What Was She Thinking?!

This is a bit of a departure from my usual offerings. This vehicle is not something you'd likely find on your local highways and byways. Unless you live in the boondocks. Reason? The M561 Gama Goat is a military vehicle. Read on.

The M561 1.25 ton High Mobility Cargo Truck was built during the late 1960's and into the 1970's by the Consolidated Diesel Electric Company otherwise known as CONDEC. It was nicknamed the Gama Goat, "gama" from the name of the inventor of its powered articulated joint Roger Gamaunt and "goat" from its mountain goat-like offroad abilites.

The M561 was a 6x6 having a tractor unit and a trailer unit. The tractor sat two, a driver and a passenger, above the front axle and behind them was the Detroit Diesel 3-53 diesel engine. Attached to the tractor by an articulated joint was the trailer unit which was of standard military arrangment much like a pickup type bed with the addition of folding troopseats along each side. The tractor and trailer were permanently joined. The tractor had a front axle and a rear axle while the trailer had a mid mounted axle. All axles were powered. The M561 was also four wheel steer, the front steered in normal fashion and the rear most axle was mechanically steered in the opposite direction at 50 percent of the front axles movement. The steering was not self centering. The M561 body was made of aluminum and the vehicle was swimable on inland waters. This vehicle was capable of higher mobility than the average pickup style truck or 1/4ton jeep due to its ability to flex in the middle and the forward position of the front wheels.

The Gama Goat was a successful offroad vehicle but due to a plague of mechanical problems, its loud engine noise, the vulnerability of the driver while embarking and debarking the vehicle, and special driver training because of its four-wheel steering habits it was not pursued in future contracts and was eventually replaced in function by the M998 series HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle) or the "Hum-Vee." For this reason, surplus Gama Goats in varying degrees of disrepair can be purchased for a song and restored and put to use. There's a small group of loyal Goat lovers and GamaGoat.com is dedicated to the preservation, restoration and safe enjoyment of these interesting vehicles.

One of the things that sets the Gama Goat apart from other military and offroad vehicles is its amphibious nature. Sure, the Hum-Vee (both the military HMMWV and the much tamer commercial H1s and H2s) can ford several feet of water, but the Goat can actually SWIM. Of course, it cannot ford waters that are not calm, so you can't cross a raging torrent in it. But you can cross a lake quite easily, as long as you make the preparations necessary to ready the Goat for swimming and perform proper maintenance afterward.

• Weight (with winch) 7710lb/3497kg
• Payload 2900lb/1315kg
• Length 226in/574cm
• Width 84in/213cm
• Height 91in/231cm
• Fuel Capacity 40gal/151l
• Tire Size 11-18
• Transmission: 4 speed W/ 2 speed transfer case.
• Engine: 3-53 Detroit diesel with supercharger
• Electrical System: 24 volt
• Brake System Type: Hydraulic

GamaGoat.com
Military Vehicles: M561
Otter's Gama Goat Project