#TBT - 2-24-2022

Remember the days when pickup trucks were spartan utility vehicles, not loaded luxury vehicles? This is what we did before built-in cup holders.

Cup holders were never necessary with large flat dashboards.

 

Commuter coffee mugs once had large bottoms with non-skid material to keep them in place on the dashboard. Unless you were in a serious accident, they did not move. Driving like a normal human being, even this cup stays put with no spillage.

I was behind the wheel of a former CTNG 1984 Chevrolet "CUCV - Cargo Shelter Carrier M1028" this morning. Vinyl seats, floor mats, radio delete plate, no A/C. It's super-duper options were power steering, power brakes, and an automatic transmission. In the 1980's the military decided that some vehicles could be COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) which for vehicles translated to CUCV (commercial utility cargo vehicle), instead of expensive specially built vehicles. Of course, the military still modified them for their purposes. 24 VDC electrical system, blackout lights, etc. The M1028 was meant to carry a slide-in communications enclosure... a radio shack if you will. I only operated out of one once in my time with the Army Signal Corps. My unit motor pool had the Dodge version of these, designated M880. There were many other variations set up to carry or tow other types of equipment. Below is a photo of its data plate.