1942 Jeep CJ-2A Hot Wheels Art

Love this piece of art from Hot Wheels.

This Custom 1942 Jeep CJ-2A featured a roll bar, a parachute, a blown V8 engine, and rear paddle tires. According to Hot Wheels this Jeep® 4x4 "eats up the competition like a ham sandwich."

M38 Jeep Altar

The Wichita Eagle had a nice tribute to Father Emil Kapuan who served as a chaplain in the Korean War. This image is of Father Emil Kapaun as he celebrates Mass using the hood of his M38 Jeep 4x4 for an altar. Image was taken on Oct 7, 1950. According to kansas.com Kapaun was captured by Chinese troops less than a month later. He died in a prison camp May 23, 1951 at the age of 35.

Image: Col. R.A. Skeehan

Schande auf Audi

2012 Audi A6 Avant "internal communication" on YouTube?
2011 Chrysler 200 ad from Super Bowl XLV.

No subtlety here. It's a total rip off. Guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Same riff, same imagery, same angles. Audi says the video is not an ad? Good luck in court.

UPDATE: Audi has gracefully admitted its error and settled with Detroit rapper, Eminem over the sound-alike track used in this Audi A6 Avant video. The offending track was created from an unauthorized sample of Eminem's Oscar award winning "Lose Yourself" song used in the Chrysler 200 commercial. One of the terms of the out-of-court agreement was that Audi would support specific Detroit-area charities.

Willys Quad Capitol Steps

Willys Quad Capitol Steps, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

Contrary to popular belief, the name “jeep” does not derive from “general purpose.” The name likely combined two elements. The first was the extraordinary “Eugene the Jeep” character from the Popeye comic strip. Able to do extraordinary things, and do anything. The second came from military slang for any unproven piece of military hardware, human or mechanical. In early 1941, Willys-Overland staged a press event in Washington D.C., having the Quad drive up the Capitol steps. Irving “Red” Hausmann, a test driver on the Willys development team had heard soldiers referring to the Quad as a “jeep.” Katherine Hillyer, a reporter from the Washington Daily News picked up Red’s usage of the term “jeep” and printed the headline “Jeep creeps up Capital steps” — forever fixing the name in public awareness.

1940 Jeep Willys Quad

1940 Willys Quad passenger side, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

In June 1940, with World War II on the horizon, the U.S. Army solicited bids from 135 automakers for a 1/4 ton “light reconnaissance vehicle” tailored to Army specifications. Only three companies responded – Bantam, Willys, and Ford – but, within a year’s time they collectively produced the template for the vehicle known worldwide as the “jeep.”

Willys-Overland delivered the prototype “Quad” (named for the 4WD system it featured), to the U.S. Army on Armistice Day (Veteran’s Day), November 11, 1940. The design was completed in a remarkable 75 days.

Only two prototypes were made.

Mercedes 190 SL

Mercedes 190 SL, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

Found these abandoned Mercedes convertibles wasting away behind an unoccupied home in Oakland County, Michigan.

Towed Jeep Normandy 1944

Towed Jeep Normandy 1944, a photo by lee.ekstrom on Flickr.

Jeep being towed ashore in Normandy Invasion, June 1944

A U.S. Army Jeep 4x4 (nicknamed "Dam Yankee") is towed ashore on a Normandy beach, 12 June 1944.

Note the amphibious operation breathing tube leading to the engine compartment, and the U.S. flag mounted on the windshield.

Two of the men with this vehicle appear to be African-Americans.

Wartime censors have deleted markings on the Jeep vehicle's front bumper, and an object in the right distance.

Taken by Combat Photo Unit Eight (CPU-8). Photo #: 80-G-252807

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.