I saw this bad boy (see attached pic) when i was in maui, mean looking truck. Look at that ground clearance!!! Anybody know what this is, or have any info/specs on it? thanks! -mark
That is a Steyr Daimler Puch Pinzgauer 710M. I've had my 1973 710K for about 6 years now and love it. Over 30 years old and dead bolt reliable. Never failed me and never been stuck! Just google Pinzgauer there is a ton of info. Here's mine Derek Bonsai Motors
Pinz rules! Here are photos of my 710M (soft top version). Currently for sale, if you are interested drop me a PM. http://picasaweb.google.com/Kiwibru/1975710MPinzgauer
Wow, who would have know this was such a popular truck. Very cool indeed. Where are they built? -mark
Hey Mark, They were built in Graz Austria, home town of the Governator. He has a couple of Pinzgauers himself. I think he uses them to tow his Humvees when they get stuck. They are still building them for military use today almost 40 years after they were first designed. I think they are built in the UK now though. Factory video from the early 70's http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvvcET8CaPQ Derek
Dang....the music on that first video is reason enough to watch it. The roll over and handling tests are amusing too. Amazing.
Additional interesting factiods: These trucks run air cooled, in-line, four cylinder, gas engines which are 2.5 liter. 4WD on demand along with high-low. 13" of clearance because of portal axles. The electrics and engine technology are similar to mid-70's/80's VW bus and many parts are actually cross platform. Most if not all of the Pinzgauers found in the U.S. are originally from the Swiss Army which has removed these from service and they are purchased at auction and then imported into the U.S. Most have very few actual road miles/kilometers on them and they are easy to work on with parts available. And talk about sure footed, they will shame any other vehicle in true off road conditions!
They are very unique vehicles with many features not found together anywhere else. Oneton load rating. They have curcuit breakers instead of fuses which would be a welcome feature when someone is shooting at you! It has front and rear difflocks hydraulically operated by levers on the centre dash. 4WD, Hi/Lo and difflocks are all operated independantly on the fly in any combination. Mine still has the batteries (24V) it came from auction with! I've never even had a breaker trip or a bulb blow. It currently has 72000kms on it, most of which I put on. I've been running 33" tires instead of the stock 31" which nets 14" under the diff. The box on wheels styling gives a very large and useable volume of space. Mine is a 710K radio command vehicle. It has seating for five with the front seperated from the rear by a bulkhead and screen/headache rack. The front has a hatch above the passenger seat for field observation. The rear has full blackout screens and a desk in front of the rear passengers. There are articulated desk lamps for map reading and radio operations. When a rear door is opened the desklamps turnoff and blue lites come on. I just condemned the gas BN4 heater that sits behind the driverseat and will be replacing with a modern Webasto or Espar unit. The Dual Zenith carbs are finicky but fuel injection will fix those someday. They don't actually share many parts with VW's the fuel pump and maybe one or two others. There are crossovers to a few other european car manufacturers. The carbs are bored 356 porsche units the clutch is the same as a 5 series BMW. The stock displacement of the aircooled inline four is 2.5l. The Pinz is no highway flier but I've driven mine up and down the west coast a couple of times with no trouble. It is very "engaging" to drive at highway speeds and the noise is intense due to all the geardrives in the drivetrain. Around town it is quite enjoyable with it's insane maneuverability and great forward visability. My wife even takes it to get groceries on occasion. Nobodies trying to steal your spot or cutting you off. It has good road presence! Sort of a "shock and awe" effect. I sometimes find myself wondering what the hell is everyone staring at! Then I remember what I'm driving. Offroad is where they really come into their own. As you minitruck drivers know sitting in the nose is a completely different perspective. And spending a lot of time on two or three wheels with the rocking back and forth and the kick *** view takes 4wheelin to whole new levels. Good pucker factor and it always provides a very visceral experience! 6 years is the longest I've ever owned one vehicle and I have no plans of selling mine soon. Pinzgauers Rule! Derek Bonsai Motors
