Jeep may have been the manufacturer of choice for light trucks during World War II, but the United States Army turned to Dodge when it came to trucks of the heavier variety. From 1939 to 1945, Dodge provided approximately 700,000 half-ton to 1½-ton vehicles in support of the American war effort. The majority of these vehicles were built as part of Dodge’s WC (or “Weapons Carrier”) line.
Part of the Dingman Collection, the 1945 Dodge WC-58 Radio Car that hits the Sotheby’s auction block on Sunday, June 24, 2018, features the WC line’s highly linear and curve-free body design and military canvas soft top. It operates on a four-speed manual transmission and 12-volt electrical system that meet original factory specifications. In the mid-1990s, owner Tim Corliss restored this iconic vehicle and configured it as a WC-58 Radio Car with a whip antenna on the left-hand side.