How it began
In the early 1930s a letter reached Hubert French, general manager of Ford Australia, from a farmer's wife in Gippsland. She asked for a vehicle that could take her to church in comfort on Sunday and carry the pigs to market on Monday. French gave the task to Lewis Bandt, a 22-year-old designer at Ford's plant in Geelong, Victoria, which had opened in 1925. Bandt adapted a Ford coupe, shortening the cabin and molding a tray to the rear. The coupe utility went on sale in 1934.
Before it existed
During the Great Depression banks would extend credit to farmers for only one vehicle, and for many families that vehicle was a rough tray truck. The letter writer's main complaint was that the truck's leaking side curtains let in the rain. There was no vehicle that offered both a weatherproof passenger cabin and a working load area.
How it works
The design combined the comfort of a sedan cabin with the load space of a truck. What sets a ute apart from a truck or pickup, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's account, is that the tray is made from one sheet of metal attached to the cabin instead of being a separate box. The first model was a Ford V8 with a side-valve engine of 75 horsepower.
How it spread
In Australia the Ford coupe utility was an immediate success, and General Motors produced its own version soon after. The ute became an everyday sight in rural Australia and over time spread around the globe. Bandt took two early prototypes to the United States to show Henry Ford, who was dismissive and called the vehicle a kangaroo chaser. The concept was new and unproven, and the ute did not take off in the American market.
Where it stands today
No utes are made in Australia any longer. Ford stopped building cars and utes in the country in 2016 and Holden a year later. Of 528 vehicles in the initial Ford production run, 61 remain on an enthusiasts' register. Bandt restored a 1934 model after retiring in 1975, and a bridge over the Barwon River at Geelong is named for him.
