Aussie WW2 staff cars

[Matt Austin]

G’day Lang,

Late to the party, but how did your trip go? I’ve been enjoying the Pontiac, as someone once said, it’s like sitting on the lounge, driving the living room!

I’m thinking that if I can’t find an example of an impressed ‘40 Pontiac sedan in the AWM books, then I’d best make like it belonged to the US, a well-connected RAAF Squadron Leader, or someone dealing in forged ration cards!

Cheers,
Matt

[Mike Cecil]

Matt,

Very unusual in Aust military service as a sedan or 'Car, DS'. Most Aust military service Pontiacs were utilities.

That said, try Army reg number 127968, a 1939 model taken on charge in New Guinea, so an impressed vehicle (along with many other odd makes/models on that page of AWM126). See also post 39 (above) by Mike Kelly.

I've also got a record of a Pontiac sedan serving with the RAN in Melbourne in July 1945: registration RAN 52062. No details as to model, year, etc. RAN records are pretty crappy, so there may well have been others.

The Australian Government also supplied an unknown number of Pontiac sedans to the USASOS under the Reverse or Reciprocal Lend Lease scheme. These are mostly listed as 1941 and 1942 models. Registrations were typically configured 'USA-U-12036', which was a 1941 Pontiac sedan which had 23,858 miles on the odometer when returned to the Commonwealth for disposal in late 1944. (The USASOS also received a number of Pontiac utility vehicles.)

Mike