Please Note: Information regarding these museum display vehicles was provided by the National Military History Center and has not been independently verified by Auctions America by RM ("AA"). As such, AA does not verify, warrant or guarantee any of this information. Prior inspection and research by the buyer is highly encouraged and recommended.
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Please note this is being sold on "Bill of Sale" only.
Manufacturer: Steyr-Daimler-Puch AG, Steyr, Austria
Production Year: 1942
Engine: Steyr 1500 A, 3.5-liter 70-hp, air-cooled, eight-cylinder, gasoline
Length: 14-feet, 6-inches
Width: 6-feet, 6-inches
Height: 8-feet, 6-inches
Weight: Approximately 3.5-tons
Armor: None
Armament: NONE on this example – (some were converted to 2.0-cm self-propelled flak mounts)
Maximum Road Speed: 11-mph
Crew: Two
Markings: German 16th SS Panzer Grenadier Division, Motorized Artillery Unit, 1942 “Panzer Grey” paint
Conditions on the Eastern Front, where already poor roads turned to seas of mud during rainy seasons and slush in the spring thaws, dictated the development of the Raupenschlepper-Ost (tracked tractor-east). The RSO/01, as displayed, was the first production model. The cab featured a commercial-type pressed-steel cab and wood cargo body. The RSO/01 could carry a load of approximately 1-1/2-tons or tow an artillery piece of up to 3-tons. Steering was accomplished through a pair of upright steering levers connected to hydraulic brakes on the sprockets and idlers - much in the same way as a typical World War II tank. The RSO was intended to be primarily an artillery tractor for the 7.5-cm Pak 40 anti-tank gun, 10.5-cm leFH 18 light field howitzer or the 15-cm Nebelwerfer multiple rocket launcher. It also was occasionally used as a light cargo and ammunition carrier. The RSO tractors proved to be useful and popular with the German troops. Most production models were used on the Eastern front; however, some examples were encountered by Allied troops in Western Europe and Italy. Steyr manufactured approximately 2,600 of the 28,257 RSO tractors built during World War II.