[3] After the Korean War the M74 was designed to cope with the heavier weights of the new vehicles that were being introduced.

[4][5] Designed in 1953,[6] it was based on the M4A3 HVSS medium tank and it was developed to cope with the heavier M26 Pershing and M47 Patton tanks which were entering service, which the M32 armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) was unable to retrieve.

Using the standard Ford GAA and HVSS suspension[1] the chassis would be rebuilt.

[3][5] The M74 was fitted with a main 60,000 lb (27,000 kg)[3][5][1] hydraulic winch, a lighter-duty general purpose secondary winch, a hydraulic A-frame, and a hydraulic front-mounted spade, which was suitable for light dozing, as well as serving as an anchor for heavy winching operations.

[1] The conversion of M4A3 Sherman tanks into M74 recovery vehicles was started by Bowen in 1954.