Taking the High Road

The corporate types at Freightliner LLC take great pains to distinguish the company’s latest product line — the Unimog — as a serious work truck, staunchly telling anyone who’ll listen that you won’t find the tough class-6/7 vehicle made by Mercedes-Benz taking up space in grocery store parking lots or the HOV lane on the freeway.

Unlike General Motors’ Hummer, a super-sized SUV with military roots, the Unimog is targeted at commercial markets in North America, especially utility and emergency fleets that operate in rough weather and terrain. The vehicle is being marketed in the United States and Canada under the “Unimog” nameplate; sales and service is available through selected Freightliner Trucks, Sterling, Western Star, and American LaFrance dealers.

The Unimog is a 50-year-old product line with a well-deserved reputation for versatility. The factory-installed hydraulic system and controls make it easy to switch from one accoutrement to another — for example, the vehicle can be used for snow removal in the winter and be transformed to mow road embankments in the summer. The vehicle’s VarioPilot option even lets you shift the steering column, instrument cluster, and pedals from the left side of the cab to the right in about two minutes.

The Unimog has a 132-inch wheelbase, a high-articulating coil spring suspension, and permanent all-wheel drive, so it can get to the most extreme job sites. And at seven feet wide, it’ll still fit into a standard parking space — just in case you need to stop at the grocery store on the way back from the bush.