Invented in 1940. Though four-wheel-drive technology had been around since the turn of the 20th century, by the 1930's, the military needed a scout car that could combine speed and versatility with hauling power and all terrain capacity. The problem was that those features were mutual exclusive from an engineering standpoint. The first Jeep that made it to battle, provided the answer as the perfect army scout vehicle. it had no trouble transitioning into a civilian car, with Americans appreciating the new light utility vehicles.