Fat Man

Driving Ashok Leyland’s latest truck for the Indian Army makes me want to buy one! Mostly for impractical reasons, though.

- Rahul Richard

Very few civilians have had the chance to drive the massive Ashok Leyland Stallion used by the Army. Lucky them, right? No, lucky me! Because I just one-upped them with this, the FAT 6x6. First things first — the FAT 6x6 isn’t called what it’s called because of its size. It’s an acronym that stands for Field Artillery Tractor. That said, it is a very apt acronym.

WHAT IS IT AND WHAT CAN IT DO? 

The FAT 6x6 is an all-terrain vehicle designed to tow huge artillery guns to almost anywhere in the battlefield, transport troops and supplies. It’s designed to be used in every kind of terrain — right from the high mountains in the Himalayas to the blistering deserts of Rajasthan. Ashok Leyland says that the FAT 6x6 can be used at altitudes of up to 5,500m above sea level (that’s around 140m higher than Khardung La) and -40°C, as well as in temperatures of around 55°C.

It runs an 8.0-litre turbo-diesel from Ashok Leyland’s Neptune series engines, and produces 360PS of power and a massive 1,400Nm of torque at 1,300rpm. It’s got an 8-speed manual gearbox (with the option for an automatic), a 2-speed transfer case, full-time 6-wheel drive and will hit a top speed of 90kmph. That’s pretty impressive considering this truck weighs a hefty 21 tonnes. It’s also got a 350-litre fuel tank, which gives it a 700km range. Ashok Leyland is the only company selling a 6x6 to the Indian Army with an engine made in India.

All three axles are live with differential locks for each one, which will help this mammoth get out of the stickiest of situations. But even if that doesn’t work, it’s got a 10-tonne winch to pull itself out. It’s got a parabolic bogey suspension which is essentially a leaf spring set-up.