The Agrale Marruá. The official Brazilian vehicles of the Brazilian armed forces. Also sold in the civilian version and as a school bus.

The Agrale Marruá is part of the Brazilian Army fleet and several other security forces. A truly 4×4 car, robust and with excellent off-road performance.

ORIGINS

Its origins unite two Brazilian automakers, the current Agrale and the extinct Engesa Brasil. It all started with this second automaker, which was a large manufacturer of military vehicles, including trucks and tanks.

In 1984, Engesa brought the EE-12 to the market, a 4×4 off-roader completely developed on national soil, using Brazilian components. From 1985 onwards, the civilian public had access to this vehicle, which was renamed Engesa 4. This car initially had the Chevrolet 151 4-cylinder, 2.5-liter engine, the same as the Opala line.

The EE-12 ended up being approved by the Brazilian army. However, in the 1990s, Engesa went bankrupt and several projects ended up dying along with the company. In 1994, Envesa, a company from Londrina – PR, managed to acquire some models at an Engesa auction, made some modifications and resold them under the name Envesa.

In 2003, Agrale, an automaker from Rio Grande do Sul, acquired the design and manufacturing rights from the companies Columbus and Ceppe, which had the rights to the Engesa off-roader since the 2000s.

Agrale saw the market opportunity and made the decision to invest around R$11 million reais to continue developing the project and try to launch its serial production in 2004, and that is how the Agrale Marruá was born.

Marruá is a word to describe a wild ox, an undomesticated bull that escapes the herd and ends up becoming more “wild”.

APPROVAL IN THE ARMY

After the projects were subjected to severe tests of maximum inclination, maximum ramp, weight supported, and many other tests, it was then approved by the army.

This project, named AM2, had a galvanized steel body, manufactured by Engesa itself. This structure also facilitates the installation of a shielding system. It was equipped with a 2.8-liter MWM 4.07 TCA diesel engine with 135 hp, 4×4 traction with the car coupled in motion and still maintained the Engesa suspension using coil springs. The load capacity was 500 kg or 1102,31 lbs and it could receive various army weapons to be attached to it.

CIVIL USE

In November 2004, 100 units were presented for civilian use. This version received small changes, including the electrical system, auxiliary headlights and the front windshield. In addition to civil use, the Marruá also began to conquer the heavy services sector such as mining, reforestation and network maintenance.

RELEASES AND UPDATES

In 2005 a new variant appeared, the AM-100 model; with a military version and metal bed. The AM-11 with 4 doors and capacity for 750 kg or
1653.47 lbs and also a version for the Fire Department.

In 2012, the Agrale Marruá EV was presented at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development – Rio +20, a project developed jointly with Itaipu Binacional and Stola do Brasil.

In 2015, the new generation of the Agrale Marruá 4×4 was presented. The newest launch occurred in 2019 with the armored Agrale Marruá AM-200 Double Cab, a vehicle built for use mainly by the Armed Forces and Public Security. It offers Level III ‘Plus’ ballistic protection, providing maximum protection to crew members during security actions and missions.

INTERNATIONALIZATION

The Agrale Marruá, in addition to being part of Brazil’s three armed forces: Brazilian Navy, Brazilian Army and Brazilian Air Force, also caught the attention of other countries and was exported to Angola, Argentina, Namibia, for the UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti, Ecuador among others.

SPECS (THESE ARE FROM THE AGRALE MARRUÁ AM 200; 2022)

ENGINE

·Installation: Front

·Layout: Longitudinal

·Aspiration: Turbocharger

·Power: Direct Injection

·Cylinders: 4 in line

·Valve Control: Single in the cylinder head

·Valves Per Cylinder: 2

·Cylinder Diameter: 94 mm (3.7 in)

·Piston Stroke: 100 mm (3.937 in)

·Compression Ratio: 16.5:1

·Engine Code: Cummins ISF

·Unit Displacement: 694 cm³ (42.3505 in³)

·Displacement: 2800 cm³ (170.8665 in³)

·Maximum Power: 150 hp

·Maximum Torque: 36.7 kgfm (24.6 lb/ft)

·Maximum Rotation: 3600 rpm

TRANSMISSION

·Traction: Permanent Integral

·Type: Manual Transmission

·Gears: 5

·Exchange Code: FSO 4505 E

·Coupling: Single Disc Dry Clutch

SUSPENSION

·Front: Rigid axle with coil spring

·Rear: Rigid axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs

BRAKES

·Front: Solid disc

·Rear: Drum

DIRECTION

·Power Steering

·Turning Diameter: 16.7 m (54.79 ft)

TIRES

·Front and Rear: 285/75 R16

·Side Height: 214 mm (8.42 in)

DIMENSIONS

·Length: 5.3 m (17 ft 4,6 in)

·Width: 2.16 m (7 ft 1,039 in)

·Wheelbase: 3.35 m (10 ft 11,89 in)

·Height: 1.97 m (6 ft 5.56 in)

·Vehicle Weight: 2910 kg (6415.452 lbs)

·Truck Bed Capacity: 1000 l

·Payload Capacity: 1390 kg (3064.425 lbs)

·Towing Capacity: 3800 kg (8377.566 lbs)

·Entry Angle: 54 degrees

·Exit Angle: 30 degrees

·Water Crossing: 80 cm (3.15 in)

·Maximum Ramp: 31 degrees

·Maximum Side Tilt: 17 degrees

·Minimum Height From Ground: 23 cm (0.9 in)

PERFORMANCE

·Top Speed: 134.2 km/h (83.38 mph)

FUEL

·Type: Diesel

·Urban Consumption: 7.5 km/l (17.6 mpg)

·Highway Consumption: 10 km/l (23.5 mpg)

·Fuel Tank: 100 l (26.41 gal)

EQUIPMENT

·ABS brakes

·Rear camera for maneuvers

·Fog lights

·Central door locking

·Rear parking sensors

·Central differential

·All-wheel drive

·Air conditioning

·Heater

·Power steering

·Automatic speed control

·Electric front window control

·Electric rear window control

·Electric adjustment of the mirrors

·GPS Navigator

·On-board computer

PHOTOS

·Photos 1 to 6: Civilian version.

·Photos 7 to 9: Bus version. 9 is the school bus.

·Photo 10 and 11: Civilian version interior.

·Photos 12 to 20: The multiple military versions.

AGRALE’S WEBSITE: https://m.agrale.com.br/produtos/utilitarios

by OriginalPapaya8