The Robur LD 3000 is the diesel-engined version of the LO 3000 three-ton lorry built by VEB Robur-Werke Zittau in East Germany. It was made from 1982 until 1984, only in small numbers.
Robur LD 3000 at a glance
| Maker | VEB Robur-Werke Zittau, East Germany |
|---|---|
| Brand | IFA, sold as Robur |
| Production | 1982–1984 |
| Payload | 3,000 kg |
| Based on | Robur LO 3000 |
| Engine | air-cooled diesel |
| Layout | forward control, body on frame, front engine, rear-wheel drive |
| Output | small production run |
| Predecessor diesel | Robur diesel engine offered 1963–1968 |
| Replaced by | no direct successor; the LO 3001 followed in 1985 |
Little is published about the LD 3000; this page is based on the English article on the LO 3000 and the German article on the Robur lorry range.
History of the Robur LD 3000
The naming
Robur model designations are built from letters and numbers: L stands for luftgekühlt, air-cooled, O for Ottomotor (petrol) and D for Dieselmotor, followed by the payload in kilograms and, where fitted, the letter A for all-wheel drive. The LD 3000 therefore describes an air-cooled diesel lorry with a three-tonne payload.
Diesel engines at Zittau
A diesel engine had been announced in 1959 and was offered in the Robur range from 1963, but it was dropped again in 1968. For more than a decade afterwards the Zittau lorries were sold with the air-cooled petrol engine only, which limited their appeal in markets where fuel costs mattered. The diesel returned in the LO 3000 generation, and the dieselised version of that lorry was designated LD 3000.
Short life
The LD 3000 was built from 1982 until 1984, when the LO 3000 itself was being wound down: in 1985 it was replaced by the LO 3001, a lightly modified version with smaller wheels and a skid plate. Production of the LD 3000 stayed small, and the model is much rarer today than the petrol-engined LO 3000.
Design and features
- Diesel version: the LD 3000 shares the chassis and body range of the LO 3000 but uses a diesel engine.
- Air cooling: like every Robur, the engine needs no radiator, a layout suited to hot climates.
- Same bodies: the lorry could be ordered with the same wheelbases and body styles as the LO 3000.
- Rare today: the short production run of 1982–1984 makes surviving LD 3000s uncommon.
Robur LD 3000 versions
- LD 3000 (1982–1984): the diesel-engined three-tonner.
- LO 3000: the petrol-engined lorry on the same chassis.
- LO 2002 A: the all-wheel drive model built alongside.
The petrol-engined lorry is described in the article on the Robur LO. More vehicles from Zittau are collected in the Robur category.
Sources
- Robur LO 3000, English Wikipedia: LD 3000 production years, engine layout
- Robur (LKW), German Wikipedia: model naming, earlier diesel engine 1963–1968
