$385,000 Mercedes UNIMOG vs Hell's Revenge: Move Over Bronco & Wrangler There’s a New Boss in Moab!
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In this video, Andre rides in this insane Mercedes-Benz Unimog with 32 forward gears and 800 lb-ft of torque takes on Hell's Revenge in Moab. www.couchoffroad.com
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#MercedesBenz #Unimog #Moab
Divided by oceans United by TLF 💪❤️
That's lame
Me when I retire…Honey I am buying a mercedes… Wife: OMG I have always wanted one 😊
Lol I had the same idea
Mario Gomez 😆😆Yes!! that would be Hilarious 😆😆
Ohoho, the surprises.
In our house the wife wants to buy a unimog.
Brabus made a luxury version.
I love Unimogs, they epitomize the ultimate off road truck. If you guys get a chance, do a story on his shop and the other rigs that he builds.
Unimog's are used by many train companies, where they have a set of hydraulic operated train wheels they can lower down to the tracks. So being able to goes both ways at 70 m/h are used for that.
That unmistakable sound of a MB inline 6 diesel!! Brought back memories!!
@Annant - Is that what it is??? A MB inline 6? Iron block I’m sure... what size is the block?
@@ralphlazio505 Probably 5.7 liter or 346 cid. These were all over the world in buses, lorries, etc.
Andre standing next to that ledge really helped put things into perspective. WOW!
Living in Austria I see the Unimogs very often in very different situations (as the "Uni" in Unimog stands for "universal" ;-) ), but I'm always impressed by its offroad capabilities! This video was so much more fun to watch and so much more respectful for the Unimog than DeMuro's giggling-video, that I have seen a couple of weeks ago. Thanks for that!
The older e83 x3 BMW was made in Austria and is a great car, the sport version was rough but rewarding and reliable, and based on the perfectly balanced 3 series chassis, a fun drive too.
Those are even used as trackless trains for visitors of Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia, in several different generations. In The Czech Republic those are often used repair vehicles, even able to travel on tram tracks.
The first unimogs were designed to work as a tractor on the farm and be able to drive to town also after WWII.
In Europe you can buy a Unimog that is registered as a tractor, they come with 3-point lift, power outtake and hydraulics just like a standard tractor.
Like a Willys-Overland
@@morilot alot cheaper than this too
@@derrickdrew17 In Europe they cost about the same as a tractor.
This is clearly basically new mechanically. Entirely different drivetrain, etc. Would be interesting to see the full bill because you can buy a mid-90s Unimog for less than a quarter of this price.
Here in Germany we say: If an Unimog can't go there, no one can go there. Nice Video! Greetings from Germany.
This was one of the coolest videos I’ve ever seen on the channel guys. That rig is just next level. Great find!
It's looking at next level in the mirror .
And it's just a stock Unimog with fresh paint ;) No need to "improve" anything to make it capable
those samuri sounded cool.
I bet this guy's favorite thing ever is when someone starts bragging about their Jeep to him.
Americans don’t realize that Mercedes is one of the biggest truck makers in the world, just because you don’t see them in the U.S. The Unimog is the Mac-daddy of off-road vehicles.
Mercedes is actually the biggest truck maker in the world. Freightliner and Western Star are both owned by Daimler Benz.
@@XielefR not for long. They are spinning trucks off into a separate company.
I mean when people from north america think "truck" they think pickup trucks and as far as i know mercedes only truck sold recently is the 6x6 but hey maybe they sell the most offroad utility vehicles
Lol not! We Americans created the first off-road vehicle so there’s that....we’ve been circling the world in Jeep’s and Ford since forever....the UniMog is sweet but just an oversized version of a Jeep
@@kylehunt8291 Wow. You have no idea what a Unimog is then, do you? Obviously not.
I was just about to cross shop a 30k Bronco and a 30k Wrangler when this video popped up on my feed. Thanks, TFLoffroad, I've decided to buy a 300k 25 year old truck.
I want to see one of your Samurai on TFL . I was so sad when they sold the small lovely Suzuki.
Should have built it up...
Yes please on seeing his Samurais!
I had a Swiss 404 UNIMOG back in the late 90s. Military surplus in excellent shape! Loved it...
Those actually look better than the news also.
It's a pity the 404 had a petrol engine. Two 60-liter-tanks but only a range of about 500 km. On the road...
This was a nice treat to wake up to on Sunday. What a machine! Thanks TFL.
Couch is very accommodating, I needed parts for my G wagen and they downloaded and sent me the data card and parts!
My father was the first to import Unimogs into the UK primarily as snow clearing equipment in the very early 60s after he saw them operate in Switzerland in the winter of 59! One was a dedicated unit with a fixed snowblower on the front, driven by a large diesel engine mounted in the bed with a shaft that ran under the truck! the other ones were more a standard unit with the smaller snowblowers driven off the front PTO!
Brings me back to when I was a kid in Oz, my Dad and I entered a raffle to win a fully equipped Unimog with a camper on the back. It was beautiful. Since then it’s been a dream to travel the 🌏 in one of these things....Maybe one day. Love it. Keep it up TFL.
That thing is nuts! Great video, Andre and crew!
Portal axles for the win! Awesome build, and Mr. Couch is really cool, thanks for posting. Luckily here in Austria we have had Unimogs around as long as I remember (I am 53).
That thing takes "granny gear " to a whole other level
Great granny gear
Try the crawler
And thats not even the 3600 to 1
Right, Great, Great, Great grandma gear
Designed to move trains.
I learned driving an unimog 401 when I was 15 years old. The most challenging part was kicking the clutch. This thing went everywhere you want it :-)
15:40 , Yep, a Samurai with diff-locks is crazy capable and cool!
The engineer knows his stuff, thank you TFL.
Considering a used surplus military U1300L in good conditions is around 13.000€, the price here seems a bit excessive...
less than 50k$ in Germany, when in excellent condition. btw brand new ones 150k or so, for these small ones
1problem with Unimog as an expedition truck thru Africa/South Amercia/other parts of the world: it scream money from 10 miles away. That in itself can be a problem, and not just because of security.
Remember overseas regular MB trucks are use for almost everything like deliveries and other activities this unimog will blend easily believe or not G Wogon or just a MB Sprinter are more flashy
@@marvinhidalgo2659 This one lmao NO !!! the old unimogs for sure.. new versiones like this one, nto a chance, EVERYONE will notice you got the $$ trust me
Yes if the thing is blinged but keep the original front grille and it looks much more utilitarian.
Depends how old the mog is, never had problems with mine from 1982 with a lot of fake rust on.
remove the badge haha
Thanks Andre. I enjoy your kid like enthusiasm for the stuff I love too
This was an awesome video!! Love Unimogs! More in the future if possible please!
I used to drive one on the army, amazing machine goes everywere, reliable, the reversible gears is crazy.....really miss it.
I wish I could afford one of these monsters! Truly amazing to see it destroy the Moab trails!
What a cool guy, and what a cool truck. TFL has so many interesting people on the channel.
Really impressed by the way the guy explained everything. 👍🏼
The cockpit is - even if the Mog is from the 90's - from the 80's. I remember it from my childhood. Have been in so many Mercedes trucks and semi -trucks. And also in Wörth where the plant for Mercedes trucks is.
Yep! That's probably a U1700 or U1300 originally, made all the way into the mid 90s before they launched into the "new gen" electronic U3000 / 4000 / 5000 series
This guy knows his stuff on these things. Awesome
I've wanted one of these since I first saw a German military version in 1986. Great rigs
These always make me feel like a kid again....That primal big truck sensation.
Review all his other builds! This guy is awesome.
Great video TFL. As usual Andre...very good job!
UNIMOGs have always been the ultimate off roader - just not cheap to buy or maintain - unless you can get them surplus - but still not cheap to maintain!
One thing I love about Unimogs is the portal axles. Gives so much ground clearance that diff housing isn't an issue anymore.
Those reduction hubs aren't instructable though. In my experience a 2 1/2 ton Rockwell narrowed with the pumpkin modified (cut off all excess bottom and replace with flat plate) is stronger. You get the clearance and width of a Dana 60 but much stronger. I tried these on a rock buggy and after breaking a few hubs went back to Rockwell's. The couple inches of clearance was negated by having to run smaller, less aggressive tires. Also a Rockwell axle shaft can be changed trailside pretty easily compared to a reduction hub. They are great for less extreme mud buggies.
This brings me back! Thanks guys!
Wow, that is a beast! maybe someday.
Finally someone agrees with me on manual transmission and the lurching stop-go progress of autos off road, but l don't understand the eyewatering price here over a standard and totally capable U2150 or U1300L or the justification for a "prototype" overdrive when the proven Claas splitter overdrive is a standard fit.
Because the Claas gearbox is hilariously expensive for what it does.
@@AaronBockelie Yes, but when you see it, it is self-evidently fit for purpose. Cost does not seem to be limiting factor in this case.
@@philhealey449 The claas overdrive fits even cheaper Unimogs, say a U1300L, that have a UG3/40 trans. In those cases, that's 30 percent of the vehicle cost.
@@AaronBockelie Fair point if considering in low power variants, especially something propelled by a 1960s car engine, but assuming assured reliability is essential, would there be anything more cost-effective say for a U1250 with a retrofitted intercooler and around 200 bhp from its OM366? I can accept that the Claas unit may be overbuilt given I understand its U2450 origins to primarily reduce gear spacings in 6x6 rocket launcher applications. Having experienced this device once as a revelation on both highways and for hill climbing it was a no-brainer to transplant it from the U1250 into a subsequent U2150. As intimated originally, just seeing the thing arrive in the wooden crate softens the blow of the cost compared to a typically miniscule overdrive made out of a few kg of aluminum and dismatched from the Unimog ethos. Happy Mogging !
@@philhealey449 I definitely agree on matching like kind equipment origins. At this point I'm just waiting for a good drop in replacement electric drive system that can turn about 4000 rpm...maybe another 5-10 years ;)
Great Video! Thanks a lot. I am from Germany and I always saw the Unimog just as a agricultural or municipal service vehicle and never in the class of large Offroad vehicles. But to be honest as Offroad expedition vehicle this is awsome! Also, in documentaries in Germany about the unimog, most of the time they talk about the history of the development and the different tools you can attach to the front or the back (which I think is total cool) but I never heaard someone explain the point why the unimog is so capable in offroading or why things like the transmission or the frame is not solved differently. Big up!
Bruh, not to insult you but when you never heard of the Unimog being the excellent off-road/expedition rig you must either not have much to do with trucks and off-roading stuff or living under a rock😄✌️ Greetings from Germany
I knew it can drive through mud and fields but I never thought to use it as anything cool. It was always just a useful tool. Maybe retired teachers build an expedition vehicle on that base. But how those Americans see the Mog and use it is freaking awesome. And yes, you are right. I was incredible limited not to get the thought by myself.
The sheer size of tires and ground clearance makes unimog in a different league than regular offroaders and suv's.
It's in the league of Sherps, MAN 8x8's and Tatra's that's for sure
Saw a number of these in Iceland. Great for river crossings!
There’s a short wheel base MOG all decked out for sale by my work,wish I had the extra scratch to get it!! There cool as hell
"No electronics to fail". Aaaahhh - music to my ears!
Lol and to all army's around the worlds ears.
My dad has one, I guess it's a 406 or 416, certainly an oldtimer, but its whole life it's used for heavy work in the woods and it's still used for that purpose but it runs great. His boss knew he was driving an Unimog and he had some connections so he asked him if he want to drive a support vehicle (obviously an Unimog, but not his own) through the Sahara for a motocross and quad (?) travel group which he did. Must've been really cool.
That was really fun!
Amazing machine, great video
well one of those has the record for altitude climbing the ojos del salado volcano
This is where individual electric hub motors would really shine. Gobs of instant torque going up, regen braking going down, no driveshafts, couplers, or linkages to worry about, with precision digital control. It would be the ultimate rock crawler. For those “non battery” die hards, you could even keep the diesel in place to constantly supply a/c power to the motors.
for a pure rock crawler it could work with batteries, if you wanted to travel the world, diesel is the way to go.
@@joshkiej6601 oh absolutely it could be battery only but the majority of people here wouldn’t accept that.
@@aussie2uGA if you only do like 1 day trips and can charge at night, batteries can be awesome as long as you can keep the weight down. I'd be worried about flipping/puncturing a battery though
Them things go everywhere. Good example of that is them being used in the Dakar rally . Very much like you see it in this clip
My sailing club in Berlin uses an old Unimog to transport the boats to and from the crane to let them to water. They use a special trailer with hydrulic controled axels because to get to the crane the have to traverse a 40° ramp. The boats weigh up to 10 metric tonnes, and the Mog has no problem shifting these weights.
That is one seriously bad ass rig.
Drove one of these in the Catskill Mountains in Upstate NY was very impressed. Well over 30 Years ago and obviously not priced like this in the least. Very practical along the USA Eastern and Western Regions I thought but for obvious reasons not so much in all of Central North America.
Aside from having much smaller tires this is very similar to my tractor drivetrain wise. I like it a lot. I once thought these axles would be great under a jeep until I tried it. They weren't as strong as the 2 1/2 Rockwell's in my experience. Those reduction hubs are great for ground clearance but not the strongest for rock bouncing with 44 inch cut boggers attached to them.
you probably had axles from a older and small unimog
Beautiful machine *thanks for sharing*
Man, I loved this.
I'm watching you from Namibia big fan...
Jay Couch, one of the nicest guys around. Knew him when I lived in Denver.
absolutely insane, awesome video
So funny to watch this. I used to do this all the time when I was in the British Army, the difference was that I had an L118 light gun attached to the back of my truck!
Lol yes I live near the army base here in Australian and there every where...holding up traffic lol. So slow.
I have a Unimog 1300 Turbo '82 that has freewheels on the front axle. ( custom made ) 8 speed forward 4 backwards. Overdrive is not such a good idea on a Unimog because of the portal axles with some " gearbox " on each side. Those things have an airvent and by high speeds, the oil leaves by that airvent in the axle and never returns. So, it's posible that the wheelbearings run dry and that leads to a high cost on parts. A Unimog was never build for the highway. 90 km/h for houres can give problemes. Oil get warm, less oil make's it even hot . On mine there is a looking glas for the oil level and an expansion system that let the air go but not the oil. And the problem is only on the front axle because the back axle is one part in total so the oil go's back and so with the differential. A Unimog with fast axles is in my opinion a bigger risk. Oil control is realy needed and for that a bold need to be unscrewed every time on a standard Unimog with the risk of dirt getting where you do'nt want it. The engine on mine has an extra oil cooler and a bigger engine cooler with an 24V fan and thermostat. The freewheels and that fan system safes HP and feul . The Mog , single cab, has some 73.000 km now and has a new empty box on the back, ready to build in, and is for sale. In Spain. ( Unimog ex-German army, I'm out of the needed driving licence, I'm a " ' 49" er :-)
Unimogs are beasts! The first time we sat in one takkling 4×4 tracks we knew we want one. Now we have one and convert it into an expedition vehicle🥰
Where are you traversing the world currently?
@@Crashryding We're in Australia :)
Great content, just subscribed!
What engine is this running? OM366LA? 300HP is pretty good if that's the case. Great build regardless! Man I want a mog one day..
the mogs are just outstanding I used to use mine for recovering and removing burnt out cars from the forrest the forrest servive in ther uk wetre all ways amazed of where I would put the mog
Thanks for the shout out to Namibia :-)
That's amazing. As was the "like riding a drunk elephant" comment!
Thanks for sharing this😎
Great job, Andre.
More MOG content, please.
Dang I was hoping to see them do the whole trail
I just commented on that too. Complete dissatisfaction. I want to get a school bus and drive it to the same first tiny rock ledge and then drive it back to the trailhead while this rig is trailered too.
i think you forgot to highlight the portal axis, perfect for the ground clearance
That was very impressive I am not going to lie good job. 👍
Have driven U1300s during my time in the German army - the most offroad worthy wheeled vehicle there, literally unstoppable in the rough, but a nightmare on long road trips
Wonder if the newer models are better for long distance travel
Appears your time in the army was a bit earlier than mine, didn't have the 5 ton MAN anymore end of the 80's, but rather Folgegeneration trucks. The U1300 was nice to drive offroad but its short ratio gearbox didn't offer much pleasure on the street. Preferred the Mercedes 1017 here.
Impressive Unimog..but at the same time I can pick up an M1078 for 10k or any other surplus vehicle for way less and modify..TFL you guys should do reviews on those vehicles..they are reasonably priced...
We’ve built a couple higher end 1078A1 and 1088A1 expedition rigs. They’re just not that good and they get quite up there in price when built correctly
a used unimog in good state is 5- 50k in europe
I can't believe you compare a unimog to a jeep or bronco not even comparable!
Andre always does a great job.
@Carolus Magnus lol, really?
700k I can travel around the world in first class and staying at 5 star hotels, lol
Rent and destroy a 4x4 everywhere you want.
@@geepuller1 you can do that in a 30k Unimog...
This is for places that dont have 5 star hotels. This is for places that might not even have wifi or starbucks as scary as that may be for some people, this is for the wild.
Oh yeah the Unimog is a hell of a Offroad Monster.
385000 dollar? Where is all this money going? You but these Unimog's in Germany ex firetender for around 20-30000 euro's. Low milage and all.
We finally get to see a real four wheel drive truck on this channel except for the U500 unimog video the other day
No wonder that guy has 20 Unimogs of his own... For 385.000 I buy at least 3 brand new ones here in Europe. The last ones I bought were a bit less than 120k (EUR) and were nearly full option since we needed them to build agricultural equipment on them. They are awesome machines though, we once let one crawl onto a excavator bucket and it did it with ease 😎
Great video guys! 👍 Please find the M35 Deuce and a Half, that would be so awesome to se in action...
For individuals scooting in the America's... A M35A2 would be a good option.
4:27 that original badge: "Motordrehzahl bei Kranbetrieb max. 1000 U/min" 😁 --> engine RPM during crane operation max 1000 U/min
My dad loves these rigs I've been around them my whole life
16:50 New Unimogs have EAS which is an automated gearbox ie it is a manual so no torque convertor but which does the gear change for you and should you need more control you just flip a switch, a clutch pedal flips down and you change gear as in a manual without any electronic interference.
A scaled down Unimog would be my dream car
Look into Pinzgauers.
Iveco
Last year I came across one in a gas station that had a for sale sign on it, I stopped went in and looked at it for a few minutes then inquired about it. It was way more than I could afford so I took photos of it to push me to one day get one.
We get them brand new down under beast of a truck also new one can convert from left hand drive to right drive. Army has heaps in use
For some reason the NZDF swapped out their old Mogs for MAN trucks rather than. upgrade to newer Unimogs which surprised me. There’s a couple on Trademe.co.nz currently that have been kitted out for Tourism ventures (essentially a tour bus) My Uncle imported the first U500 tractor in to the country many years ago and it’s amazing off-road. My cousin is an MB nut and has 3-4 in his fleet for agricultural contracting. I’d love to tour Aus in one, that’s at the top of my bucket list
$385k and you get double jubilee clips to hold what looks to be an inline filter... it's all about the attention to detail :D
Wow awesome rig👍
What day were you guys out there? Jeep had wagoneer prototypes out there on tuesday
Bigger vehicles are most of the time more capable but smaller vehicles have easier lines that they can take.
Thats a nice Universalmotorgerät!