1898–1914 beginning (1900, replica)
The first truck manufactured at Kopřivnice in 1898 was a flatbed with two liquid-cooled side-by-side-mounted two-cylinder Benz engines each at 2.7 L capacity with total power output of 8.8 kW (12 hp) placed after the rear axle and cargo capacity of 2.5 ton. The unique feature of the engine setup was that the engines could be operated sequentially depending on the load requirements. No. 1 engine was started via a cranking handle and had a flywheel attached, and No. 2 engine, without the flywheel, was connected via a gear clutch and started by the first engine already running. The second truck manufactured was once again a flatbed R type of 2.5 ton cargo capacity built in 1909. Powered by a liquid-cooled petrol four-cylinder engine of 4.1 L capacity and power output of 18.4 kW (25 hp) with the engine placed above the front axle, which is the conventional design to this day. The vehicle featured solid rubber tyres and semi-elliptic leaf spring suspension. In 1910, Tatra manufactured its first bus, the Omnibus type SO, with a total production of five units.
1914–1922 serial production The first true serial truck production at Tatra was instigated by the beginning of
World War I. In the year 1914, there were only two trucks made, type
T 14/40 HP; however, by 1915's end, the production jumped to a total of 105
TL-2 units, and the following year, 1916, the numbers rose to a total of 196 TL-2 and 30
TL-4. Production peaked in 1917 with 19 TL-2 and 303 TL-4 models, but then production declined, and a similar number of vehicles of one type manufactured in a year was not achieved or surpassed until 1936 with the T 27 model. Technically, models TL-2 and TL-4 were almost identically designed; in fact, TL-4 evolved from TL-2, where both had liquid-cooled
OHC engines of max power output of . The TL-2 had a
GVM and
GCM, TL-4 had GVM and GCM respectively. Both types remained in production in small series until 1927. The TL-4 is considered the first truck to come out of NW (Nesselsdorfer Wagenbau) to carry the name Tatra in 1919.
1923–1938 Tatra concept After the introduction of Tatra 11 and Tatra 12 cars with their distinctive backbone tube design and swing axles, Tatra introduced its first truck on the same basis, the light utility Tatra 13 powered by 2-cylinder air-cooled petrol engine with power output 8.8 kW (12 hp) and cargo capacity. Further models followed, and in 1926,
T23 and
T24 were introduced, nicknamed "bulldogs", which could be considered Tatra's precursors to
COE designed trucks. Improved version
T13 was introduced as
T26 with a more powerful 4-cylinder flat air-cooled engine and in six-wheeler chassis created capable offroad light utility truck which later evolved into
T72 model which was heavily used by the
Czechoslovak Army at the time and was also manufactured under license by the French company Lorraine-Dietrich. In 1933, Tatra built a limited series of
T25 heavy artillery tractors with 4 and 6-cylinder petrol engines. The most popular Tatra truck before
World War II was type
T27 powered by 4-cylinder petrol or diesel engines, which remained in production for nearly 17 years (1930–1947) with total production of 7,620 units. By adding an extra axle to the rear, the type
T28 was created; however, it was not successful and only limited production resulted in a mainly bus chassis. In the period from 1931 to 1938, Tatra also built a small utility truck based on the chassis from T30 named Tatra
T43 which remained popular with small business owners.
T72 model successfully continued the line to
T82 built mainly for military in cargo and personnel transport between 1935 and 1938 and further to
T92 and
T93 built for the Romanian army from 1938 to 1941 which were identical except T93 had also a driven front axle.
1939–1956 World War II and beyond Following the
Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, the production at Kopřivnice was annexed by the Germans for the supply of trucks needed by the
Wehrmacht. Apart from the existing line-up of T27, T92/92, a new heavy truck, the
T81, commenced production featuring a liquid-cooled 12.5 L V8 diesel engine with a power output of , in 6×4 axle configuration. This vehicle evolved in 1942 into the
T111 which continued in production until 1962, with a total of 33,690 units made. The T111 also featured Tatra's first air-cooled diesel engine, a massive V12 originally designed for the armoured
Sd.Kfz. 234 Puma. In the latter stages of World War II, Tatra was instrumental in the development of air-cooled diesel engines for German tanks. In late 1944, General
Heinz Guderian ordered that production of the Type 38(t)
Hetzer tank be modified to incorporate a Tatra Type 928 V-8 air-cooled diesel engine, though this order was delayed so production could continue uninterrupted. After the war, the T111 contributed heavily to the rebuilding effort in
Central and
Eastern Europe, and a memorial was built at
Magadan,
Siberia, for its exploits in the
Far East of the
USSR.
1957–1982 moving forward The decision to replace the reliable but ageing T111 was taken in 1952 based on
central planning economy of
socialist government where directive was made to Tatra N.P. that it should concentrate on the manufacture of 7 to 10 ton capacity commercial vehicles and in 1956 first
T137 and
T138 trucks were exhibited at the Czechoslovak machinery
expo in
Brno. Production of the T111 continued alongside the T138 series until 1962. The T138 itself continued in production until 1969 when it was replaced by the
T148, which provided an increase in power output, reliability, and product improvements. In 1967, Tatra began production of the
T813 off-road truck using its modular construction technology; the model incorporated the latest trends in commercial vehicle design, such as cab-over-engine (COE) and wide profile tyres. It featured a new V12 engine, and all military versions had a central tyre inflation/deflation system as standard equipment. The T813 was designed to tow loads up to 100 tons
GCM, and it was a familiar sight on the roads in Czechoslovakia hauling large, often oversized loads.
1982–2008 T815 and beyond (1983), multiple winning car of
Dakar Rally The Tatra 815 was designed for extreme off-road conditions, and its road versions are derived from the off-road original. After the 53rd session of the
Council for Mutual Economic Assistance, a directive was issued that Tatra N.P. would be the sole supplier of off-road commercial vehicles of <12 ton capacity for Eastern Bloc countries, leading to a modernization of the company and its production models. Following extensive testing at different sites, including Siberia, the type T815 was introduced in 1982, with production starting in 1983. The T815 was made of 142 main assembly components as opposed to the 219 main assembly components of its predecessor. The engine's power output was increased by up to 45% and a new COE tiltable cabin was introduced. Modular engine designs resulted in offerings of V8, V10, or V12 engines with or without a turbocharger. T815 was upgraded to T815-2 with minor cosmetic changes and improved ergonomics and safety – the biggest change was the engine emissions accordance with the "Euro0" limits and to
Euro I limits in 1993 (turbocharged V8 engine only since this time for the full legislation; the
Deutz 513 air-cooled V8 engine was offered as an alternative). The TerrNo1, introduced in 1997, featured a redesigned cabin as well as better sound and heat insulation than the previous models. The TerrNo1 was based on the same frame as the previous models, so its cabin could be retrofitted to all type T815s built since 1993. In 2000, the TerrNo1 cabin was again redesigned, and for the first time, there was an option to fit liquid-cooled engines. The TerrNo1 model introduced the 'KingFrame rear axle suspension setup. Another step in evolution for the T3B engine came with the
Euro II emission limits. Following further improvements in 2003, the T815 had the new
Euro III T3C V8 engine mated to all new 14-speed range+split gearbox as well as an option for engines from other suppliers such as
Caterpillar,
Cummins,
Detroit Diesel,
Deutz and
MTU to be fitted. In September 2006, Tatra introduced its
Euro IV compliant turbocharged T3D engine with the
SCR exhaust technology, and in February 2008, the company introduced the world's first
Euro V-compliant air-cooled diesel engine based on the T3D engine. The T816 (T815-6) Armax and Force series, derivatives of Tatra 815, were introduced in 1993 after Tatra participated in the tender process to supply heavy duty off-road trucks to the
UAE armed forces. After two years of bidding, the company secured a contract worth $180 million. The resulting model became known as T816 "LIWA" (
Arabic for "desert"). The 2008 model intended for military customers is the T817 (T815-7), marketed primarily toward the armed services of
NATO member countries as a high-mobility heavy-duty tactical truck with a low profile cabin for
C-130 Hercules transportability. During the 1990s, Tatra decided to produce a bonneted CBE heavy-duty off-road truck to continue the successful line started with the T111. This resulted in the
T163 Jamal, which was put into full production in 1999 after the first prototypes were built in 1997 and following extensive testing. The T163 was purpose-built to be a heavy-duty dump truck due to demand, and was based on Tatra's signature backbone tube chassis construction with its cabin being designed by Jiří Španihel. The truck is used mainly on construction sites and in quarries. Tatra was also a successful bidder for the
Czech Army replacement of aging Praga V3S (with the Tatra I6 air-cooled engine – one half of the T111 V12 one) medium off-road truck with
T810 which technically is not a "genuine" Tatra as its origin goes back to when former Czech company ROSS, in partnership with Renault Trucks, obtained a contract to supply the army with medium size off-road trucks, the "ROSS R210 6×6". The company, however, went bankrupt in 1998, and Tatra bought full rights to the design, then modernized and reintroduced it as T810 while continuing cooperation with Renault. Under the deal Renault supplies the cabins and the engines and
Praga supplied axles and transmissions for the prototypes; however, the whole project has been dogged by controversy due to the way Tatra had obtained the contract, its relationship with supplier Praga and the subsequent court case brought against it by Praga. The serial T810 vehicles are equipped with the new design Tatra rigid axles with the
WABCO disc brakes, with the
ZF Ecolite transmission and
Steyr drop box.
Navistar and Tatra Tatra and
Navistar Defence introduced at
Eurosatory Exposition in Paris, France (Jun 14–18, 2010), the results of their strategic alliance since October 2009, the models ATX6 (universal container carrier) and ATX8 (troop carrier). The vehicles appear to be based on Tatra 815-7 (T817) 6×6, 8×8 chassis, suspension and cabins while using Navistar engines and other components. Under the deal Navistar Defence and Tatra A.S. will market the vehicles in North America, which includes sales to the United States military and foreign military sales financed by the United States government. Tatra will source parts and components through Navistar's global parts and support network for Tatra trucks delivered in markets outside of North America, as well as market Navistar-Tatra vehicles around the world in their primary markets. ==Ownership==