Expedition vehicles

Action Mobil: MAN enough?

Camping is supposed to be one of life’s gentler pleasures. A welcome break from the office bedlam, with nothing to disturb the evening peace but the clink of glasses and the laughter of distant children.

Sometimes, though, one feels like disturbing the peace. In our case, we fantasize about thundering down a Siberian forest road at dusk, piloting a six-wheel-drive expedition vehicle at irresponsible speeds. With DJ Hell’s My Definition of House tearing up the subwoofer.

For this, one needs an Action Mobil.

The new Globecruiser model—first picture below—fits the bill nicely. Due for a shakedown trip to Africa in April 2009, it’s based on the MAN TGA 6×6 platform—as occasionally used by Unicat, that other purveyor of expedition excess.

Motive power comes from a giant 783ci turbodiesel, which pumps out a very healthy 388 kW. (Actually, make that a fairly healthy 388 kW—this mill doesn’t meet the latest EURO 5 regulations, but EURO 3 isn’t too bad considering.)

The two fuel tanks hold 219 gallons. A refill costs enough to put an Icelandic bank out of business, but if you can afford the Globecruiser’s €490,000 ($670,000) sticker price, you can afford $800 at the pump.

The water capacity is equally awe-inspiring at 154 gallons, which no doubt contributes to the Globecruiser’s 21-ton weight. So don’t ask what the mileage is. But if that makes you feel guilty, check out the 4 x 240W solar system, which supplements the batteries and LPG tanks. Drivers are well looked after too, with heated air-suspension seats, and satellite systems to provide pinpoint navigation to the nearest водка bar.

Action Mobil’s website is rather dodgy, but whatever. These guys are engineers, not online marketing specialists. Around 250 expedition vehicles have rolled out of the Saalfelden werks since 1979, and the company recently delivered the world’s largest all-wheel-drive motorhome to a client in the Middle East. (Where gas prices are presumably of little concern.)

You probably won’t bump into Al Gore driving an Action Mobil. But if you’re a well-heeled survivalist, a Mad Max re-enactor or a Robb Report reader, get your PA to call +43 6582 72712-0. And get Stephan on the line.

See also
Action Mobil’s main global competitor is Unicat, which builds most of its expedition vehicles on the Unimog platform. Check out our Unicat article for more details and pictures. In the US, the leading ‘extreme RV’ maker is Global Expedition Vehicles, and we’ve profiled their mighty Unimog U500-based truck.