IFA W50

IFA W50 Photo

IFA W50 Truck Information

IFA W50 Information and other IFA trucks timeline

IFA from the former East Germany is now one of the almost forgotten brands. At the time of its greatest glory, it covered 65 industrial companies, including truck manufacturers.

IFA stands for Industrieverband Fahrzeugbau, which was founded in the second half of the 1940s by order of the Soviet military administration in Germany. The wings of this association included, among others, the automotive and motorcycle brands Robur, Barkas, Multicar, Wartburg, Trabant, MZ and Simson.

In the 1940s and 1950s, for example, F8 and F9 passenger cars were produced directly under the IFA brand, based on DKW pre-war cars with the then modern two-stroke engines and front-wheel drive. The first of this pair is followed by Trabant cars, while the second is Wartburg.

In addition to passenger cars, a number of trucks also carried the IFA brand. The first of them, marked H3, was born on the basis of military technology on the orders of the already mentioned military administration of the USSR. The starting point for the development of the three-ton truck H3 was the project of a one and a half ton vehicle Auto-Union AU 1500 originally from 1941, which was not produced.

The Maybach HL 42 six-cylinder petrol in-line was then used for propulsion, providing 74 kW of 4.2 l. This engine was originally the driving unit of Sd.Kfz half-belt transporters. 250, Sd.Kfz. 251 and Sd.Kfz. 11. Engines from stock were destined for the production of H3 trucks, resulting in only 852 vehicles.

Model H3 with a wheelbase of 3000 mm and a total length of 5945 mm was produced between 1947 and 1949 in the former company VEB HORCH Kraftfahrzeug- und Motorenwerke Zwickau and thanks to that the letter H is in its name. and is the first of a line of IFA trucks to become after the establishment of the aforementioned association in 1948.

The IFA H3A represents a direct evolution of the H3 model, which at first glance differs from the significantly longer bonnet and the shape of the cab. The main difference is the used power unit, which in this model is a diesel four-cylinder with a volume of 6.0 l and a maximum output of 59 kW. The truck with a load capacity of 3.5 tons reached a top speed of 70 km / h and was produced without major changes between 1950 and 1958.

In addition to the basic design of the H3A intended for the assembly of flatbed, tipping and box superstructures, this representative of the IFA brand was also produced as a tractor for semi-trailers and also received derived designs. Behind the designation Z3 was a vehicle with a shortened wheelbase and a short body, which was designed to tow a set of two lifts. The H3A chassis then also served as the basis for the H3B bus.

The IFA H6 was a medium-duty truck that complemented the smaller H3A with a load capacity of 6.0 tons and was introduced at the Leipzig trade fair in 1951. Production of the H6 model series took place in Werdau from 1952 to 1959. even though it was being worked on, but due to the political situation at the time, it was decided to import heavy trucks of the Tatra and Kamaz brands.

Under the elegant long hood of the H6 series vehicles, continuing the Horch brand tradition together with the H3A vehicles, a six-cylinder diesel in-line was placed longitudinally. It first had a volume of 9.0 and an output of 88 kW. Subsequently, a 9.84-liter engine with an output of 110 kW was used, and the top was a diesel six-cylinder with an output of 140 kW. The transmission was always a five-speed manual.

The IFA S4000-1 is a direct continuation of the H3A model and is an evolution of the S4000 model, produced briefly only in 1958 and 1959. Kinship with older models reveals the appearance of the bow, bonnet and cabin, which is practically identical except for small details. On the contrary, the technology did not escape the changes, and the result was an increase in performance and load capacity.

The trucks of the S4000-1 model series from 1959 to 1967 were fitted with a 6.0 l diesel four-cylinder with a maximum output of 66 kW and a torque of 310 N.m. The transmission was a manual five-speed. The vehicle with a load capacity of 4.0 tons was produced in a number of designs with wheelbases from 2500 through 3250 and 3550 to 3900 mm. A total of around 21,000 S4000-1 vehicles were to be produced, and in addition to the East German market, these trucks were also delivered to Poland, Bulgaria, Vietnam and Cuba.

We know the IFA W50 from 1965 to 1990 relatively well. No wonder, because it is the most widespread truck from the former GDR, which has 571,789 copies produced in its account in about 60 variants. The depiction of this vehicle was even on East German banknotes with a value of five marks.

The development of a new truck to replace the S4000-1 series began in the second half of the 1950s, and in the first half of the 1960s a 4.5-tonne W45 prototype was completed, but eventually thanks to the intervention of the then German Democratic Republic leadership. , headed by Walter Ulbricht, was reworked to a load capacity of five tons.

The IFA W50 has been produced since 1965 at the Automobilwerke Ludwigsfelde plant built specifically for these trucks. The power unit was a diesel four-cylinder with a volume of 6.56 l with outputs from 81 to 92 kW, which cooperated with a five-speed manual transmission. The basic version with a wheelbase of 3200 mm was followed by the W50 L version with a wheelbase extended to 3700 mm. In the second half of the 1960s, the W50 LA with assignable front-wheel drive was introduced.

The IFA L60 is the last serial IFA truck to be launched in 1987 and manufactured until August 1990. The L60 has a total of 20,289 vehicles produced. In the offer of the IFA brand, it supplemented the older W50 model line throughout the production period, but according to long-term plans, it was to gradually replace it.

Trucks of the L60 model series with a load capacity of 6.2 tons were available in various designs with wheelbases from 3200 to 3860 mm, which were powered by a diesel in-line six-cylinder, which from a volume of 9.16 l provided the highest power of 132 kW and torque of 634 Nm An eight-speed transmission and all-wheel drive were standard. Since 1988, only rear-wheel drive versions have been available.

In the spring of 1990, on the basis of a memorandum of understanding, Automobilwerke Ludwigsfelde, which produced IFA trucks, announced a strategic partnership with Daimler-Benz. As a result, a new type of vehicle called the IFA 1318 should be developed. The cab was to be supplied by Daimler-Benz, while the chassis, engines and gearboxes were produced by East German companies.

A prototype of the new IFA truck was introduced at its production plant in early May 1990, but as early as July of the same year, cooperation on the development of a new type was terminated due to changes in Germany's political situation. According to a survey, IFA vehicles no longer had a chance of success in the open market. As a result, Automobilwerke Ludwigsfelde started production of Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles in 1991 and subsequently became part of the then Daimler-Benz AG concern in 1994.

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