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Year? Mighty Mite Vina, CA **Status Unknown**

• CATEGORIES: Mighty Mites • TAGS: , This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated.

UPDATE: This likely sold. Was $5600.

Steve spotted this one. Looks like a good price. Did these come in orange originally?

Mighty Mite body in excellent condition with no dents or damage. Original Paint. Engine runs. New set of tires not mounted.”

mighty-mite-chico-ca2 mighty-mite-chico-ca3

 

7 Comments on “Year? Mighty Mite Vina, CA **Status Unknown**

  1. Mike Finegan

    I remember going to a military auction in the early 1990’s at Picatinny Arsenal In NJ and actually seeing these Mitighty Mites being cut in half. This was the only way the government would sell them to the public; for scrap only was their reasoning. It seemed so crazy!!! Does anybody know why? I’d hate to think this was just another way to waste taxpayer money.

  2. Ian

    Sounds like an overzealous interpretation of the demilitarization rule. Things have to have their military specific useful bits removed or made permanently inoperative before they can be sold. Jeeps seem pretty harmless to me…

  3. STEVE

    They cut the MUTTS in half for safety reasons. probably a carryover …………………………………..

  4. Steve E.

    I can’t imagine this Mighty Mite originally having yellow paint. I think I see some olive drab poking though in some spots.

    Some surplus military vehicles were sold to local government agencies (state, city, and county governments.) Maybe it was painted by some local agency? Maybe there were questionable safety problems, as with the M-151 Mutt, so they cut them up for liability reasons?

    I used to have a ’53 M38-A1 that was safety yellow. It was an airport Jeep in Los Angeles County, California. I’ve also seen some M-37 Dodge Power Wagons at airports, county road departments, and fire departments. I wonder if they were given to these agencies for free.

    **Steve E.**

  5. Brian M

    They were all darker Marine Corp green at delivery from AMC (originally). They were only delivered to the USMC from 1959-1962. I did have a white A1, that went to a Navy motor pool in San Diego after rebuild in Barstow, CA. The M151 was much preferred to the Mite “in country” as the mites air-cooled v4 is a real pig in the heat. The yellow is likely (like Steve said) an airport vehicle. I did see a yellow Mite (maybe this is it) being used in the late 90s being at the Barstow Ca airport. Cool little guys, but if you are over 6feet tall, they are not exactly comfortable to drive unless the tool box is cut out behind the driver seat. Lots of aluminum on them. They are built like airplanes, lots and lots of rivets. It is missing the air transport tie downs on the bumpers, the top and top bows, the rear jump seats, and the correct mirrors. But if it run good, not a bad price. They plated the cylinder walls with chrome, and it flakes off over time, so you have to be careful with Mites in areas of the country that has high moisture and the engine sits. But sorry….not original paint, at least not from AMC. They were under contract, and they would ship them in any color as long as it was USMC green. This is a later production mite as it has the later style windshield. Lots of NOS parts still out there too. Like deep water fording kits”…very cool.

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