A lot of the vehicles you will find within the Ewe Pullets of the land will likely be atypical cars and trucks, but unexpected surprises can show up in the combination. I’ve documented ice cream trucks, TV stars, art cars, military staff vehicles and even a tank over my years of exploring automotive history in junkyards. Today’s Junkyard Gem is an icon of the American crunchy-snacks industry, present in a boneyard near Monterey, California.
Plenty of auto manufacturers have aircraft of their DNA, including Saab, Subaru/Nissan (via the Nakajima Aircraft Company) and Mitsubishi. Grumman Olson was born when the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation was commissioned to construct Kargo King delivery trucks in 1946.
Grumman began constructing aircraft for america Navy in 1931, and its tens of 1000’s of fighters and flying boats played a significant role in crushing the Axis during World War II. Northrop Grumman still builds airplanes, and it was Grumman’s flying-machine-derived expertise with aluminum that made Grumman Olson delivery trucks such a sales hit.
The Kargo King truck used a Grumman-built lightweight aluminum body atop a Chevrolet-built truck chassis, and that formula continued with the Kurbside delivery truck, which debuted in 1948.
Grumman Olson assembly plants sprang up everywhere in the country. This Kurbside was inbuilt Tulare, California, about 175 miles to the southeast of its final parking spot.
United Parcel Service was the best-known buyer of Grumman Olson trucks, but most Americans who were around in the course of the Nineteen Seventies and Eighties still remember the distinctive Frito-Lay Kurbside Krew Kabs with their matching Kubemaster trailers. Those trailers can be stacked floor-to-ceiling with Fritos, Lay’s Potato Chips, Grandma’s Cookies, Funyuns, Munchos, Doritos, Tostitos, Rold Gold Pretzels, Ruffles, Cheetos, Crunch Tators and all the remainder, delivering them to retail establishments across the country. Because of the Cradle of Aviation Museum for providing this photograph!
Because the chassis is identical one utilized by Chevrolet Step-Vans and GMC Value-Vans, the engine is a superb old small-block Chevrolet V8.
The transmission, probably a four-speed manual but perhaps a three-speed, is sitting within the doorstep.
There was little likelihood of an inattentive Krew Kab driver getting mashed by a passing automotive while stepping out into traffic, since the only door was on the curb (kurb) side of the truck.
A smallish gasoline engine in an enormous trailer-hauling truck would have had an amazing thirst, so this sticker was applied to the dash in an effort to get the motive force to squeeze an additional tenth or so mile from each gallon of fuel.
Whenever you construct a vehicle for pure function, you’ll be able to get away with industrial-grade defroster vents.
The Kubemaster trailer is long gone. Perhaps it’s getting used for storage somewhere.
There’s a number of precious aluminum on this body.
I lived in California during most of this truck’s profession with Frito-Lay, so there is a solid likelihood that I’ve eaten snacks delivered via its Kubemaster. Thanks, R-28!
You’ll be able to still buy a brand new delivery van from Grumman Olson’s descendant, Morgan Olson.
This Article First Appeared At www.autoblog.com
