Meet one of the most obscure Dodge vehicles that you likely never even knew existed. Jay Leno's Garage welcomed this 1942 Dodge Carryall, which Legacy Classic Trucks restored as an ultra-reliable restomod chase vehicle for a road-rally racer.
The Carryall predates the Power Wagon and Dodge first built the vehicle for World War II. The idea was to provide a tough and nearly unbreakable vehicle to carry VIPs on the battlefield. As the vehicle builder, Winslow Bent, points out in the episode, the Carryall eventually went away because enemies quickly figured out the hulking Dodge carried important passengers. Instead, the Jeep became its replacement since it was more commonplace and didn't announce important persons were onboard. This particular vehicle was used in the Africa theater during WWII.
Originally, a flat-6 engine provided power, but the restoration gave way to an inline-4 version of the Cummins diesel found in 1980s and '90s Dodge pickup trucks, per Bent. Believe it or not, the ride height is unchanged from its original factory specification, but plenty of other pieces help curate the Carryall's reliable reputation. Since the unnamed customer will use the vehicle as a chase vehicle, the build's focus was simplicity. A governor keeps speeds in check and rpms limited to 2,200. That keeps the engine from overheating. This vehicle was built far before computers and Bent didn't add any. Heck, he even took out the fuses and replaced them with re-settable circuit breakers for added reliability. Basically, the chances of this Carryall breaking down are closing in on very, very slim.
How reliable is it? Bent drove the Carryall 1,000 miles to Los Angeles from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, without incident. Bent and his company put a lot more into the old Dodge to make it off-road worthy and quite functional as a chase vehicle. The price for all that work? A cool quarter of a million. Jay gets to experience it for himself after learning a wealth of information.
Take a closer look at the obscure Dodge SUV in the video above.