![]() ![]() From 1943, some Maultier trucks were fitted with armored bodies, designated Sd.Kfz. While lacking the overall mobility of purpose-built halftracks they were cheaper and sufficiently effective. Most Maultier conversions were based on Opel Blitz model S trucks, which proved successful in service. ![]() Heavier trucks (4 tons payload) were fitted with Panzer II track assemblies. Only halftracks were able to operate in these conditions, but removing them from their combat role for supply duties was not feasible, so it was decided to produce half-tracked versions of standard Opel, Daimler-Benz, Alfa-Romeo and Ford trucks (lorries) by removing their rear axles, truncating the prop shafts and connecting them to redundant Panzer I track assemblies. 3a Maultier based on the 3-ton variant of the Opel Blitz cargo truck.ĭuring the beginning of 1941 German troops discovered that their wheeled transport vehicles were unsuitable for the muddy rasputitsa conditions at the beginning of the invasion of Russia. One of the best known of these conversions was the Sd.Kfz. ![]() They were based on Opel, Mercedes-Benz, Alfa-Romeo or Ford trucks. 3 Maultier (“Mule”) is the name given to series of half-track trucks used by Germans during WW2. One solution was to take reliable wheeled vehicles and modify them to use a tracked drive system. When the Germans ran into the spring thaw on the Eastern Front they desperately needed more mobile vehicles to provide men and materiel to forward units. Optional searchlight, spare tyre, benches & fuel cans. ![]()
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