In 1935 the British War Office was in need of a new light military truck. Bedford started developing a new truck and in 1938 the Bedford WD-1 was shown to the British Army, it was in use from 1939.
The Bedford MW was a light truck with a payload of 750 kg. The early MW’s were open cabbed with folding screens and collapsible canvas. Which made it hard to keep warm during the winter. Therefore it was unpopular to the crews who named it the “Pneumonia Wagon”. From 1943 the MW came with an enclosed cab.
Bedford MWC Water Truck
One of the variants made by Bedford was the MWC Water Truck could carry 910 liters of water. The compartment at the rear provided space for sterilizing equipment in the racks on the left. The right-hand half accommodated suction hoses, filters, pump handles and other items of equipment.
Bedford placed a 6 cylinder, 3,5 liter, 72 hp engine in the MW, giving it a high speed of 64 km/h. It was a four wheeled truck with two powered front wheels. The 91 liter fuel tank gave the Bedford MW a range of 430 kilometers. It was intended as a workhorse for the British army, 66000 MW’s were produced between 1939 and 1945. It was in use until the late 1950’s.
The Bedford MW came in multiple variants:
– Bedford MWD – Cargo truck
– Bedford MWC – Water tank truck, as seen on the photos
– Bedford MWQ – QF 2-pounder or 20mm Oerlikon gun carrier, or other guns like the French 25 mm 34 SA anti-tank gun
– Bedford MWT – Anti-aircraft gun tractor
– Bedford MWR – Radio truck
– Bedford MWV – Royal Air Force signal truck