Mercedes-Benz » L319

At the International Motor Show in Frankfurt-am-Main in 1955 the Daimler-Benz has presented the L319 van, the first postwar truck of the company. The construction of the floor firstly was included a hard to twist frame. This frame consisted of transverse and longitudinal beams and allowed to install different types of bodies. Two sliding doors fixed on inner rails made loading and unloading much more easily. The first has been presented a 1.75-ton truck L319D with an integral body, distinguished by original design with elliptical headlamps and move forward front wheels. Flatbed trucks and chassis have a spar frame. Their diesel engine OM636 (1767 cm3, 43 hp) was taken from passenger cars 180D, and the principle of installing it and a front axle on an additional stretcher has already been used on cars. Since 1957, the L319 was equipped with a 1.9-liter carbureted 65 hp engine from new passenger car Mercedes-Benz 190. All trucks were equipped with synchronized 4-speed gearboxes, hypoid final drive, and uncut bridges on leaf springs, hydraulic brakes and rack steering mechanism. Since 1961, the capacity of the trucks has been increased to 50 and 68 hp respectively, providing a maximum speed of 95 km/h. The diesel version has fuel consumption only 8.5 liters per 100 kilometers. Demand for cheap, maneuverable, and economical trucks was so high that in 1958 its serial production began at the old Auto Union plant in Düsseldorf. Until 1967 over 107 thousand copies have been made.