Immediately after World War II and into much of the 1950s, Willys and Dodge were the only vehicle manufacturers to engineer and build their own 4x4 pickup trucks. Both the Willys Pick-Up Truck and the Dodge Power Wagon were developed from experience building 4x4 military vehicles for World War II, the latter being a “civilianized” version derived from the Dodge WC military truck.
The Dodge Power Wagon was initially a one-ton-capacity vehicle on a 126-inch wheelbase and a little too much truck for the average postwar pickup truck buyer. Aftermarket manufacturers, such as Marmon-Herrington and NAPCO, provided 4x4 conversions to lighter-duty two-wheel-drive trucks built by other manufacturers. These conversions were an alternative for those looking for something lighter-duty than a one-ton Jeep pickup or Dodge Power Wagon.
For the most part, the 4x4 niche market hadn’t yet caught on with consumers, largely due to the high cost of 4x4 pickup trucks, so companies such as General Motors and Ford Motor Co. hadn’t yet dedicated the resources to engineering and building their own 4x4 trucks.
The truck industry
