What happens when you lose BRAKES in a UNIMOG?

[@greyknight05]

Wooha! 😅 That ended lucky! I had my Troopy on two wheels two weeks ago diagonally swinging, rear right felt like tipping over downhill. Rear locker in and I overcame that problem😅 Greetz, Björn from Germany

[@MadMatt4WD]

Oh wow!

[@abstractspaces8186]

Your educational spin on this is really valuable, love your style.

[@MadMatt4WD]

I appreciate that! Thanks

[@bvward]

Matt,, only 'Mogs around here are surplus/collector stuff... During the 1980 winter Olympics in New York, they used 406's kitted up as snow plows. That was when Case was handling them for a bit in the US market.

[@MadMatt4WD]

Right.

[@orangepickel2]

One hell of a ride little pucker factor involved.

[@ShupNride]

I was sliding backwards down a wet clay track a n70 Luxy, went off the side valve bouncing and the tyres where spinning that quick when they connected with a tree stump i got bounced back onto the track and started crawling forawds and away from certain death, thank fuk for big muddies and that 4.0 yoda donk!

[@MadMatt4WD]

Wow. That’s hectic.

[@jwato1]

Love the videos

[@horsehead8306]

Who even needs brakes when off road in a unimog? They are geared that low that engine compression will do the work of the brakes.

[@MadMatt4WD]

Yes I agree. I’d have been in bottom gear. But I don’t have much MOG experience.

[@overlandready]

Air brakes with no air fails safe, so they lock the brakes on! Brakes work by venting air pressure, it's designed like that so even if you have a pipe break, you don't loose brakes, if anything it locks them on so you can't move. I've has air brake failure on works vehicles. looking at the video, and I know you can't always work out exactly what the driver was doing, but it appears that the vehicle wasn't in gear and when he let off the brakes it just rolled through the holes, it is not light so will gain momentum fairly quickly and you're just in for the ride. I guess that's what he did, then add drive to try to regain the loss of control. I was tought always to have drive engaged, never let it roll, so neutral or clutch depressed is never an option, gear in and clutch up at all times, then you never have a run-away scenario like this, it's slow and controlled. ps, scariest moment is probably standing someone else's Land Rover balanced on the front bumper after a 10 ft verticle drop. after a blip of the throttle, it was just enough to drop it on the wheels not the roof.... Which I was glad of.

[@MadMatt4WD]

He was in third gear and you can see him get up it. So it was in gear for sure. Personally I’d have been in 1st. As for the brakes. These are air over hydraulic so low air means no air to drive the brakes. No air means they lock on. So I’m told.

[@D34KN]

My scariest moment was when I drove my dads Suzuki sierra on two wheels then managed to steer back down onto 4 wheels and drove the rest of the track 😂

[@piesareround]

Neat

[@thejackaroo4WDcampingchannel]

He was going too fast end of story. Regardless of what led to this, it was due to sheer speed but that said it likely saved him as well. You just cannot go down a steep rocky banking at that speed without having issues.

[@MadMatt4WD]

Yes loosing brakes certainly does that ay.

[@mungbean84]

Considering he was reversing up before he lost brakes, not driving down. Speed was a symptom of the failure and loss of control and trying to get out of the bad position, not the cause.

[@thejackaroo4WDcampingchannel]

@@mungbean84 As I said, 'Regardless of what caused it'. Brakes or no brakes, you cannot go downhill at speed and that was the problem regardless of why?

[@thejackaroo4WDcampingchannel]

I have to add that any truck with air brakes is asking for trouble off-road. In my experience driving military trucks including Uni-Mogs is that air brakes are not subtle enough for use off-road use, especially when used without loads. They tend to be an on and off switch.