In the late 1970s, the US Army began looking for a new utility off-road vehicle to replace several types at the same time in the future. Primarily, these included the M561 Gama Goat, the M274, the M151 series Jeeps (low payload, traffic safety issues), and other primarily civilian utility vehicles used by the military.
Exact specifications for a new tactical vehicle called the High-Mobility-Multipurpose-Wheeled-Vehicle (HMMWV) were issued by the Army in 1979. Chrysler Defense, Teledyne Continental and AM General were involved in the bidding process. Each company built eleven prototypes, which underwent extensive testing in 1982. However, this was only the beginning of the first five-year contract involving the construction of a total of 55,000 units in various modifications. Of this total, approximately 39,000 examples of the HMMWV (known among the public as Humvees) entered US Army service. The rest were taken by the USMC, USAF and US Navy. Production took place at a factory in Mishawaka, Indiana.
The vehicles entered operational service in late 1983/1984. Another order for 33,000 vehicles followed in 1989. In 1994, production of the first upgraded A1 variant began, followed by the A2 version a year later. By 2004, over 160,000 Humvees had been produced and are in service with a number of armies around the world.
Exact specifications for a new tactical vehicle called the High-Mobility-Multipurpose-Wheeled-Vehicle (HMMWV) were issued by the Army in 1979. Chrysler Defense, Teledyne Continental and AM General were involved in the bidding process. Each company built eleven prototypes, which underwent extensive testing in 1982. However, this was only the beginning of the first five-year contract involving the construction of a total of 55,000 units in various modifications. Of this total, approximately 39,000 examples of the HMMWV (known among the public as Humvees) entered US Army service. The rest were taken by the USMC, USAF and US Navy. Production took place at a factory in Mishawaka, Indiana.
The vehicles entered operational service in late 1983/1984. Another order for 33,000 vehicles followed in 1989. In 1994, production of the first upgraded A1 variant began, followed by the A2 version a year later. By 2004, over 160,000 Humvees had been produced and are in service with a number of armies around the world.