Die Daimler Truck AG announced last Tuesday (3) that the defense vehicles Mercedes-Benz Zetros have completed winter tests in Finland, confirming their usability at temperatures of up to minus 40 degrees Celsius.
According to a report from the website Defence Blog The test campaign was carried out in the Arctic to check whether the defense vehicle range Zetros can maintain performance in difficult winter conditions – a critical requirement for military customers operating in northern climates.
According to the company, the winter tests were carried out at the beginning of the year by the team of specialists Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks carried out. The tests lasted several weeks and focused on traction, driving stability on icy roads, performance in low temperatures and general operational reliability in winter.
“Our customers like Lithuania, Canada and Ukraine rely on vehicles that work anytime, anywhere – even in the icy winters of northern latitudes,” said Dennis KinzelmannCEO of Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks.
“In order to meet these requirements, we subject our vehicles to very demanding tasks in extremely cold and wintry conditions, which they have once again successfully passed.”
Die Daimler Truck explained that the defense vehicles Zetros demonstrated stable driving behavior and full compliance with all technical parameters during the Arctic tests.
As part of the test program, the vehicles were subjected to a cold start procedure at minus 40 degrees Celsius in a cold chamber. The company also conducted tests of the Electronic Stability Program (ESP), designed to prevent skidding and improve stability on ice and snow surfaces.
The engineers carried out extensive braking tests to evaluate the vehicle’s behavior on different surfaces and under different traction conditions – both loaded and unloaded, as well as in situations where only one axle was on an icy surface while the other was on gravel. The goal was to test how the vehicle handles asymmetrical traction and other extreme conditions.
Further assessments included operation on kerosene and testing of the tire pressure monitoring system. By adjusting air pressure, the system increases the tire’s contact area with snow, thereby improving traction and mobility in winter environments.
The company also reported that winter testing included mechatronics, software and safety systems, as well as emissions and exhaust aftertreatment systems.
The engineers evaluated the performance of the engine and transmission at low temperatures, as well as the air conditioning in the driver’s cab and the use of an additional heater at very low outside temperatures.
Die Daimler Truck found that next to that Zetros others too Mercedes-Benz-Vehicles were tested in the same arctic environment. These included the Unimogthe Econic and the eArocs 400which were also subjected to cold tests.
The Zetros is specifically a conventional four-wheel drive truck platform commonly used for military transportation, logistics and support tasks. Its configuration is intended to provide crew protection, high mobility and adaptability to different mission modules.
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Photo: Daimler Truck. This content was created using AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
