King Armored Cars were delivered towards the close of World War 1 - though none saw service in the conflict due to General Pershing's resistance of such a USMC division. The USMC had plans to ship the cars to France in the event that the war progressed beyond 1918 - further reducing the American reliance on foreign equipment in the war effort. However, the few completed examples remained stateside and formed the "1st Armored Car Squadron" of the USMC, servicing Philadelphia before being relocated to Quantico. Only eight were ever manufactured with five serving operationally with the USMC and at least two with the US Army. USMC marks went on to see an extended service life over that of their US Army brethren, poised to enter the oil fields of Tampico, Mexico from Galveston, Texas (having been delivered from the USS Hancock) under the banner of the 8th Marines should they have been required. Five were then shipped to and actively utilized by the USMC in actions across Haiti and the Dominican Republic beginning in 1919, these then serving into May of 1921 until finally removed from service. From then on, the 1st Armored Car Squadron was formally disbanded and retired in full by 1927. The remaining examples were offered up for sale to private owners or turned into scrap.
The King Armored Car was officially produced in two models - the "Model 1915" of 1915 and the revised "Model E" of 1917 - though several revisions took place between the two major designs. Additionally, some proposed changes were outright abandoned.
The Model 1915 sported a 0.30 caliber Benet-Mercier machine gun in the turret as well as a King Motor Cars V8 liquid-cooled gasoline-fueled engine of 70 horsepower output. The vehicle managed a top road speed of 45 miles per hour and was suspended across a conventional leaf spring system with steering on the front axle.
The similar Model E was completed with a 0.30 caliber Lewis machine gun in a revised turret and a King Motor Cars V8 liquid-cooled gasoline-fueled engine of 79 horsepower output. Top road speed was now increased to 65 miles per hour on ideal surfaces. Additionally, the Model E could be physically differentiated from the former production mark by its use of new wheels with new tires and a sloping rear hull face.
The sole remaining example of the King Armored Car can be seen today at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Virginia, southwest of Washington, D.C. This example comes complete with a "dimple" in its side front armor (near the front left tire) - evidence of a .45 caliber pistol round testing of the steel. The example also displays a unique four-color camouflage scheme - the scheme being based on photographs taken of the vehicle while undergoing testing in 1916.
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