Maultier (English: " mule") or

Sd.Kfz. ''Sonderkraftfahrzeug'' (abbreviated ''Sd.Kfz.'', German for "special purpose vehicle") was the ordnance inventory designation used by Nazi Germany during World War II for military vehicles; for example ''Sd.Kfz.'' 101 for the Panzer I. Sd.Kfz. nu ...

3 is the name given to series of

half-track A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cr ...

trucks used by

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. They were based on

Opel Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA ...

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquarter ...

Alfa-Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." "A ...

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

trucks.

History

Soon after invading the USSR, German troops discovered that their wheeled transport vehicles were unsuitable for the sparse road network, particularly in the muddy conditions of the ''

rasputitsa ''Rasputitsa'' ( rus, распу́тица, p=rɐsˈputʲɪtsə) is a season of the year when travel on unpaved roads or across country becomes difficult, owing to muddy conditions from rain or melting snow. Etymology In Russia, the term , р� ...

''. Only half tracks like the

Sd.Kfz. 11 The Sd.Kfz. 11 (''Sonderkraftfahrzeug'' – special motor vehicle) was a Wehrmacht, German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main role was as a Prime mover (tractor unit), prime mover for medium towed guns ranging from the ...

could haul supplies to forward units in these conditions, but removing them from their combat role for supply duties was not feasible, so it was decided to produce half-tracked versions of standard Opel, Daimler-Benz, Alfa-Romeo and Ford trucks (lorries) by removing their rear axles, truncating the

prop-shaft A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft ( Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect ...

s and connecting them to redundant

Panzer I The Panzer I was a light tank produced in Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Its name is short for (German language, German for "Armoured fighting vehicle, armored fighting vehicle mark I"), abbreviated as . The tank's official German ordnance inv ...

track assemblies. Heavier trucks (4 tons payload) were fitted with

Panzer II The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' II (abbreviated PzKpfw II). Although the vehicle had originally been designed as a stopgap while la ...

track assemblies.

Horstmann suspension Horstmann suspension, also known as Horstman, Vickers-Horstman and rarely Slow Motion, is a type of tracked suspension devised by British tank designer John Carden and worked into a production design by engineer Sidney Horstmann. First used ...

components employed by the Panzer I was practically identical to the light tank track system used on the

Universal Carrier The Universal Carrier, also known as the Bren Gun Carrier and sometimes simply the Bren Carrier from the light machine gun armament, is a common name describing a family of light armoured tracked vehicles built by Vickers-Armstrongs and other ...

, with the Maultier's use of them closely resembling the roadwheel/suspension system used by the T16 American-produced version in its roadwheel design. Most Maultier conversions were based on

Opel Blitz Opel Blitz (''Blitz'' being German for "lightning") was the name given to various light and middle-weight trucks built by the German Opel automobile manufacturer between 1930 and 1975. The original logo for this truck, two stripes arranged loose ...

model S trucks, which proved successful in service. Although they lacked the overall mobility of purpose-built half tracks, they were cheaper and sufficiently effective. From 1943 some Maultier trucks were fitted with armored bodies, designated

Sd.Kfz. 4 The ''Sd.Kfz. 4 Gleisketten-Lastkraftwagen'' ("chain-track truck"), was a 4.5-tonne military truck of ''Maultier'' ("mule") half-track family developed during World War II by Germany. Its manufacturer designation was Mercedes-Benz L4500R. Devel ...

. Some of these were armed with ten-tube rocket launcher Panzerwerfer 42, and were designated Sd.Kfz.. 4/1.

Production

The vehicles were built by Opel at the

Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz KHD Humboldt Wedag is an engineering company that supplies machinery, parts, and services, including process engineering and project management to the global cement industry. The holding company KHD Humboldt Wedag International AG, based in Co ...

AG and also in France in the

factory in Asnieres. In 1942 a total of 635 vehicles were produced, 1943 there were 13,000 and 1944 only 7,310.

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 World War II armoured fighting vehicles of Germany Half-tracks of Germany Military vehicles introduced from 1940 to 1944

History

Production

See also

References