LONDON: If you’re driving the full length of Britain from Land’s End to John O’Groats in a classic car rally, a VW Iltis would probably not be your first choice.
The 40-year-old off-road vehicle is hopelessly underpowered at just 55 kW/75 hp. Even at full throttle, the Jeep-like car barely gets above 120kph.
Under its fluttering roof, which makes any camping tent look solid, there’s such a draught that from September onwards you hardly want to take it out of the garage at all.
So it seems a miracle that the Iltis (German for Polecat) was one of the stars at the edition of the UK rally known as LeJog held in December 2021.
In this winter rally described by the organisers as a “gruelling 1,300-mile reliability trial,” a convoy of almost 100 classic car teams travelled Britain from Cornwall in the south to the far north of Scotland.
The rustic pensioner from the VW collection earned not only respect and recognition, but sometimes even envy, with the vehicle designed for the German military able to survive the worst back roads and dirt tracks that the UK has to offer.
The veteran isn’t a complete stranger to rallies though. In 1980 an Iltis boosted to 74 kW/100hp won the Paris-Dakar rally, while other Iltis finished in second, fourth and ninth place.
Sascha Neumann of the VW Classic Collection sees this as proof of the car’s quality: “Four Iltis at the start and all four cars in the top 10 at the finish.”
What the Iltis lacks in speed, it makes up for in stamina and with all-wheel drive engaged, there’s no stopping it.
That all-wheel drive was well needed on the LeJog route, which goes over forest and field tracks, through moors and mountains, over beaches and fields, through fords, and over cattle grids.
As it did over four decades ago in Paris-Dakar, the Iltis makes it to the podium, finishing third in its group. Not bad for an old-timer.
The car’s surprising success in the desert race isn’t the only reason why the Iltis holds a place of honour in VW history.
After all, it was the unbeatable handling of an Iltis prototype during winter test drives that led Audi to the idea of incorporating all-wheel drive into sporty road cars as well, which ultimately gave the automotive world the famous Quattro in 1980.
The German military was the driving force behind the development of the Iltis and became its principal buyer. In the 1970s, the military was desperate for a new off-road vehicle and VW’s prototype was chosen.
The Iltis went into production in 1978 and by the end of 1981, the Bundeswehr had taken delivery of a total of 8,800 vehicles.
Production ceased in 1982 after 10,801 vehicles had been built in Germany, but after that Canada’s Bombardier took over and built another 4,500. The car finally disappeared from the market in 1988.
In the classic car scene, the Iltis has never really made it.
“During its run, it failed outright with private customers because it was simply too expensive,” says Frank Wilke, an expert from market watcher Classic Analytics.
“At just under 40,000 Deutschmarks, the four-seater cost almost three times as much as a Golf at the time.”
No wonder, then, that less than 10% of the Iltis produced were bought by civilians.
Where other classic cars from the off-road scene now fetch high prices, the Iltis is still relatively affordable. According to Classic Analytics, you can buy the venerable off-roader today for around €12,000 (RM56,000).
Keyword: VW Iltis, the off-roader that won rallies and inspired Audi's Quattro