number.

Collectors and restorers will often rejoice in finding another 'F' marked part during their restorations. The follow list is Work In Progress detailing the Ford Motor Company and their suppliers markings of parts that were used in the manfacture of the GPW. Please contact me if you would like to contribute or correct any of my postings.

If you need details about the colors of the parts on either a WW2 MB or GPW, please refer to the excellent resource on Jon Rodger's Jeepdraw site.

There are a number of F marks on the body, these include the Seats, Lights, Markers, Guards, Reflectors, Hood Hinges, Glass, Safety Strap Eyelets.

Grab Handles

These images were taken by a seller on Ebay from what was reported to be an early GPW. Note the thin material used for the handles, the style of the 'F' Mark and the absence of any punch mark around the 'F'.

These are the orignal handles from my GPW mid 44. The 'F' mark is not are clear as the earlier handles and the postion is inclined. The handles are factory drilled at the rear for drainage of condensation.

Safety Belt Eyelets

Safety belt eyelets were fitted at the front of the door opening. GPW eyelets were horizontal while MB eyelets were fitted vertical.