how would they classify , say for instance, an IH '59 A-120 4x4 Travelall
?? Not an SUV because it had rubber floor mats instead of carpet ?? (Not to
mention no velour upholstery , manual locking hubs on the front, and an
actual LEVER with which to operate the transfer case AND,
OHMIGODHOWDREADFUL, those death trap split rim wheels ??)
Um, probably. Trucks for the sake of doing truck tasks have been
around forever. While it's purely subjective, the argument that
trucks wearing station wagon bodies and being passed off as
safety-exempt and emissions-exempt passenger cars for getting
groceries and killing motorists in suburbia might have started with
the Bronco is a valid one. And I say that without doing any research
or having been alive in the '70s, because I really don't care and
it's really not relevant. But I will point out that the more-famous
Willys and Rover products had been in existance for over a decade
before Greg's '59 Travelall rolled off the assembly line. But I
really don't think any of those vehicles were SUV's in spirit. I
mean, a 1950's body-on-frame station wagon is mechanically the same
as a 2WD SUV, right? But we don't consider it one because its
purpose had nothing to do with the reasons SUVs are built today.