WASHINGTON, April 4 (UPI) -- The Oshkosh Truck Corporation has unveiled a new Marine Corps truck that generates enough excess electrical power to run a small airport or city block.
Oshkosh won the contract in 2006 to develop an on-board power system capable of generating at least 60 kilowatts of exportable power for the Marines' Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement truck, according to the company. The system it unveiled Wednesday is capable of generating twice that amount.
The on-board system allows military trucks to jettison cumbersome electrical generators, which slow movement and stress the truck chassis. Oshkosh's system adds 2,440 pounds to the Marine Corps existing Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement, a truck capable of hauling more than 7 tons off road. A towed generator can weigh more than 6,000 pounds and can compromise MTVR's off-road performance.
The Marine Corps identified in 2005 the need for on-board power generation to take the place of towed generators behind Humvees and trucks.
"The export power capability can deliver 20 percent more power than currently fielded equipment, without reducing mobility. In addition, the onboard generator will provide 21kw of power while on the move, for missions that require high amounts of power while in transit," Oshkosh stated Wednesday.
The MTVR will require modifications to incorporate the On-Board Vehicle Power system. The generator and multimotor box will replace the current transmission and transfer case but the drive-line components will remain the same.
Oshkosh manufactures the MTVR and is refurbishing older trucks now; the company has proposed that during the rebuild it incorporates the OBVP.
