Image: Mercedes-Benz Blog

Introduced after World War II as a multi-purpose vehicle primarily for agricultural use, the Mercedes Benz Unimog has become one of the longest-manufactured off-road vehicles ever to exist. But that’s not where this special vehicle’s notoriety ends. Check it out below in this week’s Vintage Monday!

Image: AutoEvolution

The very first Unimog saw its debut in 1946 as a prototype designed by Albert Friedrich. To produce the vehicle, Friedrich paired with Erhard and Sons and production on the first Unimog began in January of 1946. By the end of the year, the first prototype was finished, setting the Unimog model up for mass production starting in 1947.

Though the prototype model was built with a gasoline engine, the first production Unimogs were produced with the OM636 Daimler Benz diesel engines as standard equipment, equipping the off-road vehicles with just 25hp. Other standard equipment included a high-visibility cab, equal-sized wheels, a rear hitch, 68-inch wheelbase chassis and plenty of load capacity.

Though many people typically think of Unimogs as a Mercedes Benz model, the first 600 vehicles were produced by Boehringer. This was because, at the time, Mercedes Benz was not allowed to build all-wheel-drive vehicles, and Erhard and Sons just didn’t have the capacity to build the the Unimogs in mass.

Image: Wikipedia

In 1951, Mercedes Benz finally took over the production of the Unimog, which was designated the 401 model at the time. A 402 model was also made available, which had a longer 83-inch wheelbase chassis.

By 1953, Mercedes began offering the Unimog with a fully enclosed cab, making even better for customers who expected to use their vehicles in all types of whether. After all, the whole point of the Unimog was to have a vehicle that not only helped you get through the day on the farm, but could also be driven to town when necessary.

Image: AutoEvolution

In 1955, the mobile cross-country Unimog was introduced as the 404S model. This was primarily used by military outfits, like the German Army. By the late 50s, all Unimog models were being produced with a fully synchronized transmission.

The 1960s brought about even more variants of the Unimog, including the 403/421 light series vehicles which were built on 89-inch and 94-inch wheelbase chassis respectably. The larger of the two, the 421 model, was equipped with a 2.2L engine good for 40hp borrowed from Mercedes’ car lineup, while the 403 got a larger 4.8L Benz truck engine good for 54hp.

In 1963, the medium-weight “middle series” Unimogs came out in the form of the 406 and the 416 models. The 406 featured a 94-inch wheelbase and a OM312 four cylinder diesel engine good for 65hp. The 416 was equipped with a 110-inch wheelbase and the same engine.

Image: Wikipedia

In 1974, the heavy series was finally released with the U 120 model, featuring a new angular cab and sloping hood, 111-inch wheelbase and 120hp diesel engine. The following year, the updated military-style mobile cross-country Unimog came out as the 435 series model with wheelbase options ranging from 128 inches to 152 inches.

Though many of the Unimog models remained in the Mercedes Benz lineup through the 70s, many of them were renamed over the years until 1980 when series began being cut all together while other new series were being introduced.

Still produced today in certain variants, the Unimog will be celebrating 70 years of production in the near future. And though it somewhat failed as an agricultural vehicle, it certainly has remained near and dear to the hearts of off-road enthusiasts all around the world.