4x4s.org ENGINE MAKER · SOUTH AFRICA

Maker · engine maker · Defence contractor · South Africa

Atlantis Diesel Engines

The diesel-engine maker the South African government set up after UN Security Council Resolution 418, licensed in 1979 to build Mercedes-Benz and Perkins engines for the Ratel, Buffel, Casspir and SAMIL trucks; its ADE 352N and ADE 409N replaced the air-cooled Deutz engines in the SAMIL 20 and 50 Mk II.

0VEHICLES IN THE REGISTRY1979FOUNDED—VEHICLE YEARSActive since 1979STATUS

History

The 1977 arms embargo cut South Africa off from imported military engines, and the government started Atlantis Diesel Engines to make them at home under licence from Mercedes-Benz and Perkins, chiefly for military vehicles. The water-cooled ADE 352N, a licence-built Mercedes-Benz OM 352, went into the SAMIL 20 Mk II in place of the Deutz F6L 913, and the ADE 409N into the SAMIL 50 Mk II. The original company became insolvent in 1999; it was reopened in 2009 by private shareholders and now also distributes Mercedes, MAN, CAT, Bell and MTU engines and parts.

Sources & citations

Other makers

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Maker record updated 2026-09-24 · status: researched