Trials
The Llama prototypes were sent to the MoD for testing. These were fitted with a variety of rear bodies to demonstrate the versatility of the design. These included the standard open drop-side rear tray, the 'General Service' version with a removable canvas hood, a demountable glass-fibre 'pod' that could be loaded and unloaded from the chassis by a hydraulic hook, a solid enclosed rear body (mocked-up as both an Ambulance and a radio communications vehicle) and one example was fitted with a mock-up missile launcher. Vehicles were subjected to load-carrying, off-road driving, stability, cold-weather and endurance/performance tests. These showed several flaws with the design. The main one was that the coil-spring suspension and high centre of gravity led to poor stability over rough ground when fully laden. The performance of the 2.5-ton vehicle was poor, especially when loaded. The petrol engine fitted to the Llama was also a problem, as the MOD had recently standardised on diesel power for all its vehicles. The V8 was Land Rover's most powerful engine available, and bringing in a more powerful diesel from another builder would remove the Llama's key selling feature- its parts commonality with the standard Land Rovers (of which the MoD had a fleet of nearly 20,000).
Land Rover built one prototype Llama powered by its 85-horsepower Diesel Turbo engine. However, this had unacceptably low performance.
The MoD finally selected a 4-wheel drive version of the Dodge 500 truck, converted by Reynolds-Boughton Engineering and designated the RB44. After only a few years in service the entire fleet had to be overhauled and fitted with a crucial brake modification at major costs to the UK taxpayer. The poor reliability of the RB44 meant that the British Army opted to overhaul its fleet of Land Rover 101s, which remained in service until the early years of the 21st century.
Read more about this topic: Land Rover Llama
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