Friedrich designed the Unimog for German agriculture in 1945 and it spent its first decade on farms with ploughs, mowers and trailers on its power take-offs; forestry offices, the Deutsche Bundesbahn (as a road-rail shunter), municipal road and snow crews, fire brigades and the electricity and water utilities followed, and the 406, 421 and UGN are still the implement carriers of European towns. Surplus 404s and U 1300 Ls became the classic overland expedition trucks and the U 5023 is the chassis of the factory-built ones.
The G-Class went to work in the W460 and W461: the 240 GD and 300 GD with forestry, utilities, mountain rescue, the Red Cross and aid agencies in Africa; the 230 G Popemobile of 1980; the 280 GE that won the 1983 Paris–Dakar; the G 300 CDI Professional of the 2010s for the same buyers. The W463 took the G to Beverly Hills and the Gulf, and the 6x6, 4x4² and Landaulet were its extremes.
Unimog on the farm and the road (1948–1974)
1 VEHICLE IN THIS CHAPTERBoehringer’s and Gaggenau’s 70200, 401 and 411 with ploughs, mowers and trailers; forestry, municipalities, the railways.
Registry records · chapter 1
406, 421 and the municipal Unimog (1963–today)
3 VEHICLES IN THIS CHAPTERThe medium Unimogs of road maintenance, snow-clearing, mowing, sweeping, road-rail shunting and fire brigades; the UGN with VarioPilot since 2000.
Expedition and fire Unimogs (1980–today)
4 VEHICLES IN THIS CHAPTERSurplus 404s and U 1300 Ls as overland trucks, the U 1700 L and U 5023 of Unicat, Bliss Mobil and Action Mobil, wildfire tenders and disaster-relief vehicles; Dakar.
G-Class at work (1979–today)
6 VEHICLES IN THIS CHAPTERThe 240 GD and 300 GD of forestry, utilities and aid agencies, the Popemobile, the Dakar 280 GE, the G 300 CDI Professional; the W463 and its AMG, 6x6 and 4x4² as the luxury and Gulf G.
Sources
- Unimog — Wikipedia
- Mercedes-Benz G-Class — Wikipedia
Working Mercedes-Benz vehicles in the registry
14 records, oldest first.
Unimog 70200, 401 and 411 (1948–74)1948–74 · Germany
Unimog 404 S (1955–80)1955–80 · Germany
Unimog 406 agricultural and municipal1963–89 · Germany
Unimog 406, 416 and 421 (1963–89)1963–89 · Germany
Unimog U 1300 L (Bundeswehr)1976–93 · Germany
280 GE (W460)1979–91 · Austria
300 GD and 240 GD (W460)1979–91 · Austria
G-Class W460 (1979–91)1979–91 · Austria
G-Class W463 (1990–2018)1990–2018 · Austria
Unimog UGN implement carrier (405, 2000–)2000 · Germany
Unimog UHN all-terrain (437.4, 2002–)2002 · Germany
G 300 CDI Professional (W461)2010–16 · Austria
G 63 AMG 6x6 (2013–15)2013–15 · Austria
Unimog U 5023 (expedition and fire)2013 · Germany