General Motors initially only assembled trucks in Britain from parts manufactured at its Canadian works, until November 1925 when CM purchased Vauxhall Motors, with production transferred in 1929 to Luton, Vauxhall’s headquarters.
From then on, the vehicles still had something of a trans-Atlantic flavour and this was to set the tone for the early production vehicles. These AC and LQ light vans, produced at Luton dubbed ‘Chevrolet-Bedfords’ were produced from 1929 to 1931 at which point the Chevrolet badge was dropped and the first true Bedford lorry, a two-tonner, was built but visually was almost identical to its LQ predecessor. Its 11-foot wheelbase was joined by a 13-foot derivative and this in turn sired two bus chassis, designated WHB and WLB. All utilised the straight-six OHV petrol engine, so by the early 1930s, Bedford had already set its future path and the light chassis and petrol-engine combination was to live-on, long past its peak. The three-ton WT series had been introduced in 1933 upon short 9ft 3in and long 13ft lin wheelbases designated WHT and WLG and these were to be the mainstay of truck production through the 1930s. Mid-1939 saw a complete revamp of Bedfords, with only the HC van continuing in production. The new range consisted of the K (30-40 cwt), MS and ML (2-3 ton), OS and OL (3-4 ton),
