In 1940, after World War II had broken down, the usa general staff ordered various factories to design a light multi-purpose automobile with all-wheel drive. The United states Bantam Company, Willys Overland, and Ford engine Co. competed together. Willys prototype had been selected, which, after a preliminary run of 1500 vehicles, went into mass manufacturing at the start of 1941 and reached a total production of 640.000 devices away from which 277.000 pieces had been generated by Ford under a licensing contract. This demonstrates the Jeep had been the absolute most commonly produced light car regarding the war industry during World War II.
