Kaiser-Willys Jeep Wide-Trac by Crown Coach

Bad ass, right?

The square-yet-rakish Kaiser-Willys Jeep Wide-Trac is how the company almost provided America (and, later, the world) with an alternative to conventional trucks, vans, and off-roaders.

It’s similar to, but earlier than a very similar Spanish utility vehicle with Willys roots — made by VIASA — which I have already written about. More on this in a minute.

Outwardly, Wide-Trac is sort of a cross between the Volkswagen Type 2 and a Pinzgauer and a Willys MB, and with hindsight, it would have made one helluva an Icon Derelict. Or off-road U-Haul…

In reality, Wide Trac stemmed from a U.S. government-funded program called the Kaiser International Vehicle Investigation (IVI) program that sought to build vehicles from flat panels, such that production facilities could be started nearly anywhere in the world with little initial cost:

As a result, not only was Brooks Stevens given less sheet metal to work with, he was given fewer curves as well. I feel that the results here are generally better than other Stevens designs; this simply made prototype was utilitarian but still wore Stevens' flair for the gee-whiz.

Underneath, the Wide-Trac is based on the Jeep FC (Forward Control). This early cab forward utility truck had a comically narrow 48.4-inch wheel track, as shared with the more conventional Jeep CJ. 1958 changes widened this to a 57-inch wheel track.

Stevens’ Wide-Trac prototype, in comparison, had a 70-inch wheel track. Having a much more stable platform was part of the appeal, but equally so was the greatly increased space for, well, anything. Stevens directed the team at Crown Coach, a school bus manufacturer in California, to create a single cab truck prototype — but the designer had several different ideas for how the rear cargo space should be furnished.

In a move that we see all. the. time. now. at shows like SEMA, an aftermarket company by the name of Sport King built an aluminum slide-in camper for the prototype. Rad: