CFB Borden Iltis

[chris vickery]

Rob, do I sense you are getting soft on the Iltis???
I find your commentary the slightest bit positive
Oh well, an Iltis with a good body and a crapped out drivetrain is still a crapped out Iltis!

[rob love]

Now don't put words into my mouth Chris. Nor take my moderate words as a sign of weakness.

The Borden Iltis will make good static display vehicles.

We have one complete one here at the Shilo museum. I had to do some touch up work to it's carb a few months back, and it is reasonably dependable. For a vehicle that maybe does 15 km a year, it does not need too much maintenance. But it also does not see the abuse that an in service vehicle will have.

When I was in Winnipeg back in the late 80s, the RCR complained that the Iltis engine would cut out when you made it go airborne. My MCpl tested it out, and sure enough when you would fly them through the air the engine would cut out. Turns out the governor is built in to the rotor, and when the engine went into over-speed, the rotor would short out the ignition.

How many vehicles would have to put up with that regular level of abuse in civilian life? The Cdn Forces vehicles are driven to the extremes of their capabilities almost every time they go out on ex.

[Robin Craig]

There were a number of "school" Iltis at Borden when I was there recently.

I was not in a position to take photos of them.

One very striking one has a muliti colour paint job and peoples names stenciled on it all over the body.

R