Naming its 1/4 ton military vehicle the MUTT (Military Unit Tactical Truck), the United States of America’s military seemingly anticipated the affection that soldiers feel for the cute and capable vehicles. Certainly the original World War II-era “Jeep” became known for its loyal and faithful service. As Bill Murray’s John Winger in the 1981 military comedy Stripes point out, nothing is more American than the mutt. This (year not stated) M151A1 near Galveston, Texas sat idle for some time, but the seller added a fuel filter and other tweaks and has it running, stopping, and going through the gears. A full once-over would be advised before any more than yard driving. The listing here on Facebook Marketplace asks $6000 firm.
My late stepfather was of the generation that generally kept a billy club or Shillelagh under the driver’s seat to fend off would-be attackers, and he would certainly appreciate having a full-sized axe at the ready for such circumstances. This truck is listed as “uncut” because these vehicles became known for a rear suspension design that led to unstable handling and rollovers in certain situations. The government cut many of them into pieces upon their retirement so they would not end the lives of untrained and undisciplined civilian drivers. This “A1” model included some modifications intended to assuage the problem, but it was not truly eliminated until the later “A2” model in 1968, according to wikipedia.org.
Anyone taking possession of a mutt knows to have it treated for parasites, and apparently several wasp nests come with this little MUTT free of charge. Designed by Ford and built by Ford, General Motors, Willys, Kaiser, Jeep, and AM General Corporation, the MUTT entered service in the early 1960s and variations continued to be built through 1999. Thanks to allpar.com for some details.
The Spartan design suits the small truck’s intended purpose, and helps ease maintenance as well. The 141.5 cid (2.3L) inline four cylinder engine made 71 HP, and a four-speed manual transmission handles the gear changes. In addition to what you see here, the sale includes a canvas soft top and three additional wheels. Check out this video of a fully-functional version exploring the back roads of Vietnam. Would you be afraid to drive this MUTT?
I drove these Jeeps while serving the U.S. Army in Germany from 1964-1967. We had a motor pool full of them. My M.O.S was actually heavy truck driver but we had everything from mutts to 5 ton cargo trucks. These little Jeeps were so fun to drive, I would spin donuts in the motor pool much to the chagrin my Sargeant. Drove them through the woods up mountains wherever I was sent. Now in the winter it gets pretty cold in Germany and they didn’t come with heaters, so you would freeze your butt off no matter what vehicle you were assigned to.
God bless America
And God Bless you, Johnmloghry, for being there for us.
I drove one down the autobahn, from Bremerhaven to Mannheim, just like this. In the rain, no top, about 70mph….what the hell was I thinking? Ahhh, to be 19 again….LOL 37th Gp early 80s
They had cold weather kits. It was up to the CO weather or not they used money on that mtoe.
There used to be a surplus shop near Dover Downs that had a bunch of these cut up. He also had a field of what looked like 35 gallon drums. He told me they were turbine engines from a small helicopter.
I was drafted in 1968. One day i was called to the motor pool. An E6 said get in that 2 1/2 to truck. He got in and showed me how to start it. I drove down a road until he yelled stop. I locked it up. He told me to turn off the road and go up a steep hill. I put in low everything, turned right and nailed it. We made it half way. He yelled stop, and told me to back down the hill. He then said I had passed my driver’s test.
The military license was typed on the spot, and included the 2 1/2 ton with trailer, 5/4 ton with trailer, and MUTT. I had never even sat in a 5/4 ton or a MUTT. I was then Company driver. I hauled troops and ammunition to firing ranges. .
I was given no training or warning on the MUTT, but me pre army ride was a 1954 Porsche, so the rear swing axle was ok with me.
MUTTs were all over Viet Nam and most had a serrated vertical bar on the front to cut wire. I never saw any wire. The 5/4 ton never made it to NAM We had the old Dodge 3/4 ton. They can hold 15 troops.
We had 5 ton dump trucks. The drivers were picked from those who had never driven a truck. One driver never had a civilian license.It woeked out just as you would suspect.
We had these in the Marine Corps as well. Never heard of a rollover problem with them.
After the redesign and the A2’s were issued the government still had a problem with the probability of rollovers so that was why the ROPS were put on them. I remember having to put on a many of them and it wasn’t a easy task at first. To tell you the truth I hated the things.
I started out driving these back in ’84 and then the A2’s came out and I thought I was in hog heaven. They started putting the ROPS on them because of too many rollovers. I seen a M60 tank drive right over one, wasn’t much left after that. I’ve seen alot of these rebuilt over the years to be some nice Jeeps, you just have to have money and patience.
I was a 21 year old driver of a M151 Mutt for the Battery Commander for Alpha Battery, 6th Battalion, 10th Field Artillery, VII Corps based in Bamberg, Bavaria, West Germany in 1973 and 1974. Occasionally you would hear of someone rolling one over, but you had to do something stupid to do it. Growing up on a farm, I knew better than to drive something tall, short and narrow too wild. Having my Captain in the next seat with me helped too. The best times were when we were on our annual Reforger war games held in the German countryside. Everything the battalion had, from our self propelled tracked M107 175 MM guns, tracked M548 ammo carriers, deuce and a half’s and 5T trucks, M561 Gama Goats and our M151 Mutts were driven all over Bavaria, which was right on the border with East Germany and Czechoslovakia. We would dig in in the woods and farm fields, while driving all this heavy equipment on narrow roads through these little villages on their cobblestone streets. It was a cool thing to do for a kid from South Dakota. One of my most memorable experiences was when our NCO’s and us went into a small village and visited the local Gasthaus. Many toasts of German beer and Jägermeister were made to us by the local men who were grateful for our presence in their country (and the NCO’s got wasted). This was at the height of the Cold War. Although my German was as poor as his English, one of the older guys there told me he went all the way to Stalingrad in the German invasion of Russia and made it back alive. He even pulled an old picture out of his wallet with him riding a German Army motorcycle with a sidecar during the war. Here’s of few pics of me and my unit back then. https://photos.app.goo.gl/hS409YK9gfB9gfKj1
thank you and all in the armed forces and GOD BLESS AMERICA
Was there no low range on these, as the jeeps had? I didn’t see another shift lever.
Highly interested in your M151A1 if it’s in non cut shape I’ll do 6,000 cash asking
May take a bit to figure shipping or for me to drive down with a trailer but I’m willing to figure that out for a solid MUTT
Thanks
Ty
Or I have a 2005 Rubicon wrangler I’ll trade if the MUTT can be made to run, well only if you are interested, happy to pay the 6k if not