AutoCult Hanomag L28 GruKW (1955) (Germany) "Polizei"

About the Original:

Convertible for Twelve Passengers

In 1950, the manufacturer Hanomag put the Hanomag L28 truck on the market in the lightweight class and was constructed as a cab-over with the most modern standards.

An essential feature was the integrated headlights in the front part, and a wide grille with only three “ribs” was also becoming a distinctive mark of the L28. At the beginning, an in-house diesel engine with a performance of 50 horsepower was used for the drive, and proved to be sufficient at first. However the performance was improved with roots blowers for the 1953 model year. The L28 gained big recognition in the German economy with various truck bodies. In addition to the customers of the industry, the authorities had a big backlog of vehicles as well.

In particular, the national and federal police were in the development stage of looking for team busses that would allow them to transport large numbers of law enforcers very fast to political spotlights. Because of the official demand, the management of Hanomag produced a special offshoot of the L28. A car body was constructed on the conventional chassis with a drive with twin-tired rear axle. According to the instructions of the public authority, the vehicle should be able to carry twelve public officials. The small bus had two doors in the rear of the car and only a soft top protected it against the weather, which could be rolled up on the rear of the vehicle. This version went down into history under the abbreviation GruKW – which stood for “Gruppenkraftwagen”.

According to the use, they have been delivered in a dark green color and mostly they had also a bigger searchlight which was mounted on the front window frames.