An ode to all-wheel drive – 35 years of delta4x4
And it all started in a small garage on the Ammersee
The snow of winter 1979. Germany is sliding across the streets and into the trenches. Golf GL, Opel Kadett 1.3 S, Ford Taunus and all the other unfinished cars are sliding around.
The annual snow of knowledge clearly shows how four-wheeled vehicles, in which only every second wheel has a connection to the engine, become nature’s plaything
1980 brought the Suzuki LJ 80, which made powerful use of all four wheels. That’s driving a car in the third dimension – except forwards, backwards and sideways, now also up and down. Off through the site at a buyer’s price of 9,900 marks. Without doors!
Almost 15,000 all-terrain all-wheel drive vehicles were sold in 1980, the front runner among them with 5,000 units sold is the LJ 80. Hand in hand with the Suzuki comes delta4x4, a small team of motorsport enthusiasts that makes the Suzuki an absolute driving pleasure vehicle.
In 1982 delta4x4 brought a strengthened LJ 80 with approx. 90 hp to the start of the infamous Paris-Dakar rally – and to the finish, albeit outside of the classification. The vehicle is still alive, as a memorial at delta4x4.
A few highlights between 1983 and 2003 are 80 turbo hp for the LJ 80 (1983), Delta Monster based on the Suzuki Samurai (1987), Suzuki Vitara Giant (1993), Nissan KingKongCab (1995), Mitsubishi Bodyguard (1999 ) and Toyota Hilux Winfield (2000).
2003: delta4x4 redefines the front bar to protect pedestrians. Siemens Restraint Systems GmbH confirms that the S-tec front bar developed by delta4x4 offers significantly improved pedestrian protection (according to Euro-NCAP / WG17).
2003 saw the launch of Loder1899, a sister company whose name pays homage to the family business Loder Motore, which was founded in 1899. An exclusive tuning program is offered for all brands of the former PAG group such as Aston Martin and Land Rover.
2005: 25 years of delta4x4. Over 180,000 all-terrain all-wheel drive vehicles are purchased in Germany, twelve times as many as in 1980. In a quarter of a century, delta4x4 has become the premium supplier of off-road vehicle tuning and accessories worldwide. The motto: “Whether you want to take part in a desert rally or simply want to cruise the boulevards of this world, delta4x4 supplies you with equipment that is individually tailored to your vehicle – whether it is an off-road vehicle or a sport utility vehicle.”
2015: 35 years of delta4x4. Over 500,000 all-terrain all-wheel drive vehicles are purchased in Germany.
Anyone who linked the future of their company with all-wheel drive 35 years ago was considered an adventurer. Today, after the dust of the first few years has subsided, three things are important: quality, quality, quality. Well, there is always a handful of imagination with the delta4x4 group. At that time like today.
