Most useful four wheeled vehicle.

Yossarian

Yossarian

Forum Resistance Leader
Simple question out of curiosity, what could be considered the most useful four wheeled military utility vehicle?

Simple questions tie into this topic.

How reliable is it?
What can you do with it?
How adaptible to various mission requirements is it?And how easliy can you do this?
How much stuff can you throw on it?

And....is it fun to drive?

Pretty much any general information and pics would make this thread very interesting.

Simple and sweet,

Yo
 
Ill start off by suggesting a land rover? The 4 litre version. We traded them for pinzies years ago but apparently they were awesome.
 
Land Rover is also my choice.

The SAS used Rovers for many years and you'll know the guys, they can´t settle for a standard model, everything is built on.

I myself have driven Land Rovers and it is a very robust vehicle, very flexible in terms of the type of equipment you can put in or on it. Excellent terrain characteristics. All in all, a very versatile vehicle.
 
I should have not started this thread, as I see this may lead to bad finacial descions....could you buy a surplus?...

I mean look at all the stuff you can do with it....:shock:
 
A land rover would have the drive train ripped out of it if it tried to do what a humvee could. Don't get me wrong, they are good trucks but not as bulletproof as a purpose built military grade humvee.
 
As much as I despise British motor industry, I still aknowledge the fact that the Land Rovers has been running since the late 1940's and is still on (and off) the road today.
A quite simple and versatile vehicle suited for most tasks, and easy to repair.

As I have next to no experience with the Humvee, I couldn't judge it by any means, but the one thing I know for sure is that the 6,5 litre diesel is a nightmare when it comes to maintainance and repair.
If the electronics are OK the engines works fine, and can take a suprisingly great deal of beating, but it doesn't lend itself to field repair.

The idea of removing all the high-pressure fuel lines in a dusty environment in order to reach the valve-cover....Ouch!
 
You can buy a Land Rover for the fraction of the cost of a Humvee. A Land Rover can get most places if driven sensibly a Humvee may take more punishment but you had better not get to far from a filling station as it drinks petrol by the bucket full
 
LeEnfield said:
You can buy a Land Rover for the fraction of the cost of a Humvee. A Land Rover can get most places if driven sensibly a Humvee may take more punishment but you had better not get to far from a filling station as it drinks petrol by the bucket full
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I've driven and owned Land Rovers since I was 17. During my service with the RAF we were issued the old Series 2 and 2A, that had a crash gearbox from 1st to 2nd gear, which took some getting use to, with syncro only on 3rd and 4th. Then as it was part time 4x4 the rear diff had a few problems if it was abused with towing over heavy loads. When the Salisbury rear axle came out with either the late 2A or series 3 (I cannot remember which) it seemed to cure this problem. The older models obviously had leaf springs front and rear resulting in a very hard ride, (but then again when you are 17 you didn't notice it), while the latest 90 and 110 are fitted with coil springs, greater axle articulation, better off road capabilities, permanant 4 wheel drive and better ride. I don't think I have ever driven a Land Rover that didn't leak oil from somewhere, its often said "If a Land Rover doesn't leak oil, there's no oil in it."

For many years Land Rover suffered poor reliability and poor build quaility, my own 2.5 diesel 110 Station Wagon had 3 engines fitted and two gear boxes under warranty. The 90, 110 and 130 are brilliant concepts, heavy chassis, solid axles front and rear, light bermabrite body.

I have no idea how good Land Rovers are today, since being taken over by TATA, but for all its faults and quirks its a good vehicle.
 
BritinAfrica said:
I've driven and owned Land Rovers since I was 17. During my service with the RAF we were issued the old Series 2 and 2A, that had a crash gearbox from 1st to 2nd gear, which took some getting use to, with syncro only on 3rd and 4th. Then as it was part time 4x4 the rear diff had a few problems if it was abused with towing over heavy loads. When the Salisbury rear axle came out with either the late 2A or series 3 (I cannot remember which) it seemed to cure this problem. The older models obviously had leaf springs front and rear resulting in a very hard ride, (but then again when you are 17 you didn't notice it), while the latest 90 and 110 are fitted with coil springs, greater axle articulation, better off road capabilities, permanant 4 wheel drive and better ride. I don't think I have ever driven a Land Rover that didn't leak oil from somewhere, its often said "If a Land Rover doesn't leak oil, there's no oil in it."

For many years Land Rover suffered poor reliability and poor build quaility, my own 2.5 diesel 110 Station Wagon had 3 engines fitted and two gear boxes under warranty. The 90, 110 and 130 are brilliant concepts, heavy chassis, solid axles front and rear, light bermabrite body.

I have no idea how good Land Rovers are today, since being taken over by TATA, but for all its faults and quirks its a good vehicle.
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why u think that it will be not as good as before because it is handelled by a indian company ,excuce me but it seems u have a racist mentallity still exists in urs mind :pirate:
 
I co-own and run a LandRover for work (25 yrs old), fantastic car.

But, the most versatile and *useful* 4 wheeled has to be by all means the "Unimog" (Mercedes Benz "Universal Motor Gerät"): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unimog

unimogVersatility.jpg


Out since the mid 50s it is still on the road, new version just came out (and the first versions also). It is dubbed the vehicle that made most profit ever for his producer, hundreds of thousands have been produced and a great part went to the worlds different armies: Unimogs have been used by many different militaries, including the Argentinian, British, Belgian, Danish, Dutch, French, Irish, Indonesian, Portugese, Finnish, Estonian, Greek, Swiss, Chilean, Bolivian, Mexican, Pakistani, Rhodesian and Singaporean armed forces. They are also used extensively by the Brazilian Marine Corps, South African NDF, the New Zealand Army, the Turkish Army (it is produced in Turkey under license) and the Australian Army. The Unimogs are used as troop carriers, ambulances, tow vehicles (check out utube Unimog towing Harrier) and mobile command centers. The USMC uses an engineer version while the US Army uses them to access remote installations.

With a reason: Unimog is versatile: From lorry to tractor, from crane to well driller, 4x4 transport mastering the heaviest terrain (100% climb, 75% roll certified), economic and almost unbreakable it has been a workhorse for farmers, forest workers, geologists, soldiers and adventureres since it came out.

Standard equipment is a front and rear hydraulic hoe (rear: 3-point) that can run various accessories from plows to cranes, mine rollers, drillers, rail wheels, etc., also two cardan drives front and rear for water pumps, winches, etc. :

unimogVersatility1.jpg


While it became bigger over the decades (much to my personal dismay, on a typical European ranch - using the "agrar" version - its more interesting to pass where the big tractors cannot) and shifted its primary role from being the ideal combi agrar/lorry/transport tool to community vehicle (snow plowing, street cleaning, forest work, water net maintenance etc. they even run on rails (!) and are used to pull wrecked trains) it is probably still the best allround "useful" 4 wheeler.

I am desperately looking for one for my ranch, but here you run into a problem: The ones that own one usually dont want to sell it, and the new ones are just too expensive for the normal person (300.000 Euros upwards).

To find it 2nd hand you have to rely on the old (1970s-1980s) types and series, and there it always is a bit of a gamble when you still have to put up 20.000 for a 40 year old Unimog (generally they then have 2000-3000 hours on them) because if anything breaks in the complex hydraulical systems you are screwed: While all parts exist (since the 406 series supply guarantteed by MB) they are fairly expensive and you need a mechanic with a lot of experience to repair/service them. This said, their realiability is legendary (the one I learned driving on 1966 is still on the road doing heavy duty daily) so its a calculated gamble.

Here some pics and vids of this amazing vehicle, of course mainly focusing on my favoirte series, the 406:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyhe9ipKTD4"]UNIMOG Wasserd Bundeswehr Gelände - YouTube[/ame]
unimog-approach-departure-anglesuax.jpg


net_unimog025.jpg


tommyunimogyw2.jpg

1_Unimog-404-00.jpg


Mercedes-Benz-Unimog-U-1700-mi,c61ce698.jpg


unimog_on_rails.jpg


406_eag_green_5.jpg


Caesar_Unimog_Chassis_wheeled_self-propelled_howitzer_camion_equipe_systeme_artillerie_France_French_army_640.jpg


[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntYp2ch2GF8"]Unimog Offroading - YouTube[/ame]

Rattler
 
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f-insas said:
why u think that it will be not as good as before because it is handelled by a indian company ,excuce me but it seems u have a racist mentallity still exists in urs mind :pirate:
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There's one in every litter.

Before Ford took over Land Rover, it was owned by BMW who made a complete a total mess of the type, fitting engines that were suitable only for sports cars like the 2.8i but didn't beef up the gearbox, and that's only the start of the mess up's they made. Does that make me anti German?

I don't give a toss if Land Rover was bought out by the Chinese, Mongolians or the man on the moon, as long as they don't stuff it up like BMW did.

You want to get your head out of your backside sunbeam. < Oh by the way, that comment wasn't racist.

I almost forgot to mention, I am quite fond of the Royal Enfield 500's, which as you should know, are built in India.
 
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Following up my above post, let me see your LR or Hummer do any of this, Unimog rules!:

Civilian 406:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyL9JoHPD_8"]The Hill of Death - YouTube[/ame]

Army 1300:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV-CnX4Gf7A&NR=1"]Unimog washed out bridge - YouTube[/ame]

Army 1400:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unrCOGSv6iY"]unimog washout part II - YouTube[/ame]

2100 civilian:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8sU3ehM2_g"]Unimog 2100 débardage grume chêne champêtre - YouTube[/ame]

Stock 404 cabrio:
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3scRYxA_b8"]Unimog 404 Extreme 4x4 - YouTube[/ame]

Rattler
 
rattler said:
Following up my above post, let me see your LR or Hummer do any of this, Unimog rules!:

Civilian 406:
The Hill of Death - YouTube

Army 1300:
Unimog washed out bridge - YouTube

Army 1400:
unimog washout part II - YouTube

2100 civilian:
Unimog 2100 débardage grume chêne champêtre - YouTube

Stock 404 cabrio:
Unimog 404 Extreme 4x4 - YouTube

Rattler
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I want one of those so when im stuck in traffic I can put it in low gear and roll right through a red light.


Man those things look fun.

Have any been deployed to Afghanistan? They seem like they would do well in such an enviroment.
 
When I was stationed in Malta in 1970, myself and others were tasked to collect vehicles arriving by ship at one of the ports.

Apparently the vehicles were from RAF EL Adem in Libya which was being closed down, the RAF were ordered not to leave anything of any value.

One by one the vehicles were lifted out, Land Rovers, Bedford RL 4x4 3 tonners. A 3 tonner was craned out of the ship, it had the standard 3 tonner cargo body, but instead of a soft skin cab, it had an armoured tub about and inch thick that extended up to about shoulder level of the driver, no roof or windscreen. As it was interesting I climbed inside to drive it back to Luqa. I wish I hadn't, Bedford 3 tonners were not fitted with power steering and with the armoured tub it was heavier then usual. I dread to think what it was like with a 3 ton load on board. I have never seen one like it before or since, so I suspect it could have been a local unit conversion. I wish now I had taken a photo of it.
 
vehicle preference is specific to the mission at hand, a humvee has the armor and weapon capabilities that the rover does but is bulkier overall. if heavy resistance is expected go humvee but for fast light infantry the rover can and will perform at it's best every time
 
I understood "most useful" as "most versatile", i.e. useful in the most situations imaginable. Under this respect I still call the Unimog champion in this class, armored or not (you can have *both*), even if we leave train towing out of the competition.

Rattler
 
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