Weather and the poor visiblity through the standard windows
Hi Richard
Suspect that you hit the explination, for the work to install good side windows on HUPs or CMPs in general, weather. If you add to that the truly poor visiblity of the standard slip in side curtains you have the major reason for the effort.
As not many of us really spend much time driving out CMPs in winter, we don't appreciate that the side curtains, are not really air tight. But the bigger issue is that your visibility to the sides is limited during the day and forget it at night. Of course in comparison to say a Jeep or open cab CCKW with top and side curtains any Pattern 13 CMP is luxury.
Over the years I have had the occasion to drive my HUP in very cold weather or heavy blowing rain for long trips and it has to be really really cold or rain blowing from the side before I will stop and put the side curtains in the front doors. The Pat 13 designers did a pretty good job of designing the cab so that in moderate to heavy rain with no wind very little comes in the front door windows.
The other possible explination for the effort to install better windows on HUPs being used as work vehicles is security for tools stored inside.
Cheers Phil
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