Hybrid patrol vehicle called 'safest of its kind'

(Credit: Rheinmetall)

Check out the schnoz on this one. D?sseldorf based Rheinmetall advertises its Gefas (Gesch?tztes Fahrzeugsystem) as the "safest, most future-proof system of its kind anywhere."

The conceptual model shown here was configured for convoy protection. Some options include a high-powered, electromagnetic, counter-IED system, an automated weapons station controlled from safely inside the vehicle, electro-optical sensor systems with downstream image processing for detecting and tracking moving targets, a 12-meter tactical radar, laser-optical sensors for detecting enemy optics, and an "instantaneously activated" smokescreen.

(Credit: Rheinmetall)

Gefas replaces standard steering and braking with a hybrid-electric Renk "drive by wire" system. Each Timoney double-wishbone axle has its own electric drive (comes in 4x4 to 8x8) which--along with the all-wheel-steering and run-flat, auto-inflating tires--gives you a better chance of gettin' in or out of a fracas. Up to six passengers ride in a suspended safety cell attached to the roof, protecting them from landmines and booby traps.

But what really distinguishes the Gefas is its modular, building-block assembly. The modules, composed of axles, power pack, and a main building block, are held together by connectors that can break at predetermined points when damaged in battle. This allows the surviving modules to be reconnected to form a another completely viable vehicle, according to Rheinmetall.