Cars With Military Pedigree

The Wrangler's design is reminiscent of the old war horse, Willys Jeep. But the makers have made the Wrangler more civilized, which is significantly more comfortable to drive compared to the original Jeep. In a way, the Wrangler is the vehicle that is carrying on Willys Jeep's legacy.

Did you know the ‘G' in the name stands for ‘Geländewagen', which in German means "cross country vehicle". The G-Wagen, as it is often called, was originally developed to serve as a military vehicle. Armies across the globe still operate G-Wagens, including U.S.A, U.K, Russia, Australia, Germany and a dozen other countries. The G-Class is characterized by its boxy design.

The Defender is Land Rover's oldest existing brand that has remained virtually unchanged since its inception some thirty years ago. The fact that the design has managed not to become obsolete proves the effectiveness of the vehicle. Like the G-Class, the Defender is a military favourite. Besides the U.K army, the U.S military operates a limited number of Land Rover Defenders.

As is the case with Defender, the Land Cruiser is Toyota's longest running model. The Land Cruiser has its roots in the military and even has a connection with the American Jeep. The birth of the Land Cruiser can be credited to the Japanese military which wanted a vehicle like the Jeep, during WWII, but one that looked completely different. While it ispresently not used by armed forces of any country, it is still the preferred mode of transport in some of the world's harshest terrains.

The Mini Moke is based on the Mini, but styled like the American Jeep. The idea was to develop a small vehicle for the military that could be easily air dropped. However, the vehicle lacked the grunt to perform hard core off roading, resulting in its discontinuation. Nevertheless, the public loved the Mini Moke for what it was, which has kept the name alive. In 2010, the Mini Beachmaster Concept was launched at the Detroit Motor Show, which sports several design characteristics of the Moke.

The iconic Beetle may not be a military vehicle literally, but it literally owes its birth to the war. The only reason the world got the ‘Bug' is because Hitler and the Nazi elite patronized it. The Beetle was born because Hitler wanted a "people's car" (Volkswagen) for German citizens and thus funded its development.

Lamborghini's first ever off roader was originally meant for the U.S military. The LM002, also sometimes called "Lambo Rambo" was powered by a V12 engine directly taken from the Countach supercar. However, this extremely powerful and extremely capable vehicle (it was capable of running on completely flat tyres, even in the desert heat) went on to become a very popular civilian vehicle. A military version never went into production.

This over the top (XV stands for "Extreme Vehicles") vehicle has all the safety features of a fully equipped military vehicle and lots more. The only thing it lacks are the guns. Reactive armour, emergency oxygen supply, built-in magnetic bomb detection system, night vision cameras are some of the features found in a Kinght XV. Despite all these, it is not a military vehicle at all. The Knight XV is a hand built luxury vehicle that is meant to keep its VIP occupants safe and comfortable.

The iconic status of this SUV is next only to the Willys Jeep. The Hummer is the civilian version of the M998 Humvee, which is mainly used by the U.S military. While AM General, the makers of Humvee, had plans of releasing a civilian version, the process was accelerated by the interest shown by Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Hummer, however, fell prey to its own strengths. Its extreme off road capabilities and its size meant it guzzled in gallons of fuel, which eventually lead to the end of production.

Not sure if this could be even called an SUV. This oversized South African military "SUV" could be compared to a tank when it comes to toughness. The Marauder is capable is capable of withstanding a blast from 14 kg of explosive under its wheels and 7 kg under its hull, not that civilians need that kind of protection. Top Gear featured a civilian version of a Marauder in its 17th season and compared it with a civilian Hummer H3. Besides drafting the Hummer, the Marauder drove away after getting its tyre ripped off by an explosive, whereas the Hummer was totally destroyed. You can check out the Top Gear video featuring the Marauder in the next slide.

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