Welcome to further new pages.......all about the M151-series truck. Hope you've enjoyed reading the previous pages, but you can always suggest additions to the MuttPage.

At this point, I think it is important to put right an error that seems to have crept into MUTT mythology.......that of the "solid / rigid / live axle" statement that has appeared throughout many publications, web pages etc, concerning the M151A2. Many of these articles state ....and I paraphrase here........    "...the introduction of the M151A2 model improved the handling characteristics of the vehicle by introducing a rigid rear axle..".

Let's make it clear, once and for all, that the production version of the M151A2 did not have a rigid, solid, live etc axle. What it did have was a semi-trailing arm configuration, whereby the rear wheels were suspended independently of each other, but the wheels always remained in a vertical plane, whereas on earlier models, the wheels cambered in/out according to load and terrain. It was this change to semi-trailing arms that proved to be the major element of the A2-series' increased stability. This type of trailing-arm independent suspension can clearly be  seen on the Toyota "RAV4" model, and although not as sturdy-looking as the -A2, the principle is the same. Again, for the record, a rigid-axle variant (the M151A2-LC) was tried, but tests indicated that this was a step backwards.....the ride was harsh, parts interchangeability was reduced, but worst of all, the underbody needed major and costly modifications to sustain a rigid axle configuration. The idea was dropped.