Many vintage and classic vehicle enthusiasts in Ireland collect cars, motorbikes or tractors. However there are not many collectors of military trucks and Ireland Made team were lucky enough during the Summer of 2022 to be invited to see a private collection.
One of the trucks in this magnificent collection is a 1979 MAN Kat 1, a modular design high-mobility off-road army truck developed in the mid-1970s for the German Army (Bundeswehr). The Kat 1 series was built between 1976 – 1981 and approximately 9,110 vehicles were produced in 8×8, 6×6 and 4×4 variants.
The MAN D2866 KFG 360 hp air-cooled diesel engine powers all axles via a ZF semi-automatic transmission with a highly effective torque convertor and two-speed transfer case contained within a single modular unit.
As a feature of their modular design the MAN Kat 1s had a rigid box-section chassis frame with rigid hub-reduction axles sprung by coil springs and shock-absorbers and power assisted steering on the front axle.
As the Kat 1 was designed at the height of the Cold War the ability to be transported by rail across Europe was a major operational requirement. To enable transport on standard railway flatcars the total height of the truck body was kept below 2.9m with the engine located in tandem to the rear of the driver and separated by a firewall.
The Kat 1 featured a roof hatch with machine gun mount, rifle brackets mounted in the cab, military spec instrument panel and blackout headlights on a separate circuit and an emergency electrical cut-out control switch.
When we asked the owner what the Kat 1 was like to drive, he told us that even though it is left-hand-drive the torque set up ensures a comfortable driving experience even when in heavy city traffic and towing a trailer.
