AufĀ wiedersehen, Unimog U 20. Since its birth in 1946, the Unimog has rarely strayed from its semi-conventional cab configuration. The short-lived UX100 was one exception, and the Unimog U 20, which launched in 2006, was another. Although its frame shared much with the mid-range UGN U 300 model, the U 20 was designed to distill the advantages of the Unimog implement carrier range into a smaller, more agile, and less expensive package. Unsurprisingly, it was aimed primarily at municipal agencies, much like the oddball UX100. The cab, cribbed from the Brazilian-market Accelo medium-duty truck, was placed forward of the front axle, and provided room for three. The truck's footprint was nearly square: it stood just under nine feet tall, was 7 feet wide, and boasted a wheelbase of 8.9 feet. All this allowed for a turning radius of just over 41 feet. Still large, but by Unimog standards, the U 20 was quite compact. The concept was intriguing, but ultimately short-lived. With the introduction of the latest range of Unimogs, the U 20 has been replaced with the four-cylinder U 216/218/ models, whichĀ use the same semi-cab-forward design as the middleweight models. Interestingly enough, these models sport an almost-identicalĀ Baumuster code of 405.090, while the U 20 carried 405.050.
