Check out this video of the SWINCAR electric off-road vehicle. It’s unique pendular suspension system allows it to effortlessly take terrain that other vehicles couldn’t traverse. Available in both two wheel and four wheel drive, with a single-seat version available for order and a two-seat version available to order starting in October.
Polaris, a company well-known for their outdoor vehicles, has collaborated with electric motor manufacturer EVantage to produce an upgraded line of electric bikes. The bike featured in the image above, the Sabre EV505, features a 6061 T-6 aluminum frame, and a 750 Watt EVantage DuoDrive engine with a top speed of 20 MPH and a ~25 mile range. It can fully charge in 3-4 hours, and weighs roughly 58-63 lbs depending on the model and features. The E-Bike line includes models built for recreation and for use with Law Enforcement and security services.
Polaris will be exhibiting at Summer OR, where more information on the e-bike line and other products will be made available.
This is the first public showing at SOFIC for the DAGOR vehicle from Polaris Defense. Last year, it was still under wraps amd interested parties were shuttled to a nearby warehouse to take a peek. 
DAGOR is Polaris Defense’s first vehicle built specifically for military use from the ground up. While Polaris products are well known in the military space, they have all been adaptations of commercially available items. From the beginning, Polaris had a nine man vehicle in mind and set the design to fit well into a specific gap in the SOF Family of Vehicles.
In fact, if they were to create a new vehicle today to comply with the Ultra Lightweight Combat Vehicle requirement, Jed Leonard Manager Advanced Mobility Platforms at Polaris Defense told me that it would look like DAGOR.
I asked Leonard about the vehicle’s strength and he related that DAGOR is optimized to carry military payloads in extreme terrain, and is a great balance of Transportability, Usability and Mobility. That means you can get it where it needs to be and reliably drive it while you’re there.
DAGOR is built with commercially available components such as the drive train. This commonality means spares are available worldwide at lower pricing and makes them easier to work on. Additionally, Polaris Defense is working with Rousch for vehicle performance enhancement.
In order to answer the specifics of the recent Ultra Light Combat Vehicle program, Polaris added a roll over protection system to the rear compartment of vehicle as well as other requirement specific items.
They’ve related that DAGORs are currently in service with SOF customers and that they’re getting great feedback. All certification testing is complete including airdrop, sling load and internal transport. They’ve also completed government durability testing.
The vehicle curb weight is less than 4,500lbs to maximize tactical aircraft operational range and has a payload capacity of 3,250lbs. The width of DAGOR facilitates rapid loading into the CH-47 Chinook platform without modification and the weight allows it to be sling loaded under the UH-60 Black Hawk. The vehicle has completed certification testing for CH-47 Chinook Internal Air Transport (IAT), air drop and UH-60 Black Hawk Sling Load.
While I won’t get into specifics, I can say that I’m very surprised at how cost competitive the DAGOR is when compared to other vehicles in the same weight class. It’s available commercially off-the-shelf, right now. Also, the use of COTS parts makes maintenance sound much less daunting than many other vehicles which should result in lower life cycle costs.
MINNEAPOLIS (May 12, 2015) — Polaris Defense, a division of Polaris Industries Inc. (NYSE: PII) submitted a response for the U.S. Army’s request for information regarding the ULCV program. The market questionnaire had a deadline of today and is designed to help program management better understand the capabilities of manufacturers and availability of commercial products, like DAGOR™.
“Our tested and proven DAGOR vehicle is in the hands of U.S. and allied Special Forces and the feedback has been extremely positive,” said Rich Haddad, general manager of Polaris Defense. “It was designed for requirements very similar to what we are seeing materialize for the ULCV, and as a result DAGOR already represents the optimum balance of payload, off-road mobility and tactical air transportability. If we were designing a vehicle specifically for ULCV, the result would be DAGOR with a short list of accessories, which we detailed in our RFI response to the U.S. Army.”
DAGOR made its public debut at AUSA last October with contracts from U.S. and allied Special Forces. Since its expedited deliveries started in November, U.S. and international government testing has been rigorous – and positive.
“We’ve heard from our Special Forces customers that DAGOR gets them places they have not gone in a vehicle before,” said Haddad. “It makes us very proud that the vehicle we worked hard to produce truly fills a mobility gap, and that DAGOR was – and still is – a needed capability.”
DAGOR was designed for a mobility gap for light infantry and special operations forces. The gap could be filled with a vehicle that is easily transported by tactical air, carries enough payload to be mission effective and carries its full payload in extreme off-road terrain. DAGOR meets those requirements in a robust and flexible off-road vehicle platform that can be configured for up to 9 Warfighters. By traversing more concealed and unpredictable routes over terrain usually traveled on foot, DAGOR allows the Warfighters to move quickly to the objective with mission-critical equipment. DAGOR can also be supported with a COTS supply chain, anywhere in the world, making it easy to use and easy to maintain.
The vehicle curb weight is less than 4,500lbs to maximize tactical aircraft operational range and has a payload capacity of 3,250lbs. The width of DAGOR facilitates rapid loading into the CH-47 Chinook platform without modification and the weight allows it to be sling loaded under the UH-60 Black Hawk. The vehicle has completed certification testing for CH-47 Chinook Internal Air Transport (IAT), air drop and UH-60 Black Hawk Sling Load.
“DAGOR looks to be a great natural fit for the ULCV requirements as they are provided today,” said Haddad. “Bottom line, DAGOR allows the Warfighter to go faster with more people and payload while enhancing their mobility and combat effectiveness over difficult terrain.”
Polaris Defense brings game-changing resources to the military in the area of off-road mobility as part of a larger, commercial company. Polaris provides a wealth of engineering, production and sustainability resources that come with being a recognized leader in the off-road vehicle industry. Polaris maintains a robust global network of dealers, distributors, and subsidiaries, providing dedicated full life-cycle support for these vehicles throughout the world. And with a proven and well-established Defense team, the company works closely with military customers to gain a thorough understanding of their off-road mobility needs.
Built by Belgium’s Fabrique National, the Model AS 24 was an airdeliverable, motorized folding combat trike which came complete with its own trailer. In addition to operational use in the Congo, the country of Peru is said to have also used the AS 24.
Specs:
Passengers: 4 including Driver
Weight: 374 lb (170 kg)
Cargo: 770 lb (350 kg) of men and equipment.
Height: 2 ft 10 in (85 cm)
Engine: 15 hp (11 kW) Two-cylinder, two-stroke, 15 cubic inch (0.245 litres, 245cc) model FN 24
Speed: 60 mph (97 km/h)
Can you image driving that thung at 60mph? I can see how it could catch some air.
The US Army even evaluated the vehicle in 1963 but didn’t adopt it.
Although other commercial three wheelers were adopted by specialists units such as USAF CCT, eventually they were abandoned due to safety concerns of roll overs, particularly during turns.
If you want to see how to configure the AS 24 once it had successfully parachuted safely to the ground, check out this video.
Thanks to Jon S for the tip.
This is one of my favorite photos from OEF.
We’ve mentioned the Polaris Defense DAGOR in the past. It’s gained a lot of interest here domestically and now it’s making its international debut.
Polaris was the first ATV manufacturer to supply militarized off-road vehicles to the U.S. Special Operations Command and the U.S. Army over 20 years ago. The extensive success of those vehicles in theater led to the introduction of a complete line of military-specific vehicles, including several successful contracts throughout the Middle East. Polaris Defense continues to work closely with the United States and Allied forces, with products operational in over 70 countries.
Throughout EMEA, the Polaris Defense family of ultra-light vehicles is aligned with the region’s broad, emerging ultra-light mobility needs. To meet light mobility requirements, Polaris Defense provides a family of ultra-light vehicles: the MV850 all-terrain vehicle (ATV), the MRZR lightweight tactical all-terrain vehicle (LTATV), and the DAGOR ultra-light combat vehicle (ULCV), which is making its international debut at IDEX. These vehicles all provide off road mobility at full payload, and with ease of transportability using tactical air assets.
With the ability to carry a nine-man infantry squad, DAGOR is Polaris’ largest offering in size and payload. DAGOR was designed for light infantry and special operations forces to be easily transported by tactical air and to carry its full 3,250 lbs of payload in extreme off-road terrain to be mission effective. DAGOR also is supported with a COTS supply chain making it easy to use and easy to maintain anywhere in the world.
Polaris Defense has been a leader supplying a family of ultra-light, off-road vehicles that are widely adopted within the U.S. military, and have been sold to more than 20 countries worldwide, including here in the Middle East. U.S. Special Forces also recognized and thanked Polaris in 2014 for the company’s rapid delivery and support of the Lightweight Tactical All-Terrain Vehicle (LTATV) contract with their MRZR platform. The USSOCOM contract and MRZR contracts here in the Middle East, include support of user evaluation and government testing, delivery of vehicles with tactical accessories, and providing training and sustainment parts.
At IDEX 2015, Polaris Defense is showcasing the MV850 ATV, MRZR LTATV, and DAGOR ULCV. With a robust global network of dealers, distributors, and subsidiaries, Polaris Defense provides full life-cycle support of these vehicles throughout the world.
