Allison Transmission expands wheeled defense vehicles outside North America

Allison Transmission has made significant strides in the global defense market, achieving key program wins to significantly expand Allison's installed base and revenue in the wheeled defense vehicle segment. Allison is experiencing continued growth in this vehicle segment because of strategic partnerships with vehicle manufacturers to support defense programs outside North America.

The Allison Specialty Series (SP) transmission has been selected for several wheeled defense vehicles. The Canadian Department of National Defence will receive Mercedes-Benz Zetros four-axle 8x8 vehicles with the Allison 4500 SP automatic transmission in partnership with GDLS-Canada as part of the Logistics Vehicle Modernization (LVM) project. Production is slated to begin in 2025.

Over the past year, ARTEC, a consortium of KNDS company Kraus-Maffei-Wegmann and Rheinmetall, chose Allison's 4800 SP transmission for the British Ministry of Defence's Boxer armored vehicle program. Initial transmissions have been delivered in the U.K. for use in the 8x8 Boxer Mechanised Infantry Vehicle, part of a larger order for new Boxer vehicles intended for the British Army.

Additionally, the German Federal Armed Forces will receive Boxer vehicles, with deliveries starting in 2025. More than 700 Boxer vehicles have been delivered in recent years to countries including Australia, Germany, Lithuania and the Netherlands. The U.K. Ministry of Defence has also placed an order currently in production with Supacat for Allison 2500 SP transmissions for the Jackal High Mobility Truck Variants (HMT 400s), also known as Jackal 3.

In Poland, a contract with AMZ-Kutno will supply Bóbr-3 Light Armored Reconnaissance Carriers equipped with the Allison 3000 SP transmission as part of the Kleszcz program, with deliveries spanning 2025 to 2035. Furthermore, Iveco Defence Vehicles (IDV) renewed its contract to provide the Romanian MoD with defense logistic platforms, including a variant based on the Astra 8x8 chassis equipped with the Allison 4700 SP transmission.

“Allison has the distinct advantage of leveraging our commercial vehicle experience and relationships as we grow our wheeled defense business,” says Heidi Schutte, Vice President of EMEA, APAC and South America Sales, Allison Transmission. “With decades of proven reliability and durability, we offer a wide range of propulsion solutions that meet the diverse application requirements for tactical wheeled vehicles for the defense industry.”