As the U.S. spun up for WWII, they had just introduced a new, more tactically focused and purpose built series of 3/4 ton 4x4 vehicles to supplant and replace the 1/2 ton 4x4 series from the late 1930s. The WC-51/52 Weapons Carrier variant was designed for a squad of eight men (six in troop seats and two in the cab) and was a very powerful and handy vehicle for its size. But when the Army announced that it was going to upgrade the size of a squad to 12 men, it seemed too small.As the 2 1/2 ton trucks were deemed too big, and were finding too many other functions to fill, Chrysler responded by creating what they felt would be a good stand-in for the 2 1/2 ton class truck. By adding four more feet to the WC-51 body, and an extra driven axle and new suspension, they felt they had a sure winner that would meet all of the requirements. The new truck was designated the WC-62 (without winch) and WC-63 (with winch). The 1943 rollout prototype was dubbed the "Big Shot" in large print on the sides of the body, and ads from the Fargo division of Chrysler even showed it carrying 16 troops (albeit when compared with the scale of the vehicle, they all would have had to be four feet tall...) .The WC-62/63 should have been a great gap filler, but in reality, they were found to have a lot of shortcomings. The WC-51 weighed 7,050 pounds and the winch added 300 pounds to that number. They had an engine that produced a net 76 HP but could easily move the vehicle around. But the WC-62/63 weighed in at 10,225 pounds/10,525 pounds respectively, but had the same engine. Even adding a two-speed transfer case did not help it out, as it was clearly underpowered. On paper the two were interchangeable, but in the field the WC-62/63 quickly found itself an orphan.
Drie uitvoeringen mogelijk;
- U.S.Army 1st Army, 3549th Transportation Corps Truck Compagny, No.183 WC62.
- U.S.Army 12th US Corps, 87th "Golden Acorn" Infantry Division, 336 Field Artillery Battalion Company C, 32rd vehicle in concoy, WC63MG.
- U.S.Army Prototype vehicle Dubbed "Big Shot" in publicity material WC62.
