Cobi Jeep Willys MB

Small, all-terrain, relatively cheap and producible in large numbers - these were the requirements that the US Army placed on a new all-purpose vehicle when it issued a call for tenders in 1940. The first prototype of such a vehicle was delivered to the Army in September 1940 under the abbreviation BRC (Bantam Reconnaissance Car) by the American Bantam Car Company in Butler PA. The Department of Defence ordered 1500 BRCs each and the same number from two other suppliers (Willys-Overland and Ford) and finally decided on the Willys MA model from the Willys-Overland Company in Toledo, Ohio. Before the vehicle went into mass production, it was redesigned according to Army specifications and based on the Ford GP. The result was the Willys MB, of which around 370,000 were produced during the Second World War. Ford produced the same vehicle, with minimal differences, under licence and called it the Ford GPW. An additional 270,000 of these were produced and handed over to the army. There are various theories as to how the Willys MB got its nickname 'Jeep'. It is possible, for example, that the abbreviation GP (for General Purpose) was a corruption. Willys-Overland had the name 'Jeep' protected as a brand name in 1950, and vehicles are still produced under this brand by the Stellantis company today, albeit exclusively for civilian use. Model with 1510 parts, printed blocks and moving elements. Model dimensions (LxWxH): 47 x 14 x 15.5 cm.