Tamiya 1/35 Ford GPA Jeep #35043  [35043]

The Ford GPA 'Seep' (from Seagoing Jeep), ended up being an amphibious version of the WWII Ford GPW Jeep. Unlike the jeep, the seep wasn't a successful design being too slow and heavy on land and lacking enough seagoing abilities in open water. Similar design features had been found in the more expensive and more effective DUKW amphibious vehicle.

History and development

After having commissioned Willys, Ford and Bantam to create the first 4,500 jeeps (1500 each) in March 1941, the united states Motor Transport Board set up a project underneath the way associated with the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) to be designated "QMC-4 1/4 Ton Truck Light Amphibian".
The War ended up being on at full tilt, and with bridges over Europe's rivers being taken out one after another, it seemed practical if the jeep could swim as well as drive. So it came to Roderick Stephens Jr. of Sparkman & Stephens Inc. yacht designers, to create a shape for a 2700 lb (1,200 kg) amphibious jeep, in the same vein as their design the DUKW six-wheel-drive amphibious vehicle. And in addition Stephens' hull design appeared to be a miniature form of that associated with DUKW, and just like it, the 'Seep' was going to have a screw propellor, driven by an electric take-off, running in a dedicated tunnel faired in to the buttocks bodywork, in addition to a suitable rudder.
The construction regarding the vehicle originated in competition by Marmon-Herrington and Ford Motor Business. Marmon-Herrington specialised in all-wheel drive automobiles. The Marmon-Herrington prototype's hull formed an integrated unibody framework, produced by cutting forms out of steel dish and welding those together, a great deal such as the hull or chassis of an armoured car. The Ford entry however used a sturdy framework and interior frame, to which just about regular car type sheet-steel was welded. This construction made the GPA some 400 lb (180 kg) lighter than its competitor. Also The GPA's design had been in line with the Willys MB and Ford GPW standard Jeeps whenever possible. When making and building the GPA, Ford utilized many of exactly the same components that the Ford GPW did. The GPA had an inside much like compared to the MB/GPW jeeps, even though the driver's compartment had nearly doubly many control levers: 2WD/4WD, hi-range/lo-range, capstan winch (in the bows), propeller implementation and rudder control. After a primary comparison of this two company's prototypes, Ford received a contract for production starting in 1942.