DENVER, CO – Magpul Industries Corp. is sponsoring a rally truck for the 2011 Breslau Adventure Rallye. Couch Off-Road Engineering, the Magpul-sponsored team, will be the first-ever American team to participate in the rally. With more than 300 participants, the “Breslau” is the biggest motor sport event for professionals and amateurs of the off-road and all-wheel drive scene in Europe and the second biggest in the world after the Dakar Rally. The annual rally will begin in Breslau, Poland, on June 25 and end in Dresden, Germany, on July 2.
Now in its eighteenth year, the Breslau Rallye, known as the “last great adventure,” will cover more than 1,600 kilometers (roughly 1,000 miles) of special stages. Participants in the license-free driver rally are expected to have exceptional driving and navigation skills and a capacity to quickly repair even the most serious vehicle damages. In addition to the personal endurance required on single stages up to 400 kilometers (roughly 250 miles), vehicles must be able to withstand challenges like meter and half-deep mud holes, flowing river crossings that can exceed 2 meters deep, speed-intensive events across forest terrain and Sahara-like deep sand stages.
Whereas most teams spend one to two years building a race truck, Couch Off-Road Engineering had just under four months to custom-build a truck that can take on the challenges of this rugged race. The race truck, named Bam Bam, is a 1985 U1700 Unimog, which is a multi-purpose four-wheel-drive truck produced by Mercedes-Benz. The vehicle’s stock 170 HP motor was replaced with a Cummins 24-valve diesel engine. The new motor, ATS turbo, intercooler and P7100 IP setup will push over 500 HP with methanol injection.
The team chose this Unimog platform because it has the heaviest, most stable chassis, high ground clearance and a flexible frame. The powerful off-road vehicle weighs about 6,600 kilograms, or 14,500 pounds. Couch Off-Road Engineering, a Denver, Colorado-based custom metal fabrication and repair facility for the Unimog, is run by Jay Couch, who will pilot the vehicle along with Unimog enthusiast Gustavo Fraga Errecart. Magpul and Couch Off-Road Engineering funded the Unimog’s custom-build work and the vehicle’s air-freight shipment overseas. Other sponsors include ATS Diesel, and LED Enviroworks.
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Magpul Industries Corp, a privately held Colorado corporation, was founded in 1999 for the purpose of developing a simple device to aid in the manipulation of rifle magazines while reloading under stress. Their first product was the Magpul®, a component used to improve the speed of tactical magazine changes. From the success of the original design came other high-performance tactical components such as stocks, grips, a polymer AR15/M16 magazine and complete weapon systems. Regardless of the end user or the mission, Magpul’s goal is to design innovative, efficient equipment with form, fit and function far superior to standardissue gear. Today, Magpul serves a broad spectrum of users, everyone from hobbyists and target shooters to the most specialized and highly trained military units and law enforcement agencies around the world.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS ABOUT BAM BAM
The 49″ 445/70R24 Continental AC70 tires are mounted on custom bead locks.
The stock axles have been swapped out for lighter ones plumbed for CTIS, and a full CTIS system is installed on the Unimog. In addition to the CTIS, a drivetrain pressurization system that puts light air pressure to the axels, transmission and transfer case was added. Further more, even the engine starter has been pnuematially plumbed to prevent water from entering during deep water travel.
The shocks are quadruple bypass reservoir shocks. The suspension has been lightened significantly.
The exo-cage is 2 3/8″ mild steel tubing, just under 3/16″ walled. The factory cab is almost roll-over protective on its own, but the cage guarantees that everyone walks away.
The intercooler is 51″ across by 21″ high, sitting behind a UHN hood and grill.
There are pneumatics onboard, so a cam/crank-driven 15CFM air compressor is installed off the engine.
Hydraulics are provided by a 12 GPM hydraulic pump.
Hydraulic usage includes cooling fans, 2 winches, and four stock circuits.
There is a secondary radiator with electric fans.
The clutch is a single, hybrid, puck clutch custom-built setup with kevlar and ceramic. It’s designed to handle 1,000ft/lbs of generated torque.
The cab and bed tip cylinders are being retained for any repairs that may be needed during the race.
High powered LED lights were made to custom fit the Unimog on the lower left and right as well as the rear of the vehicle. The rear lights are mounted to a remote-controlled, pneumatically actuated, telescoping 20′ mast.
The front light bar has triple that number of lights.
GPS systems and helmet-to-helmet communications will be used.
A custom front bull bar holds a winch and gives a far better approach angle than would the stock bumper.
The cab interior is bedlined on the floor to keep mud out of the cracks.
There are comfortable, wrap-around race seats. The driver’s seat is air-ride, but it will be locked out and the lowered as much as possible to reduce head-bobble and neck fatigue.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS ABOUT THE UNIMOG
The name Unimog is an acronym for the German “UNIversal-MOtor-Gerät,” Gerät being the German word for machine or
device. The first model was designed for agricultural use shortly after World War II, and today it’s still designed with very high
ground clearance, a flexible frame, and permanent four-wheel-drive with same-size wheels to enhance road speed. Due to
their powerful off-road capabilities, Unimogs can be found in jungles, mountains and deserts as military vehicles, firefighters
and expedition campers, as well as in construction and recreational environments.