In the past, we explored the Unimog's history in three feature articles, and we gained a glimpse of its capability in some of the pictures.
Are you ready to explore and discover Unimog's true potential?
Try to imagine that you just won the lottery, big time. Would you build a new house, a mansion, would you open your own business or would you invest your newly gained treasure? I assume that you would invest part of it wisely, be benevolent, but also invest in your spiritual, mental and physical well-being and other worthwhile endeavours.
Since you are perusing Off-road-dot-com, maybe this would include buying that long wished-for vehicle you have your mind set on. A Unimog, perhaps?
One fortunate enthusiast, who almost certainly worked and saved diligently for many years, purchased a luxuriously equipped highway coach for his family, and trailers a Unimog behind their house on wheels. Whenever an adventure looms, they can drive the 'Mog off the trailer and into the wilderness.
No matter which way you come to own your adventure vehicle, be it by having it built or bought, or by doing the conversion yourself, half the fun could be in the planning for it.
A few companies around the world make that easy for you; they specialize in converting suitable vehicles for extended, comfortable off-road travel. Serious off-roaders, be they adventure seekers, explorers or scientists on a tour of study, have commissioned various makes of capable all-terrain trucks to suit their particular mission.
Whenever your own auto show favourite, or the product of your diligent labour, is ready to roll into the great outdoors, here are a few examples of what that could be like.
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Whenever "roughing it" becomes too wearisome after a few weeks, you could do what one family of serious adventurers has done: be prepared to visit the nearest inhabited center of cultural activities and take in a movie, a concert or a play. Just lower your personal transportation device from the back of your Unimog, and, voila, you're on your way back to civilization. Smart, eh?
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N.B. The smart on that ramp is another unique vehicle from DaimlerChrysler, the name a combination of Swatch (the Swiss watch company), Mercedes and 'art'. smart (lower cap) is an amazingly economical two seat city commuter car, popular in Europe for almost a decade, available in Canada since 2005, and coming to the USA in 2007.
Searching long and far for a suitable expedition vehicle, one Swiss couple finally found their ideal wheels: Unimog. (Did they not know?) Julia Etter Kristen and Martin Kristen-Etter, both had changed their occupation and made their hobby their new profession: botany, the science and study of plants. They acquired a specially fabricated expedition model and gave it several 'field tests' in Iceland's harsh climate, before going on their intended journey across North, Middle and South America to study two families of plants.
Their truly amazing travel logs and wonderful pictures will occupy appreciative nature lovers for hours on end. Their botanical database, a work of passion for their newly adopted profession, will fascinate and absorb professionals for years to come.
Julia and Martin assert that a specially modified Unimog will not be inexpensive, but when your success, even your life depends on your vehicle's dependability, their Unimog proved priceless. They answer the question of 'nosy' onlookers "How much did it cost?" with "The price of several Hummers and a Porsche." Their humour shines through on their amazing website www.globetrotters.ch, a 'must see' for off-roaders and nature lovers.
Another adventurer, who obviously wants to have extra fun, has his (? there's only one, but room for two) cross-country motorbike mounted on a lift behind his Unimog.
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This leads me to Thomas Ritter. He realized the potential of the Unimog as an expedition vehicle during the Paris to Dakar Rally in 1991. Ritter had prepared a Unimog for, and participated in, the world's most gruelling off-road rally. It really is a race over special stages in the African Sahara desert (remember the Mitsubishi TV commercial?), connected by long stretches of cross-country rally-driving thru several countries, covering more than 10,000 km and lasting almost two weeks. Two Unimogs scored first and second place in the truck division in the 1982 running of the 'Paris to Dakar'.
Every year, Unimogs, modified as workshops on wheels, accompany the faster cars and motorcycles during this event. They carry the spare parts, the tools and equipment to keep the competing vehicles running. Would you know a better truck to do this?
Thomas Ritter established a company in 1990 for the purpose of modifying a select number of vehicles into comfortable, capable and reliable expedition vehicles. Perhaps no coincidence, his main place is within an hour's drive of the Mercedes-Benz plant, and only thirty minutes from the Unimog factory. Many parts for the conversions are also manufactured at the California branch of Ritter's company. You can find all the information at www.unicatamericas.com
If this sounds like veiled advertising to you, let me assure you that I have never met or corresponded with anyone connected with this company. It is purely my admiration and enthusiasm for the Unimog, and for what Ritter and his dedicated people have accomplished by taking advantage of this unique vehicle's true potential, that prompts me to elaborate on this.
After long and meticulous collaboration between designer Bran Ferren of Applied Minds Inc. and engineering expert Thomas Ritter and his UNICAT company, MaxiMog(tm) was created as a new model of expedition vehicle, with a unique trailer as comfortable living quarters.
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The owner needed a vehicle for scientific exploration of the many unexplored regions of our planet. His home away from home had to be able to travel anywhere on our planet, and at the same time serve as a digital photo lab, computer workstation, communications post and more.
We have become a mobile society, modern nomads. We either drive to our place of work, or drive to where we find work and settle in new places. During the past decade, more and more people "telework," or work in ways different from the past. Work has become transportable, work is where you are. "Ubi bene ibi patria", the old Romans already knew long ago; "Where one is well off, there is one's home".
We hear so much these days about working from, or out of, our car. For that reason, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York presented Workspheres", a special exhibition in early 2001. The forward-looking, unique show examined the workplace of the future, and how designers create solutions for a positive outcome of this change in our lives.
And so we "deal and wheel".
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This complete 'Expedition System' includes the Unimog, the trailer, a motorbike, an under-water submersible remotely operated vessel, a radio controlled surveillance aircraft and a jet boat. Everything is connected and coordinated by an interchangeable electronic network.
The heavy duty BMW motorbike can be used for quick scouting trips, piggy-backed on either, truck or trailer. The 'Mog can do small expeditions, and the trailer with its swing-out sections is the 'base camp' with sleeping area, kitchen, and toilet. The two swing-out portions and the raised roof double the useable space inside the trailer; the roof is lowered when travelling.
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Workstation inside MaxiMog and living quarters inside of trailer.
After the show MaxiMog underwent tests for US federal highway certification, then went on to the MoMA in San Francisco; People were clamouring to get a glimpse at our lifestyle of the future.
After all the publicity, MaxiMog did what it was created for: provide workplace and home, this time while exploring Death Valley.
More adulation followed during a display at the London Design Museum. Quipped one observer: "MaxiMog is perhaps the only vehicle that could explore another planet and still be street legal".
The patented live-aboard trailer is truly a work of art, from a technical point of view. It provides a comfortable living and working space from -70 to +130 degrees Fahrenheit (-55°C to + 55°C) with its heating and air conditioning unit. When the roof is raised and the two swing-out elements are extended, the interior volume is doubled.
Having its own quiet, water-cooled generator the trailer is independent from the tow vehicle for power and even motion. Four electric wheel-hub motors and 4W-steering can to position the 'base camp' independently from the Unimog. In extreme terrain the trailer can assist the toe vehicle, making the combination a true 8x8 off-road vehicle. The MaxiMog unit can tackle 45° inclines and travel thru 5 feet (1.5 meter) of water. The trailer has the same 25" (635 mm) ground clearance and the same size tires as the Unimog. Computer controlled air suspension and dampers (commonly, but wrongly termed shock absorbers) coordinate motion and ground clearance between the two units on rough ground. Truck and trailer both have 25 inches of suspension travel. As a unit, it has the same turning radius as the Unimog alone, by steering the trailer's front wheels.
Fuel capacity is sufficiently large to cover approximately 2,000 kilo-meters (1200 miles) under normal driving conditions.
A mobile place of work and dwelling such as the MaxiMog is certainly not inexpensive; "yous get what yous pay for". To do a good job, you need a good car.
The UNICAT company explains in FAQ (frequently asked questions) that these specialty expedition vehicles cost more than regular RVs, because "rugged-dizing" modifications to the chassis and cab alone double the cost of the truck, as an example. Everything on these vehicles is designed to operate in the most extreme conditions, be that in the arctic, the jungle or the desert. To quote: "Their purpose is similar to that of a yacht designed to cross oceans without failure. Other RV's would break apart if they tried to follow a UNICAT".
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But don't despair, if your grant application for a MaxiMog did not make the shortlist of Bill's and Melinda's foundation.
"You can do it, we can help" (sorry, Home Depot) seems to be the motto behind the website of Lisa and Jim Osse, one very determined couple of Unimog enthusiasts.
Time is money, and to save the latter the Osses used the former to fabricate an equally capable exhibition vehicle on their own time and budget. Lisa describes in great detail, and with instructive pictures, their very well laid out and carefully constructed "travel-mog" on their amazing site http://www.wanderlust.net/ It loads a bit slowly, but it is well worth the wait, I assure you. From a three-dimensional plan, or mock-up, Lisa describes the main steps they took to successfully convert a former NATO troop carrier into a comfortable camper, complete with solar panel battery charging to power all manner of electrical appliances, right down to an electric toothbrush. Way to go, Lisa and Jim.
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( N.B. I believe Lisa and Jim are happily 'mogging along somewhere, because my request for permission to use their photographs had not been answered by the deadline for this article; hopefully they don't mind - I'll send them the link)
In the end, it matters little if one works for a period of time to accumulate money for the purpose of paying someone else to perform a certain task, or if one does that task by him or herself. It all depends on the individual's skill level in the required 'worksphere' - there is that word again - and the time available. Methodical, detailed preparation saves time and money in the long run.
Like I said earlier, half the fun could be in the planning.
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My appreciation to UNICAT Fahrzeugbau GmbH for information and hotographs #1 to #12 & #15
Illustrations # 13 & #14 courtesy of Lisa and Jim Osse