Military Police Dodge WC54

[AL364]

Apologies if this has been posted elsewhere, but I have seen a few photos on the net of Dodge WC54 Ambulances restored as US Military Police vehicles. Do these have a basis in fact or are they a work of the imagination?

 

I can imagine a scenario where the vehicles may have been used - post-war Germany, hostilities are at an end so there is less need for ambulances. There would have been large numbers of idle troops getting themselves into bother, hence causing the MP to commandeer / improvise the ambulances as paddy wagons.

 

In my head the above sounds plausible but I just can't find any evidence to support it!

[GoranWC51]

My friend purchased a Dodge WC54 at Nato auction in Norway in the fall/autumn of 1993 and decided to mark it as a MP vehicle, just to be different.

 

He showed me a wartime photo of a group of WC54's parked in a square of some town (in Europe most probably) with a MP Dodge parked in the background. It was not the sharpest of photos, but you could clearly see the "Military Police" marking above the windshield.

 

I bought my own WC51 in April 1994 and we both drove down to Normandy that year. My friend got a lot of comments on the MP marking and he showed the photo around to people so they could see that it was legitimate. I have a feeling that the practice of MP marking has taken off since then. One reason for not going the ambulance route is that a lot of WC54's that came out of Norway didn't have the typical ambulance equipment in the back, but had been used as radio/signals cars in the Norwegian army.

 

My friend moved and I lost contact with him, unfortunately. If I get hold of him I'll see if he can supply me with a copy of the original photo. MP WC54's did definitely appear before the end of the war, but perhaps not in any large numbers.

 

Goran N

[Tony B]

Yes, the WC54 was also used as coding vehicles for the Special Liasion units that handled Enigma Intelligence.

[AL364]

Goran,

 

Thank you for that reply, that was exactly the sort of information I was hoping for! I would love to see the photo when / if you obtain it.

 

Thank you,

 

Alan

[GoranWC51]

Alan, you'll be the first one to know. =)

 

Cheers,

 

Goran N