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I'm not working on the body of my 1954 M38A1 just yet. However, I noticed that it has the speaker bracket on the right rear inner fender and the left rear corner is drilled for an antenna bracket. It got me thinking...

Back in the day when these were in service, would they have these modifications added even if it wasn't used as a radio Jeep?

I don't intend to add other stuff to make it a radio Jeep, so I'm wondering if it would be correct to omit these modifications. Technical manuals are great and speak volumes, but they don't tell you how a Jeep was used on a daily basis.

Thanks for any insight!

Roger,
As I understand it radios were an option and field added.
Early on, the M38 came with quite a few factory accessory
options, but they were later omitted for cost purposes. That
probably carried into the A1 production.

Here is an A1 in a crate. I do not see any holes for the radio
mount on the left rear.

http://www.willysmjeeps.com/v2/modules. ... _photo.php

Motor pool? Could have had a radio once then removed.
The holes would have stayed.

My M38 has the left rear radio bracket holes which were not
factory drilled.

Take care,

I believe the radio power lead and receptacle were factory installed - both my '51 M38 and "53 M38A1 have them. Other radio equipment would have been added as needed in the field. As stated, later versions had some standard equipment deleted for cost savings.

The equipment Brian alludes to be deleted was standard Army contracted equipment that was later deleted from the factory jeep as a cost saving measure when the Army was having a tough time with congress on the jeep's price. Those items like the slave cable receptacle were assembled in a kit form and were often installed by the Army in the field.

The M38A1 went a step further and deleted a lot of the fording system plumbing such as the two fording valves and the plumbing and fittings for the bell housing and tranny. Again, these items were assembled in kit form and often installed in the field by the Army. The A1 also deleted the radio power receptacle and the slave cable receptacle. Again these were assembled in kit form and available to the Army in the field for installs.

The only equipment specifically designed to support radio installations was the power cable and the receptacle near the pass seat on the M38. Willys/Kaiser did not pre drill any holes for mounting radios or antennas on either jeep.

wesk wrote:
Willys/Kaiser did not pre drill any holes for mounting radios or antennas on either jeep.

Not to highjack the thread. Could I take this info to also mean. The antenna hole drilled in the left front cowl on my M170 is after market?

Yes

Thanks guys, that was the information I was looking for.

wesk wrote:Yes

Thanks WesK looks like another hole to patch LOL