Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks equips Zetros trucks with factory-armored cabin. Photo: Press Release
Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks is expanding its product range and will soon offer the series of Zetros trucks with a factory-armored driver’s cabin.
The Zetros model with three axles and all-wheel drive (6×6) is already available as an armored vehicle. Other variants of the Zetros series, from the 4×4 with two axles to the 8×8 with four axles, will be progressively produced with protection at the truck factory in Wörth starting from 2025. A Zetros 6×6 with a protected cabin will be showcased for the first time at the Eurosatory exhibition in Paris, from June 17 to 21, 2024.
Factory-armored Off-road Vehicles
The armored cabin provides the crew with protection against bullets, mines, and traps, without compromising the vehicle’s off-road capabilities. Until now, vehicles manufactured in Wörth typically received armored cabins from partner companies before delivery to customers. Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks now equips the armored cabin directly on the 2nd generation Zetros for specific projects. Rheinmetall is the development partner and cabin supplier.
From development, through testing and production to sales, Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks is responsible for the entire vehicle, including the armored cabin. This way, customers benefit from complete solutions from one source. As the special vehicle division of Daimler Truck, Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks offers high reliability and production capacity, while ensuring consistently high levels of service and spare parts availability over years and decades. Depending on the order, the company also collaborates with body partners/OEMs for protected variants.
Cabin Armor for All Zetros Series Vehicles
Soon, Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks will be able to offer the entire range of Zetros products, from the 4×4 to the 8×8, with a factory-armored driver’s cabin. As a hood-type truck, the Zetros for military logistics and support tasks provides a structural advantage for armored cabins: the cabin is located behind the front axle, distributing the cabin’s weight also over the rear axles. This prevents overloading of the front axle on rough terrain.
The development of the Zetros cabin armor prioritized safety, ergonomics, and good visibility. The protected cabin can accommodate up to three people in air-suspended seats with four-point seat belts. The large one-piece windshield provides a wide field of view. Variable attachment points in the cabin allow for the addition of extra equipment. Additionally, identical components are used wherever possible between the protected cabin and the unprotected version, facilitating spare parts availability and increasing interchangeability in mixed fleets.
All Zetros variants are equipped with a six-cylinder in-line OM 460 diesel engine, with up to 375 kW / 510 hp. Maximum torque of up to 2,300 Nm is available from a displacement of 12.8 liters. A 16-speed gearbox or an Allison torque converter automatic gearbox, two-stage transfer case, selectable differential locks, large tilt and ramp angles, and traction capability make propulsion possible even in mud, when crossing rivers, and on steep terrain. The permissible gross weight varies between 16.5 and 40 tonnes. With a combined gross weight of up to 120 tonnes as a tractor unit and numerous body solutions, the Zetros is suitable for a wide range of transport tasks.
Source: daimlertruck.com. This content was created with the help of AI and revised by the editorial team.
