Collector Car Corner / Cars We Remember; Ford’s 55-minute B-24 Bomber and car manufacturer WWII military might

Q: Greg, I enjoy your columns on the old cars, and especially enjoyed your articles dealing with the car companies during the WWII effort. Which of the manufacturers did the most in your opinion to help the military effort defeat Japan and the German forces? Thanks, Charlie S., Connecticut.

A: Charlie, this question is a bit different in trying to pick the company that did the most, because all car companies participated in some manner and to the best of their abilities. Some built trailers that hooked to the back of the tanks, while others were able to build entire tanks and even B-24 bomber airplanes in a matter of minutes – yes, minutes.

So, from independent auto and truck manufacturers like Studebaker and Checker to the Big Three of General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, the resulting military production efforts were nothing short of astounding. 

Specifically, all domestic passenger automobile production stopped by government order in February of 1942 and every factory concentrated on war supply production. These car companies received over $10-billion in war-related orders after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in Dec. 7,1941 compared to just $4 billion before the Pearl Harbor hit. 

During this time, all manufacturers’ either enlarged and / or converted factories, resulting in better-built military aid. Still, to this day, it was Henry Ford II that that made, in my opinion, the biggest and most amazing contribution to the war effort. Specifically, he built a brand new, gigantic airplane assembly plant in Willow Run, Michigan, which was able to assemble a complete B-24 bomber in just 55-minutes.  

In total, the car manufacturer plants produced 5.9 million weapons, 2.8 million tanks and trucks, and 27,000 aircraft, of which Ford accounted for near 9,000 of the B-24 bombers. Notable is that between 1944 and 1945, and when needed most, the Willow Run plant accounted for nearly all of the bombers needed and a third of the entire aircraft production. 

To see the amazing accomplishment of Ford’s ability to build a B-24 in less than an hour, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNKlpOlfNT0. It is most interesting, and merges well with a video on the impact of women in the workforce, thanks to a 1943 Ford Motor Company video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQKvBPjxMo4&feature=player_detailpage. 

Thus, Ford stunned everyone involved in the construction of airplanes thanks to his B-24 Bomber feat of building one, and each one containing over 1-million parts, in less than an hour. Notable is that his B-24 factory was operating before Pearl Harbor, so our administration at the time knew we were going to need some serious air power based on the rumors of war and the necessity to address the opposition dominance concerns.  

Although I’ve given special attention to Ford’s “55 Minute B-24 Bomber,” I also want to highlight the other manufacturers that played huge roles. 

General Motors was involved with all of its brands in producing armaments, vehicles and aircraft and had more contracts than any other company. Its Cadillac Fisher Body Grand Blanc is most noteworthy. The Hellcat M18 was produced by Buick, while several auto manufacturers produced parts for the Enola Gay, a Boeing built B-29 Super fortress bomber that dropped the first atom bomb on Hiroshima, Japan on Aug. 6, 1945. 

Additionally, I’ve written in the past about the many tanks built in Berwick, Pa. This little borough of Berwick built 15, 224 smaller Stuart Tanks and was the first tank to be built on an assembly line. (A truly amazing effort.) Also, if you do a Google or Yahoo search, you’ll find my column on the Stuart Tanks built in Berwick, Pa.

Dodge division of Chrysler was best known for its heavy duty military trucks and also ambulances; Packard built PT Boat and airplane engines, and its V-1650 engine powered the famous P-51 Mustang fighter; Studebaker produced a US6 truck and the novel M29 Weasel cargo and personnel carriers; Checker, the famous taxi cab manufacturer, built tank retrieval trailers and tank recovery vehicles; Hudson constructed aircraft parts, anti-aircraft guns and naval engines. 

Hudson is perhaps best known for its “Hudson Invader” engine, which powered many of the landing watercraft on D-Day at Normandy, June 6 of 1944; Nash-Kelvinator assembled military specific supplies including military appliances; Henry Kaiser, soon of Kaiser-Frazer auto fame, became legendary for his California shipyard where his workforce put together the “Liberty” and “Victory” cargo ships in record time. Willys and Ford shared Jeep production from 1941 through 1945, and today modern Jeep Wrangler is a tribute to this unique design.  

In summary, it was General Motors that became the aforementioned leading military contractor, producing a final total of 119,562,000 Oldsmobile bullets, 206,000 Buick aircraft engines, 301,000 aircraft propellers, 198,000 GM diesel engines, 97,000 airplane bombers, near 2-million machine guns, and 854,000 tanks, mostly Cadillac. 

Much praise goes to all of our auto manufacturers and the dedication of our military men and women for the spectacular efforts. From the smaller independent car builders to the “Big Three”, our car companies did so much to assist our soldiers and military personnel in fighting for freedom in that perilous time of history. 

Thanks for the question Charlie and try and watch the YouTube videos I recommend. You’ll see how important women were to our victories along with all the active duty personnel.  

(Greg Zyla is a syndicated columnist who welcomes questions on collector cars, auto nostalgia and motorsports at greg@gregzyla.com.)