Description
A genuine, low-mileage 1971 Mercedes-Benz Unimog 406 in excellent order. 63, 000 km on the clock, currently registered and roadworthy in Zambia.
Drivetrain: 5. 7-litre OM 352 inline-six diesel, synchromesh main gearbox with auxiliary crawler/ working gear unit, portal axles, drum brakes, 4WD, and front and rear differential locks.
Currently fitted as a three-way dropside — the hydraulic tipper ram has been removed. An older, basic hard-sided camper body (shown in the lead photo) is also included and can be swapped on if wanted.
Bought privately five years ago from the then-owner in Upington, South Africa.
Everything works as it should. There is no outstanding work I am aware of, beyond minor cosmetic items. She is started and run regularly.
Viewing by appointment. Shipping and import would be the buyer's responsibility.
For anyone who'd like to start their own overlanding trip straight off the plane: once sold, I can have her fitted with the camper body and ready to collect at Lusaka airport. The camper box is old and basic, but perfectly functional for a trip across the region. She spent most of her life in South Africa, and most of those years she actually spent locked away in a storage facility in Upington, in the Northern Cape. Nobody really knows how long she sat there; the best guess is several decades. The man I bought her from came across her by chance at his workplace and took her on, using her only sparingly in the years he had her.
I'd been looking for the right 406 for years and eventually tracked her down. He wasn't keen to sell. It took a few visits over a stretch of months before he came round, and even then I think he was sorry to see her go. He agreed in the end, and I flew down, picked her up, and drove her back to Zambia over a month, taking in some incredible places along the way, including Fish River Canyon in Namibia.
She did the trip without any drama, and that has been the pattern in the five years since. Several long overlanding trips across Zambia, Botswana and Namibia, all entirely faultless.
