How many 1942 Chevrolet trucks were made?
There is no single, widely published total for how many 1942 Chevrolet trucks were produced. Wartime production was largely driven by U.S. Army contracts, and public sources do not present a consolidated year‑total for Chevrolet trucks alone.
The question is complex: “1942 Chevrolet trucks” could refer to civilian pickups built before or during the early war years, or to military cargo trucks produced under wartime contracts, and counts may be divided by GM divisions (Chevrolet and GMC) and by specific models or weight classes. Archival production records are scattered across multiple collections, making a simple, definitive figure difficult to cite in a single source.
Context: Chevrolet, GM and wartime production in 1942
In 1942, general motors and its brands shifted the overwhelming majority of truck manufacturing toward the war effort. Production priorities were realigned to supply the U.S. military and Allied forces with a range of trucks, from light delivery models to heavier support vehicles. Because Chevrolet shared production responsibility with GMC and because many records are held by different agencies, there is no universally accepted year‑over‑year tally for “Chevrolet trucks” alone in 1942.
Military production emphasis
Much of Chevrolet’s output that year went to military specifications and wartime contracts. Trucks delivered under Army and allied orders are counted in defense‑related production records rather than civilian vehicle registries, complicating attempts to extract a civilian‑oriented total for 1942.
Civilian vs. military distinctions
Counts differ depending on whether one counts civilian pickup trucks (if any remained in production in late 1942) or military cargo trucks produced under contract. Model designations and branding sometimes overlapped with GMC, further muddying a simple total.
What counts as a 1942 Chevrolet truck?
Because the same year could include diverse vehicle types and multiple GM brands, historians classify output in several ways. The following categories are commonly considered when discussing 1942 production levels:
- Military-use trucks supplied by Chevrolet to the U.S. Army and allied forces (various tonnage classes).
- Civilian 1942 model‑year trucks and pickups whose production date falls in 1942 or was affected by wartime plant conversions.
- Production tracked separately by GM division (Chevrolet vs GMC) and by assembly site, which can yield different totals depending on the archival source.
In practice, these definitional differences mean there is not a single, universally accepted number for “1942 Chevrolet trucks.”
Key factors that affect the total
Before listing the factors, this paragraph explains why the totals are hard to pin down. Wartime production was decentralized, models were renamed or overlapped, and records are spread across multiple archives.
- Wartime retooling and prioritization for military vehicle production.
- Division of output between Chevrolet and GMC within GM, with possible overlap in model designations.
- Variations by weight class (light, medium, heavy) and by calendar year vs. model-year labeling.
- Post‑war accounting, surplus inventories, and later cataloging that can blur 1942 figures.
These factors explain why a precise year total for 1942 Chevrolet trucks is rarely cited as a single figure and why estimates vary among historians and archivists.
Where to verify authoritative data
For readers seeking precise totals, archival records and authoritative databases provide the most reliable numbers when available. The following sources are commonly consulted by researchers:
- GM Heritage Center’s historical vehicle databases and production records.
- National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) documents related to U.S. wartime vehicle production.
- Army procurement and Ordnance records that enumerate trucks delivered under specific contracts.
- Scholarly works and museum catalogs that compile wartime GM output by division and product line.
Because figures are distributed across archives and often published in specialized sources, researchers who seek a precise number should consult these primary sources directly.
Summary
In 1942, Chevrolet’s truck output was heavily oriented toward wartime needs, with the majority of production allocated to U.S. military contracts. A single, consolidated public figure for the total number of 1942 Chevrolet trucks does not exist in widely cited sources; production totals are spread across GM division records, Army procurement files, and archival catalogs. For a precise year-total, researchers should examine GM Heritage Center records, NARA wartime production data, and related automotive history scholarship.
