1940 Australian GMH Chevrolet military coupe utility

[Tim Hunter]

Hi everyone at MLU, I thought I'd post some pictures of my latest acquisition, I believe it is a 1940 Australian military GMH Chevrolet coupe utility. The listed colour on the id tag says Khaki. I can see some remnant timber on the sides of the tray that would have supported the canvas rear canopy. I can't find much about it on the net with my limited computer skills so I thought I would ask the knowledgeable people at MLU what is known about this particular character! Thanks in advance, regards, Tim.

[Mike Kelly]

nice find

Here is one bogged

And another in civvy finish

[Tim Hunter]

Thanks Mike, great to see what it would have looked like!

[Mike Kelly]

The Woodville production numbers say that 1484 Chevrolet Standard coupe utilites were made in 1940. I would think that a small percentage of them would have been purchased by essential civilian users

[Mike Cecil]

Tim,

Nice find, with lottsa rewarding work ahead of you.

When you find the chassis (and engine?) numbers, post them here: we'll see what we can find ....

Mike

[gordon]

It does look a little tired, but it has every right to.

To my eye it looks to have most of the essential bits in decent order or repairable. I assume the chassis is still under there, anything in the way of axles, wheels, drivetrain?

I'd guess most of the drivetrain could be sourced from slightly later versions, but on the Dodge equivalents the 1939/40 stuff was just that hair different from 41 through to postwar.

[Tim Hunter]

Hi all, thanks for your replies, very interesting! Some further info,
Engine number: TR 3554562
Chassis number: 3200? ( taken from compliance plate not chassis rail)
Body number: F085
Colour: DLX KHAKI
Batch number/date: FO
Chassis is there, missing front right spring perch (rear), I beam Axel, hubs, wheels.
Drive train is there including rear diff with six bolt pattern hubs, tailgate is there and in good order. I have a running 216 to drop right in.
Great to know how few were manufactured, I wonder how many survivors there are?

[Tim Hunter]

Here are some more pictures for your viewing pleasure. Keys found in glove box along with 1949 Australian Penny.

[lynx42]

What a great project. If you are stuck for wheels, look for some six stud Toyota HiLux rims. These are the correct stud pattern and the correct off-set.



I have had them on my sedan for 10 years whilst I found the correct Chev wheels otherwise the car would have just been sitting in the shed all that time.

Have fun with it.

Regards Rick

[Mike Kelly]

I have the parts book for that vehicle , the NASCO GMH book that was published for the army . The book is a generic publication , it details the 1940 Chev /Maple Leaf trucks and utes .



Being a Chev, mechanical parts will be a breeze to find .



BTW some of those 1940 coupe utes were shipped to the Middle East .

The 1941 Chev coupe ute models are unique, apparently GMH cut down Chev sedan bodies and made up a patchwork cab - the cab appears to be a semi - flat backed affair . Ford did a similar thing to their 41 army coupe ute . I did see a Chev 41 coupe ute years ago in a wrecking yard , during a club trip to Mywee up on the Murray. There was also a rag top roadster cab version , made in small numbers as 1941 Chevs and Pontiac. The well traveled 1941 Pontiac of C Anderson was purchased by me in 1981 . I drove it home from Geelong along Geelong road unregistered . The old chap had bought it in 1946 , he said it came down from Townsville where the RAAF had it . He took it for a drive around the block for me and every time he moved it he put another dent in the bodywork . He had just handed in the original 1946 number plates a few weeks before I got it . He topped up the air in the tyres, he wheeled out a mobile air supply in the form of a Wirraway main wheel, it must have had about 100psi in it and he transferred the air over to the Pontiac tyres . It was $300 I paid for the car . I passed it onto Colin as he had spares from sedans and another ute .

As Rick knows, the army specified wider rims/tyres for these vehicles , 7.50-16 I think

[lynx42]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

The 1941 Chev coupe ute models are unique, apparently GMH cut down Chev sedan bodies and made up a patchwork cab - the cab appears to be a semi - flat backed affair . Ford did a similar thing to their 41 army coupe ute . I did see a Chev 41 coupe ute years ago in a wrecking yard , during a club trip to Mywee up on the Murray. There was also a rag top roadster cab version , made in small numbers as 1941 Chevs and Pontiac. The well traveled 1941 Pontiac of C Anderson was purchased by me in 1981 . I drove it home from Geelong along Geelong road unregistered . The old chap had bought it in 1946 , he said it came down from Townsville where the RAAF had it . He took it for a drive around the block for me and every time he moved it he put another dent in the bodywork . He had just handed in the original 1946 number plates a few weeks before I got it . He topped up the air in the tyres, he wheeled out a mobile air supply in the form of a Wirraway main wheel, it must have had about 100psi in it and he transferred the air over to the Pontiac tyres . It was $300 I paid for the car . I passed it onto Colin as he had spares from sedans and another ute .

As Rick knows, the army specified wider rims/tyres for these vehicles , 7.50-16 I think

Mike, a bit of bad news for you. I was the loosing bidder at Col Andersons auction for the Pontiac. It went the chap who lives at 'Rust Hill' in SA and was displayed at the South Australian Military Museum until about 6 months ago. After being taken out on a run and placed back in the museum it caught fire and was partially or fully destroyed. (it depends who you speak to). It seems that there was a long term build up of horse hair from the seat padding which had fallen down and accumulated behind the seat on the floor and the exhaust ran close to the underside of the floor. This bit of floor got hot and started the horse hair smoldering and eventually the horse hair caught alight some 3/4hr after being parked up and burnt the car. The placement of the sprinkler system above the displays in the museum saved the other exibits but never quenched the Pontiac. It may be restored but who knows. (It was the owner who told me about the fire.)

Regards Rick.

[Mike Cecil]

Hi Tim,

I've come close: some engine numbers around it, but not it. Same with the 3200 chassis number. Sorry.....

I'll keep an eye out, though, just in case it pops up during a search for something else.

Yes, Rick, I'd heard of the unfortunate demise of the ex-Colin A Pontiac, too. Hope Mr 'Rust Hill' does restore it: it was a nice vehicle. I have several shots of it at various times, and in various guises ... from green to yellow to ...

Mike

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Tim,

Looks like a great find! The Ute being an iconic Australian militarized vehicle, it will be well worth restoring. I think Wheels & Tracks featured photos of this type of vehicle in use with US Forces in Australia?

Hanno

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by lynx42

I have had them on my sedan for 10 years whilst I found the correct Chev wheels otherwise the car would have just been sitting in the shed all that time.

Rick, what a great looking vehicle you have there. Can't recall seeing pictures of your 1940 Chev Staff Car before. Not wanting to derail Tim's thread, maybe we should start a new one on restored military staff cars like yours and the Pontiac Mike found.

Hanno

[Mike Kelly]

Originally Posted by lynx42

Mike, a bit of bad news for you. I was the loosing bidder at Col Andersons auction for the Pontiac. It went the chap who lives at 'Rust Hill' in SA and was displayed at the South Australian Military Museum until about 6 months ago. After being taken out on a run and placed back in the museum it caught fire and was partially or fully destroyed. (it depends who you speak to). It seems that there was a long term build up of horse hair from the seat padding which had fallen down and accumulated behind the seat on the floor and the exhaust ran close to the underside of the floor. This bit of floor got hot and started the horse hair smoldering and eventually the horse hair caught alight some 3/4hr after being parked up and burnt the car. The placement of the sprinkler system above the displays in the museum saved the other exibits but never quenched the Pontiac. It may be restored but who knows. (It was the owner who told me about the fire.)

Regards Rick.

Rick

I may be confusing things a tad. Colin had two 41 Pontiac utes .

At the auction held in 2003 , he sold the unrestored one, this vehicle went to South Aust. I recall seeing it on the back of a truck after the auction, precariously positioned and ready to fall off the truck.

The yellow restored one ( the Geelong flyer ) , he kept this for some years after his big 2003 sale and attended Corowa with it . Is that the burnt one ?

Colin had previously tracked down a 1941 Pontiac sedan and he salvaged many parts from it , it had been a hire car in Melbourne for the duration of the war - thus it escaped military service .

[Mike Kelly]

Originally Posted by Hanno Spoelstra

I think Wheels & Tracks featured photos of this type of vehicle in use with US Forces in Australia?

Yes the US forces did use the Aust. pattern vehicles . I have a pic of Gen. Kenny in front of his Aust. assembled 1941 RHD Dodge staff car , in New Guinea. .

[Mike Kelly]

Following on the coupe ute theme .

This is the 1941 De Soto I bought from Colin A. many years ago. The price was $80 . These utes are actually all Canadian sourced Plymouths with fake grills and badges - Dodge De Soto and the real Plymouth . I believe the body itself was made by TJ Richards in South Aust. with the front guards/wings, and the special fake De Soto grill and the bonnet being imported from Canada . The engine is the Canadian made long block 3 3/8" bore and 4 1/16" stroke

This ute was in good original condition . I bought this car with intentions of restoring it, but at the time I didn't have the skills or tools on hand .

[Mike Kelly]

1940 model I think ?

And a Middle East scene depicting a 1939 coupe ute

[Mike Cecil]

The supply of vehicles to the USASOS was called Reciprocal Lend Lease. I wrote an article about it many years ago, published in Army Motors.

The Australian Govt supplied a myriad of articles to US Forces, and the value of these was placed on the other side of the Lend Lease ledger. By end of war, Australia had supplied around 75% of the value of Lend Lease items supplied to Australia, in RLL - so owed the US Govt the 25% difference.

The variety of motor vehicles was very broad: from little Austin 2 seaters to armoured scout cars. Just imagine some burley Yank liaison officer used to tooling about in a V8 at home in the US, being handed the keys to an Austin 2 seater as his 'liaison duty' vehicle. Would come as quite a shock I should think! And if a current-day restorer finished his little Austin with US registration and white stars on the doors, he'd probably be laughed at (but he may well be accurate!)

Mike

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

I may be confusing things a tad. Colin had two 41 Pontiac utes .

At the auction held in 2003 , he sold the unrestored one, this vehicle went to South Aust. I recall seeing it on the back of a truck after the auction, precariously positioned and ready to fall off the truck.

The yellow restored one ( the Geelong flyer ) , he kept this for some years after his big 2003 sale and attended Corowa with it . Is that the burnt one ?

Would this be the yellow restored one?

H.

[motto]

Yes Hanno that was the Pontiac utility that Colin Anderson restored and owned for many years. I sure hope that it was not the one that was burnt out.
If I recall correctly these vehicles had mounting provision to take a straight eight engine but were only ever fitted with a six .
Also, IIRC, at the time Colin got his ute restored the Pontiac Club in America had never heard of the utility version and were very skeptical of their existence.

David

[Mike Kelly]

here is the story in Colins own words

http://www.vmvc.org.au/vmvc1au/vmvc/...iutestory.html

[cletrac (RIP)]

In civilian Pontiacs the six was used in Canadian production and the States used the straight eight.

[lynx42]

Mike, David and everyone,

Unfortunately it is the yellow one which caught fire. It may be restorable but was uninsured so time only will tell.

Regards Rick.

[Mike Kelly]

This was for sale some years ago. Wonder where it is ?

1942 car based military utility . I believe only around a few hundred were made . At Geelong ?

[Mike Kelly]

The rare 1941 car based chevy military ute , this is a survivor ,the unusual cab is visible

A good original example of these utes was in a wrecking yard in Northern Victoria , I could have got it for $100 in the early 1980's .