Coolest Vehicles That Use Tracks Instead Of Wheels

Its name was “Little Willie” and it was created during the First World War. Not that anything was pariticularly little about the world’s first operational tank, hailing from Britain. And the nickname apparently had more to do with the Allied foe, German crown prince, Prince Wilhelm. Only one unit was ever made. It weighed 32,000 lbs, and could reach a top speed of around 2.5 mph, thanks to its 105 hp Daimler-Knight six-cylinder engine.

The Knight company came undone by 1940, but Daimler continued to build engines and cars until 2010. The company was then snapped up by Jaguar Land Rover and Jaguar continued to offer Daimler cars for some years. More recently, the brand has been moth-balled.

It was a slow start, but Little Willie was officially the very first tank, featuring American-made steel tracks. Today, tank-like tracks are actually dime a dozen, and available to replace standard wheels. Here are 10 cool vehicles that swapped their wheels for tracks.

10

Kia Sorento Ski Gondola

In 2016, Kia and LUX Motorwerks collaborated to create a Sorento AWD that can tackle snow and ice, and was designed to transport skiers to the top of a mountain. It is fitted with Dominator Rubber tracks and a custom roof rack that allows for the storage of skis and poles. The cargo area is easily accessible thanks to the fact that one of the Kia’s B-pillars has been removed, and the rear doors converted to suicide-style doors. The front seats can swivel around, too. The Sorento’s headlights are painted black, silver and orange and LED lightbars add plenty of illumination for those nighttime excursions up or down a snowy mountain.

The cabin also features some upgrades, with custom door panels, dashboard and a new center console, the latter also featuring a personalized tablet. The interior is finished in black and orange leather, and the cabin is covered in a durable, waterproof Line-X treatment to protect the surfaces from snow and ice that will inevitably find their way into the cabin. The Sorento’s 240-hp 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine remains stock, sending the power to all four tracks via the stock six-speed automatic gearbox.

9

VW Half-Track Fox

In the 1960s, Alpine skier Kurt Kretzner spent four years designing and building an all-terrain vehicle with a special penchant for snow that was supposed to serve mountain workers, hunters, foresters, doctors, engineers, tourists… virtually anyone who wanted to travel in the Alps in winter. This followed after Kretzner searched high and low for such a vehicle to purchase, but there was nothing of the sort in the offing. So he made his own.

The VW T1 features two extra axles, and a total of eight wheels. The four front wheels are 14-inch items with off-road tires. The two axles at the rear are connected by a chain drive, and there are also brakes for each individual wheel and an automatic limited-slip differential that ensures even distribution of power. Ah, the power. It doesn’t have a lot of that. The Half-Track Fox has the original 1.2-liter flat-four engine with just 33 hp, a turning circle of around 32 feet, and a top speed of 22 mph. It won’t get you anywhere fast, but it will get you there, eventually. Only three Foxes were made, and a single unit survives, recently restored by Volkswagen Classic Vehicles.

8

Daystar Jeep FC-170

In 2014, American tuning specialists Daystar created something rather special for the SEMA show in Las Vegas… a 1958 Jeep FC-170, with tracks. The classic forward control Jeep, originally built by the Willys Jeep company, was apparently in such bad shape when it arrived at Daystar that it was about to be sent to the car crusher on its final journey. But some of the more enthusiastic staffers decided to have a go at it, spending hundreds of hours on the project, reviving the old Jeep and turning it into something quite brilliant.

The FC-170 is fitted with modern Jeep JK Dana axles, custom leaf-spring packs (yep, it still came with those), and Scorpion shocks. The Daystar crew shoehorned a 5.7-liter Hemi V8 into the FC, so it now has around 360 hp with a few upgrades (like a high-performance exhaust system). With the tracks, the custom Dodge and Jeep gearbox system, and all those horses, this Jeep is nigh unstoppable off the beaten track.

7

Hoonigan Ford F-150 Raptor TRAX

When the late gymkhana legend Ken Block’s Hoonigan outfit takes to a vehicle, it normally gets a lot of wow. And in 2013, the team’s Ford F-150 Raptor (a 2009 model updated with some 2013 cosmetics) sure ticked the wow box. Besides the modified 6.2-liter V8 engine and a Whipple supercharger the size of a Ford Fiesta, and 650 hp in the tank, the bespoke Raptor Trax was fitted with a full Mattracks M1A1 track system. The Ford’s suspension was suitably upgraded to handle the modifications and heavy track systems, with special dampers, custom-built upper and lower control arms, custom bump stops, and special long bars to support the Trax system. This Ford does not only go like a bat out of hell, it can go anywhere, too.

It also has a Warn winch, five roof-mounted Rigid Industries lights, side and rear spotlights, and a 30-inch lightbar.

The cabin was upgraded, too, with two Recaro Sportster seats, trimmed in leather and suede. It also has a full roll cage and five-point harnesses. The truck was sold in 2023 for a handy $195,000.

6

Nissan 370Zki

This Nissan 370Zki is the only two-wheel-driven track vehicle in this line-up. With a high-revving 3.7-liter V6 engine, with 332 hp in the game, the rear-wheel-drive Nissan is fitted with Dominator Tracks from American Track Truck. The customization process was much more involving than just bolting some tracks and skis to the Nissan. The entire drivetrain was removed, and a bespoke three-inch lift kit engineered and fitted. The rear suspension springs have custom mounting points, the rear wheel wells were modified, and the exhaust system was modified and rerouted under the Z.

The front suspension was modified to accommodate the ski system, along with new mounting points for the engine and gearbox. A custom skid plate was added to protect the drivetrain. The Nissan made its debut at the 2018 Chicago auto show and, not surprisingly, never made it to production. But as far as snowmobiles go, it is pretty cool.

5

Visuva T8

The Visuva T8 hails from Russia… and it apparently proved so popular that the company that makes it has suspended orders, as its factory has reached its quota until the end of the year. The Vivusa is fully road-legal, and its polyurethane tracks are asphalt-friendly. The cabin can accommodate up to 10 people, and the space is surprisingly plush with comfortable seats and several infotainment displays.

Two engine options are available, and both hail from the Toyota stable. The 4.2-liter straight-six turbodiesel has 204 hp, but it’s the 4.3-liter V8 with 280 hp, coupled to a six-speed automatic gearbox, that is the more desirable option. Not that the T8 is fast. It can only reach a top speed of 44 mph. With a main braking system, as well as a side-braking system, the T8 can turn on a dime, as befits a tracked vehicle. Price, you wonder? It sells for the equivalent of $125,000 in Russia.

4

Bentley Continental GT Ultratank

When Russian crew Jagger Garage announced they would turn a Bentley Continental GT into a tank, and call the contraption Ultratank, most folks shook their heads in disbelief. But the team did just that, constructing a custom frame with shocks, rollers, chain drive and tracks for the Bentley. The Bentley’s doors were removed, but for the most part, give or take a few scrapes and torn bits in the cabin, the car is still pretty much in the same shape as an original. Well, expect for the massive tracks, mounted on either side of the car, and driven off the Continental’s drivetrain.

The crew had been at it since 2019, when the build started. Teething problems included the contraption throwing a track in the corners. Also, the top speed was limited to around 30 mph. Since the early days, the Jagger Garage team added some modifications and refinements. By 2020, the team set a new speed record over one mile at the Baikal Mile competition, held on ice, in Siberia. The Bentley, essentially a homemade creation, reached 78 mph over a one-mile distance, winning the competition overall. More recently it reached 80 mph… making it the fastest tracked vehicle in the world over one mile.

3

Tesla Model T

YouTubers The Real Life Guys from Germany are an ambitious lot. Instead of just adding a turbocharger and cool wheels to a project car, or restoring a classic barn-find to its former glory, the young team takes on some absolutely crazy projects. Like adding massive tank tracks to a Tesla Model 3 AWD, and turning it into an off-road behemoth with 31-inches of clearance, and all the traction you could ever wish for.

The track frame, with six shock absorbers per side, was fabricated in-house, and the sturdy construction, along with the tracks and the custom-made chain system, added a lot of weight to the not-so-light Tesla, with all its batteries. The Model T weighs in at around 13,500 lbs. Thanks to Tesla’s all-wheel-drive system, the Model T can go quite a way off the beaten track, with due consideration of its size and weight. It’s far from perfect. On its first proper off-road excursion, it threw a track. A bull bar with a winch and spotlights completed this amazing, once-off project.

2

HighLand Systems Storm

Ready for a Storm? This is HighLand Systems’ Storm hybrid armored vehicle, which is at home on land or in the water. The vehicle itself is powered by two electric motors, providing a very handy 2,500 hp. Yep, that is two-and-a-half thousand horses. A third electric motor drives the water jet system. All them horses allow the Storm to reach 90 mph on land, and a very reasonable 22 mph on water.

The electrical drive system’s batteries are charged by an on-board, 94-hp diesel generator. Running at top speed on electric power only, the battery system is said to last up to 2.5 hours. With the generator in the game, and at more reasonable speeds, the operating time can be stretched up to 36 hours. There is also the versatility of the machine. The Storm can carry up to 10 passengers in the armored and water-tight cabin. It also has 20 inches of ground clearance, and all the traction in the world, thanks to the advanced track system. Rather want to ferry passengers around while you sit at home, watching some football? No problem. The Storm can be fitted with a remote control system, so you can drive it from the couch in your living room.

1

Howe & Howe Ripsaw EV3-F4

Is there a thing such as a super tank? Yes, there is! And we are not talking three feet of armor, or an eight-inch gun. Instead, the Ripsaw EV3-F4 is like a supercar, but with polyurethane tracks that not only allow it to go absolutely anywhere, it can also drive on tar surfaces without ripping up the surface. You can even drop the kids off at school.

The Ripsaw is obviously not cheap. But it is amazing. The cabin looks like something out of Thunderbirds, and it has electrically adjustable Recaro seats, trimmed in the finest cow. There is a high-end sound system and a Duramax turbodiesel engine that delivers up to 800 hp and 1,500 lb-ft. Thing is, Ripsaw tank customers are well-heeled folks, so each F4 is built according to the customers’ requirements. But 800 hp sounds about right. Price, you ask? A brand-new Ripsaw will set you back around $800,000.

Sources: www.tankmuseum.org, Kia, Volkswagen, Jeep, Ford, Hoonigan, Nissan, Visuva, Jagger Garage, Tesla, The Real Life Guys, HighLand Systems, Howe & Howe.