ZIL-485

The ZIL-485, known in the army as the BAV (large amphibious vehicle), was the Soviet Army's post-war 2.5-tonne amphibious truck. In 1949 ZIS declined to design it, so the work went to the Dnepropetrovsk Automobile Plant (DAZ) under Vitaly Grachev. The requirement was to carry at least 2.5 tonnes, a platoon of soldiers, heavy mortars or a gun of up to 122 mm across water obstacles.

Design

The American DUKW was the obvious model. Grachev, however, saw its weak points: a short cargo bed and a winch at the stern that blocked loading from the rear. The BAV was built from standard Soviet parts, mainly from the GAZ-63 and ZIS-151 trucks. Unlike the ZIS-151 it had large single tyres on all axles, so that the rear wheels ran in the front wheels' tracks. A central tyre-pressure system, developed with the tyre research institute, let the driver drop pressure from about 3 to 0.5-0.7 kgf/cm2 on soft ground. The thin-walled steel hull holds the engine and cab at the front. The engine is a 5.55-litre six-cylinder of 110-112 hp, with an extensive cooling system for slow work in the water. A propeller drives the vehicle afloat, and the steering wheel controls it both on land and in the water. It had a five-speed gearbox, a winch and a rear tailgate.

History

Two DAZ-485 prototypes were built in August 1950. Loaded with 2.5 tonnes they reached 73 km/h on the road and 10.7 km/h in the water, although they were short of power. In 1951 DAZ was switched to rocket work and the project moved to ZIS in Moscow. The first four ZIS-485s left the line in July 1952, with series production from 1953. The improved ZIL-485A followed, and then the ZIL-485B with a single-plate clutch, synchromesh gearbox, separate power take-off for propeller and winch, and better brakes. The BAV was also an early test bed for tyre inflation through the wheel hub. Production moved to the Bryansk plant (BAZ) and ended in 1962. The BAV stayed in service until the mid-1960s, and some were used by East German fire brigades, including in Potsdam, as the BAW.