in 1942 the company was founded and leland james renamed it to freightliner corporation. as part of the launch, the company debuted the first truck with an all-aluminium cab. shifting to military production during world war ii, freightliner resumed truck production in 1947. in 1949, freightliner sold its first vehicle outside of cf (to portland-based forklift manufacturer hyster. the vehicle is preserved in the smithsonian collection in washington, d.c.