Don't Mess With The Mule!

An M274A2 Mule with a kick.

- Jim Allen

THE UNITED STATES MILITARY HAS LONG BEEN obsessed with lightweight, easily transported vehicles. In World War II, it was all about getting them into gliders or transport planes. Then it was parachute capability. When the helicopter went mainstream, the goal was to make them luggable by chopper.

The development of an air-portable extra light 4x4 started not long after the legendary jeep went into production. On its own, the notable small car maker, Crosley, came up with the “Pup” 4x4 in 1942, and the military liked it enough to make specs for a revised vehicle and sent them out to a number of manufacturers. The 1943 result was prototypes from Chevrolet, Crosley, Kaiser, and Willys. They all weighed between 900 and 1,600 pounds. The Chevrolet was probably the most advanced, followed by the Kaiser, but the Willys Air Cooled (or WAC) survived the tests longer and provided a basis for more development and tests.