Iltis Product Improved

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally posted by rob love
My information on the Iltis being relegated to sub-standard service came from a German who was posted here to Shilo for the last years that GATES operated. Of course, he was somewhat biased against the Iltis, being a member of the Munga club. When I say "phased out", I should have said from front line service. Here in Canada, very few SMP vehicles have been replaced that quickly. We like to get 20-30 years out of a vehicle fleet here.

Being a member of the Munga club, he should be proud of the Auto Union pedigree that was carried over to the Iltis! (VW acquired Auto Union, dropped the DKW marque and let the name Audi re-emerge. Audi, being the successor of the original Munga manufacturer, further developed it into the VW 183 Lkw 0,5 t gl, alias Iltis.)

The Mercedes-Benz / Steyr "Wolf" was the replacement for at least three types of vehicles in service with the German Armed Forces in the mid-1980s: LKW 0,5 t gl (Iltis), LKW 0,75 t gl (KraKa) and PKW 0,4 t (VW 181). The fact it replaces various vehicle types is embodied by the variety of long- and short wheelbase, hard- and soft top and specialist body types. Iltis was the front line half-ton truck for over a decade, and will most likely make the 30-years "in service" mark. Not bad for a design originating from the mid-1950s!

H.