Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Fully-Restored M151 Jeep

We just dug out some pictures of a beautifully-maintained M151A2 MUTT (Multi-Utility Tactical Truck).


Though to the untrained eye this may look like the classic Willys Jeep seen in so many war films, this is actually a later evolution of that popular American concept. Initially built by Ford, the M151 series replaced the well-known MB and M38 jeep Light Utiity Vehicles that had served so well in WWII and Korea.


In production from 1959 until 1982, some of these M151s may still be in service with the US military but they have virtually all been replaced by the bigger HMMWV. This means the vehicle you see here forms a direct family link from the Jeeps and Hummers on today's roads to the primitive but invaluable jeeps that bounced their way across war fronts on at least four of the world's continents some 75 years ago.


The M151 first saw service in Vietnam and as late as 1999, US Marines were using a FAV (Fast Attack Vehicle) variant of the MUTT in Kosovo.



Despite the MUTT looking like a relic of a bygone age and its having been elbowed aside by the Humvee for almost all front-line applications by US troops, the M151 can still be found in active use with dozens of the world's armies.

Thanks to YouTube, we found a few high-quality videos of an M151A2 for you to enjoy.


The example in these videos appears to be in even better condition. It certainly carries more period equipment.

No comments: