GM Authority spy photographers have caught a highly interesting vehicle being transported in the vicinity of the General Motors Milford Proving Ground.
These exclusive GM Authority photos show a German Rheinmetall Defence military truck being transported on the back of a large flatbed trailer in Oakland County, Michigan. This truck was spotted near the GM Milford Proving Ground – a potential sign that this behemoth was being worked on or evaluated by the automaker’s growing military arm, GM Defense.
As we already know, GM is exploring ways to implement its Hydrotec hydrogen fuel cell technology into large vehicles such as transport trucks and locomotives. The automaker could therefore be collaborating with Rheinmetall Defence or another third-party company to convert this military truck into a hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, although we’re only speculating here. GM has also expressed a desire to install battery-electric tech into certain military vehicles, although this massive truck looks as though it may be too big and heavy to adequately use a pure EV powertrain.
While we aren’t sure why this truck was near the Milford Proving Ground, we find this sighting to be very curious. GM said previously that sees a $25 billion market in creating new products for military applications, so the sighting could be related to the ongoing expansion of GM Defense.
This truck, to be more specific, is a Rheinmetall Defence HX3. The tactical military truck is available in multiple variants, including 4×4, 6×6, 8×8 and 10×10, has a gross weight rating of 38 to 50 tons and can be fitted with a variety of weapons systems, as well as a crane. It’s typically powered by a MAN D26 Euro II diesel engine. This is a very new and up-to-date military vehicle, with Rheinmetall first rolling the HX3 out in early 2021.
If this is indeed a GM Defense-related sighting, we imagine the automaker will have some trouble transporting this massive military truck in secrecy. We’ll provide an update if this truck is spotted near Milford again in the future, but for now, be sure to subscribe to GM Authority for more GM Defense news and around-the-clock General Motors news coverage.
Comments
Intriguing story.
Where is the last foto taken from? The landscape looks rather German than Northamerican, among the rather baroque church tower.
But this vehicle has the same strange logo on the driver’s cabin door.
The one photographed by GMA also seems to have a livence plate. Could you see it?
This vehicle might have been brought to the US to hand it over to the US Army as a potential customer for testing, or to be shown in a fair of military hardware.
For this kind of vehicle, Rheinmetall has formed a joint venture with MAN, called „Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles GmbH“. On their website this strange logo can be seen again:
rheinmetall-defence dot com/en
/rheinmetall_defence/systems_and_products/vehicle_systems/military_trucks/hx3_generation/index
dot php
Note: MAN is part of VW’s holding for heavier trucks named Traton, together with Scania, Volkswagen Caminhões e Ônibus (Brasil), Navistar and RIO.
The last photo is a stock photo from the manufacturer. Not sure where it was taken.
We only were able to get the three photos above, as it was passing us the other way, so we don’t have any of the plate.
On which road was this beast being transported, and in which direction?
I96? US23? Or another?
This vehicle might be on the way to or coming from:
American Rheinmetall Vehicles, LLC
33844 Sterling Ponds Blvd.
Sterling Heights, MI 48312
U.S.A.
Some blocks north of the GM Warren Technical center and other installations of the automobile industry.
Put this inside of putler’s a ss. That lil pos deserves it.
Maybe GM worker’s at the Milford proving grounds are doing target practice on scrapped vehicles lol… But seriously this is an awesome looking truck!
Is this a canon or a crane on the truck?
Here Jeep Jeep!
GM’s answer to Jeep.
If anything it’s to evaluate the duramax as a potential power plant. Diesel is the favorite fuel for military vehicles as it’s the least volatile. You can put a round right through the tank without it exploding. I don’t even see the wokest generals in Norway moving to EV military vehicles any time period. Lithium is even more volatile than gas.
My one exception to that rule is I can see a general somewhere parking a camp Silverado EV outside his HQ to virtue signal.
Obviously we’re building up our defenses on our northern boarder. In case Canada tries taking back the Stanley Cup.
While we’re at it, we should force Canadian musicians, like Drake and The Weekend, to use 2 names. Also force Tim Hortons to make their donuts fresh. No more of that frozen crap.
Hey buddy I’m glad you didn’t take that bet about Russia things aren’t looking to go for you if you would of took it. I wouldn’t of taken your money anyways.
Haha we will still have it this year I can feel it the blackhawks are going to win it this year 😁 👍
A Awesome piece of equipment. I need one for gopher hunting..lol
Haha, I’m curious about the caliper actually. 155 with a 90 caliper barrel?
Maybe they found something with the same curb weight as the Hummer EV and they’re evaluating how well the roads around Milford hold up.
Have you noted that this military truck does not ride with its own power, but is transported as cargo on a flat bed trailer? This truck has obviously not a NHTSA certification to use US roads by its own power…
Besides, via the 10 wheels with wide tires of this truck, it would distribute its weight quite well. From the designation “10 x 10” for this beast, I conclude that all 10 wheels are powered.
Observer,
That was a joke and yet another slap at gm for building a ‘green’ vehicle that weighs 4-1/2 tons. I’m sure I sound like a broken record but to build something so grossly huge and heavy that consumes so much energy to go from Point A to Point B is not planet saving; even if it’s an EV.
Already a huge monster and 50 tons as heavy as a tank?
I can imagine that this military 10×10 truck from Germany, at the request of the American military, may only be driven with an American low-loader truck on the US roads.
In Germany such a monster only drives on a freight train of the Deutsche Bahn after an elaborate approval by truck heavy transport accompanied by the police!
Think in the USA these extremely large military vehicles do not drive around regularly on the streets because there is no environmental protection or personal protection in the event of an accident.
Long as it’s not painted and given to united nations for use in usa
Maybe a recall because it’s CVT transmission slippage.
The vehicle is most probably the mobile howitzer study based on the HX3 10×10 that Rheinmetall showed at AUSA 2021.