1. 1955
   1941
2. 1916
   1967

The GMC Model 16 was the first military vehicle made by General Motors, chosen for the newly mechanized US Army for light truck duty during The Great War, in 1916.

1. The image of a propeller whipping through the air
   The Bavarian flag
2. The sight on a machine gun
   An early marketer who just wanted something recognizable

There is a longstanding myth that BMW's logo owes its design to BMW's military past. Apparently this is something an ad man in 1929 came up with for marketing purposes, but it stuck and become part of the brand's mythology. It is however, at the end of the day, just that. The truth is that it is a symbol of the region it comes from, Bavaria, whose colors are blue and white.

1. 925,583
   489,259
2. 769,421
   583,925

General Motors made a combined 583,925 multi-drive military vehicles during WW2, for the US and its allies, France and The United Kingdom. That's a lot of overtime!

1. It's a propeller in flight.
   It's a gun sight.
2. It's a visual representation of the company's name.
   It's a symbol of the brand's ambitions in three areas: air, sea and land.

In Japanese, Mitsubishi means "Three diamonds" in this usage of the words, and so the logo follows this name, visually. Unlike the Mercedes-Benz logo, which comes from the company's ambitions in three spheres of manufacturing, this comes from the "mon" or family crest of Mitsubishi's founder, Yatoro Iwasaki.

1. GM
   Ford
2. Chrysler
   DeSoto

General Motors built the DUKW, also called "The Duck". Ducks are amphibious vehicles built like a boat with wheels. The acronym's meaning in military nomenclature is as follows: D means 1942. U means amphibious utility. K means four-wheel drive. W means two powered rear axles,

1. Ford
   GM
2. Buick
   Packard

GM built the Shermans the US used in the war, moving production from one plant to another during the war to improve efficiency and capacity. The Sherman tank went on to become one of the most iconic weapons used during WW2 despite being much less powerful than its German opposition.

1. 32.6 million
   40 million
2. 12.5 million
   15.2 million

Buick made tons of shell casings for the US military effort in WW2, literally! Buick cranked out roughly 2,500 shell casings per day during the war, having turned much of their manufacturing prowess to the craft of ammunition.

1. 2,000
   500
2. 1,000
   1,250

In addition to making ammo, Buick was tasked with building B-24 bombers. Naturally, the initial military contract was a conservative number, and it quickly doubled, and then doubled again. When Buick hit its stride, it was making 2,000 engines for B-24s every month!

1. 15,840
   11,358
2. 10,922
   8,770

One of the reasons the US's entry into WW2 was so momentous was that the power of US production was so incredible. During the whole war, Germany built only about 12,000 Panzer tanks, with which they had to invade all of Europe. Toward the end of the war, many of these tanks were built in slave camps like the infamous Richard camp, and sabotage was common. GM on the other hand, built 11,358 Shermans expressly for invading Germany and to a lesser extent, Japan, due to the uncommon nature of tank battles thanks to topography.

1. Toyoda Heavy Industries
   Nissan
2. Mitsubishi
   BMW

Mitsubishi makes wonderful paper, economy cars, beer (really), and as it turns out, tanks. The Mitsubishi Type 89 IFV is a tank that Japan has had knocking around since the late 1980s, with an order for even more on the way. Considering how small Japan is, the fact that there are 120 of these in the Japanese arsenal means that not only are these tanks worth the money, Japan isn't messing around.

1. Rover
   GM
2. Ford
   Rolls-Royce

That's right! Rolls-Royce, a company that has a man whose job is to hand paint stripes on the sides of ultra-luxury cars, has a division that makes and services nuclear reactors for submarines. Rolls-Royce isn't alone in this either. Mitsubishi, maker of cheap cars, tanks, Kirin, and plastic wrappers, also makes nuclear reactors.

1. Mitsubishi
   GM
2. BMW
   Rolls-Royce

Rolls-Royce division Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Limited, a partnership with Safran Helicopter Engines, makes the Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour, a powerful jet engine used in both the T-45, an American trainer aircraft, and the F-1, Japan's first supersonic fighter.

1. Mitsubishi
   BMW
2. Honda
   GM

The feared A6M Zero was one of the best built fighters of WW2, designed and built by Mitsubishi, who went on to make the Lancer Evolution. The Zero was the Lancer Evolution of WW2. It was fast, maneuverable, but not built to last. Toward the end of the war, Japan began loading them up with explosives for kamikaze missions. Years earlier, when the American volunteer Flying Tigers defended China from Japan in their aging, heavy, American hardware, they had to develop new tactics to deal with these Japanese hornets.

1. Harley-Davidson
   Indian
2. BMW
   Volkswagen

BMW was into alphabet soup names as early as WW2! During the war, they made several motorcycles including the R4, for military duty, and these designs proved so popular and well-made that some are still in service today while others form the basis for modern designs. What set the R4 apart was that it was the first thing BMW made for the Nazis in WW2, beginning a relationship they refused to discuss for decades, out of shame.

1. Volkswagen
   Daimler
2. BMW
   Fiat

BMW wasn't alone in making weapons for Germany in WW2. Daimler made this astonishing limousine for the baddies during WW2. While it looks amazing with its six wheels, it wasn't actually a six by six vehicle, as not all wheels were powered. It gives new meaning to the term "G wagon".

1. Studebaker
   Chrysler
2. DeSoto
   Pontiac

Chrysler was tasked with building a medium sized tank with a 75mm gun for use by the US and Britain in WW2. The tank ended up in two configurations, one largely used by the US and the other, largely the UK. The American configuration, weirdly, was named for Confederate General Robert E. Lee, while the UK version, also weirdly, was named for Union General Ulysses S. Grant.

1. BMW
   Daimler
2. Volkswagen
   Alkett

Before Volkswagen was known for its cute ads and cuter Beetle, it was known as Hitler's hobby horse. In addition to personally commissioning the Beetle, Hitler ordered 15,500 Schwimmwagens from VW. The Schwimmwagen was basically a German DUKW, only much smaller so that it could navigate Europe's tiny roads and towns.

1. The Taurus
   The F-350
2. The Explorer
   The Fiesta

In 2000, Ford presented the US military with an armored, tactical version of its heavy duty pickup truck. Dubbed the F-350 Super Duty COMBATT modified pickup, it had built in satellite navigation, 12V, 24V and 110V AC plugs, and AM/FM radio! It also had enough armor to stop small arms fire, and a central system to inflate tires without getting out so you could drive through a combat zone with a load of 2x4s without getting shot, or whatever Ford had in mind.

1. Jeep
   Ford
2. GM
   DeSoto

When your former top executive leaves his cushy job to work for the president of the United States, you might see a perk or two. Robert McNamara went from being a Ford bigwig to being JFK's secretary of defense, and when the US military was looking for a possible replacement for the Jeep, who should come along to supply one but Ford, McNamara's old employer! 1967 saw a slew of Ford Broncos enter military service as a result, though none saw combat.

1. Unmanned Underwater Vehicle
   Chevrolet Silverado ZH2
2. Chevrolet Corvette PCP
   Silent Utility Rover Universal Super Structure

Despite its namesake, the Chevy Corvette isn't bound for military service, even theoretically. The experimental UUV, military grade Silverado, and hydrogen powered, autonomous SURUS experiment are all very much real things. We think General Motors has its eye on being a three-star general.

1. Lockheed Martin
   Boeing
2. General Dynamics
   McDonnell Douglas

In 2003, General Dynamics acquired GM Defense, however that doesn't mean that GM Defense severed ties with its corporate fore bearer. GM Defense still works to modify existing GM products for military use, focusing mostly on GM trucks.

1. Willys-Overland
   Ford
2. Jeep
   Bantam

As strange as it may sound, Jeep did not make jeeps in WW2. Jeep did not even exist during WW2. The US government commissioned several companies to make replacements for the horse, including Bantam, Ford, and Willys-Overland, the latter two of which made what people think of when they imagine WW2 jeeps. Jeeps get their name from the Ford GP (pronounced "jeep") which, along with the Willys, was ubiquitous. Interestingly, the Jerry can so commonly associated with the back bumper of jeeps wasn't American at all, but a German invention to allow the contents to expand without exploding the can. Due to their safe design, American GIs would swipe them for their use whenever possible.

1. Ford
   GM
2. Chrysler
   Dodge

GM acquired engine maker Allison in 1929, and during WW2 they used it to build engines for, among other projects, the Mustang fighter plane, which was being built by Lockheed. In 1995 however, GM sold it to Rolls-Royce, who folded it into their heavy industrial holdings.

1. 700
   2,304
2. 1,088
   4,362

Back in the days of WW I, the horse and donkey were still considered valuable military hardware by most nations. The US Cavalry was still on horseback. The Ford Model-T was as cutting edge for its time as the Tesla Model-S was when it came out. Ford specified 4,362 Model-Ts for service as combat ambulances, and shipped them to Europe during The War To End All Wars.

1. A fast attack tank
   A motorcycle
2. A personnel transport
   None of the above

V-twin engine? Check. Olive drab paint? Check. Rifle holster? Check. The Harley-Davidson WLA is the motorcycle of all motorcycles. IT was available in nearly every theater, and soldiers who rode these fell in love with them, often buying used ones after the war. This gave rise to early motorcycle culture in the USA, with "outlaw" biker clubs going to salt flats where there were no speed limits in order to push their military grade bikes to the limit.

1. GM
   Rover
2. Rolls Royce
   Ford

Ford holds the distinction of building the "Wolverine", AKA the M10 Gun Motor Carriage. The Wolverine wasn't just a tank. It was a "tank destroyer" meaning it was a tank specifically designed to hunt down and kill other tanks. Truly built Ford tough.

1. 160,000
   155,000
2. 150,000
   140,000

Oldsmobile made 140,000 aircraft machine guns, 48 million rounds of artillery ammo and 350,000 units of what is described as "high precision" aircraft parts. That was your father's Oldsmobile.

1. Ford
   Dodge
2. Chevrolet
   Buick

Buick was tasked with building this awesome tank destroyer, nicknamed the Hellcat by soldiers. Interestingly, the name Hellcat, like the name Mustang, while eventually given to cars, has nothing to do with their WW2 wartime service when it comes to their car counterparts.

1. Pontiac
   DeSoto
2. Lincoln
   Mercury

Long before the Pontiac Trans Am, and even before the US was in WW2, the brand with the pointy logo was making anti aircraft guns for Uncle Sam. Pontiac also made axles for M-5 tanks, and it completely manufactured air-launched torpedoes, many of which were intended for German U-Boats.

1. Audi
   Volkswagen
2. Mercedes-Benz
   BMW

Mercedes-Benz, who claim to have invented the modern car, made the G-Wagon 460 and 461 models for military use, eventually releasing a civilian version in 1979. Whose idea was this beast? The Shah of Iran. Yes, if you enjoy the fully mechanical differential of a Mercedes G-Wagon, you can thank Iran for that.

1. Pontiac
   Studebaker
2. Dodge
   DeSoto

Studebaker contributed a remarkable piece of military hardware in WW2: the Studebaker US6, a massive 6x6 (6 wheel drive) truck made primarily for the Lend-Lease program whereby America gave weapons to its allies. In the case of this massive truck powered by a mouse of an engine (86 horsepower) most of these went to the USSR.

1. The Ford Motor Company
   The Four Wheel Drive Company
2. The Lincoln Motor Company
   Chevrolet

The Four Wheel Drive Company, which has been around since 1909 and continues to make fire trucks and the like to this day, made this utility truck way back in WW II. It was unarmored, ran on gas (not diesel) and had four wheel drive. Who needed more?

1. Four Wheel Drive Company
   Cushman Motor Works
2. White Motor Company
   All of the above

Augusta's Cushman Motor Works built the Model 53 scooter for the US military in WW2, where it was christened G683 by the brass, but Cushman Airborne by the soldiers. It was designed to be dropped out of an airplane, survive the landing and provide transport to soldiers dropping with it.

1. GM
   Lada
2. Fiat
   Volvo

Volvo AB purchased most of the remains of the defunct White Motor Company in 1980. After making trucks in WW2, the company kept with the business until it really hit the skids in the 1960s and 1970s. Despite being possibly one of the nicest places to work, WMC couldn't adapt, and so its manufacturing assets went to the Swedes.

1. GM
   Saab
2. Spyker Cars
   Porsche

Saab once made jet engines. GM made lots of aircraft engines. Porsche just makes fast cars. Spyker Cars, however, is different. Spyker is a revival brand. In WW1, Spyker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer, making fighters, and cars. It went bust. Decades later, a team of investors purchased the bones of the company to build sports cars powered, initially at least, by engines built by Audi, which made aircraft engines in WW2.