The 3-Wheel Warrior: German Army Zundapp motorcycle combo

Economically it was a tough time for German industry, but by 1921 Neumeyer had re-launched the company as a motorcycle manufacturer and revealed its first design in the same year. That was the Z22, known as the “Motorrad fur Jadermann” (motorcycle for everyone), which proved to be successful and helped the company increase its share of the market for motorcycles from 5% in 1931 to more than 18% by 1937. During this period the company would also launch on the civilian market three designs in the “K’”, or Kardanantried, series, a title which indicated that the drive shaft was encased along with a pair of universal joints. 

Between 1933 and 1935, Germany began its re-armament program and military spending more than doubled. The German motor industry consolidated its position by becoming wholly autonomous. In 1934 Lt. Col. Nehring presented his Wehrgeistige Erziehung (Instructions for Military Planning) report, in which he stated that the German motor industry should be supported by the Wehrmacht (Armed Forces), especially the Army, as a whole. As a result, the German Army became the main client for the motor industry. 

Nehring’s report was followed four years later by a series of proposals put forward by General Major von Schell, who suggested a new streamlining plan for the German motor industry, known as the Schell Plan. Among the many changes proposed was the idea to reduce the number of motorcycle designs from 150 different models to only 30 models. Three of these were militarized versions of the Zundapp K series: the KS 500, KS 600 and KS 800. Some examples of the KS600 machine featured Steib sidecars and become the Beiwagen 1938 or BW38, which the Wehrmacht adopted for service in 1938. 

A year earlier the OKH, Army High Command, had approached Zundapp with a list of requirements to be included in the design for the new motorcycle they were seeking. First, they stipulated that the new design must be purpose-built for the military and not another adaptation from a civilian machine. Next was speed; it should be capable of 50 mph on roads, increasing to nearly 60 mph when extra speed was required. It should also have a minimum speed of 2.5 mph without stalling in order not to outpace marching troops. The payload capacity was to be 1,100 lbs., or the equivalent to three fully equipped troops and it should have cross-country tires such as 4.4 x 16 inch fitted. Next it should have a ground clearance of at least 5.9 inches and be capable of operating with snow chains on the tires. Finally, the new machine needed to have good water fording capability and be able negotiate steep inclines.

Initially, Zundapp did consider using the KS600 on which to base the new design, contrary to instructions, but it was found the frame had already been taken to its limit and followed the specifications as laid out by the OKH. The company needed to return to the drawing board to come up with a new frame. After two years of development, two prototype machines were prepared and ready for demonstration to OKH. The trials proved promising and led to some changes in the design, such as increasing the engine’s cubic capacity — first to 700cc and then 750cc. The cylinder position was also raised to a height of 6.3 inches to improve ground clearance and meet the OKH specifications. 

The new machine was given the title KS 750 and Zundapp continued to develop the design, which included putting several machines through endurance trials. In April 1940, OKH accepted the motorcycle for service. Full production began in early 1941 and continued until 1945, by which time 18,695 machines, including those fitted with sidecar combinations, had been built. These were used by despatch riders to deliver orders and other roles such as liaison and reconnaissance. The German Army would use over 200,000 motorcycles of all types during WWII, including captured machines, making it the largest military user of motorcycles. Germany even formed specialist reconnaissance battalions known as Aufklarungsabteilung within armored divisions. These units served in all theaters of war where the German Army fought, from Russia to Italy. 

The KS 750 design was ideal, but Zundapp continued to make modifications, mainly for the purpose of operating in extreme conditions, including the arid heat of the North African theatre. Later, as the war progressed, a shortage of raw materials forced production changes, such as replacing cylinder head covers with sheet metal and using less expensive material for brake shoes. In 1943, sidecars were fitted to the KS 750 to produce a combination which could be used in a range of duties including transporting small quantities of supplies or evacuation of wounded, while still operating in the primary role of reconnaissance. These sidecars were not just attached to the framework, but formed part of the machine itself. 

Zundapp was involved in the development of two designs fitted with sidecars on the KS 750, known as Beiwagen fur Kraftrad (sidecar for motorcycle). The first of these was the BW40, equipped with torsion bar suspension. The other type was the more basic BW43 supplied by the Nuremberg-based company of Steib, founded in 1914, which specialized in supplying sidecars for motorcycles. Designed specifically for the ZS 750, BW43 sidecars were fitted from 1943, making them the most common type. The wheel of the sidecar was driven by a shaft which took power from the rear wheel of the motorcycle to give better control and improved cross-country capability. Some machines were fitted with eight-speed dual-ratio transmission and even a reverse gear. This configuration delivered 70 percent of its energy to the rear wheel, which was fitted with a 22mm wheel brake cylinder, and 30 percent to the sidecar’s wheel, which was fitted with a 19mm wheel brake cylinder to give good stopping power.  

Zundapp motorcycles fitted with the sidecar combination could carry loads up to 1,600 lbs., which equated to three fully equipped men as well as stores such as gasoline in tanks, ammunition or other supplies. Even with that load, they could still be equipped to carry a machine gun such as the MG34 for self-defense or to provide fire support in an emergency. A tow bar hook attachment allowed the KS 750 to pull a light, two-wheeled trailer such as the Infanteriehanhager IF-8 and transport more than 600 lbs. of supplies over short distances. 

At around the same time Zundapp was developing the KS 750, the rival company of Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) was developing its R75 motorcycle. The German Army High Command initiated field trial between the two designs, which ended with a decision that the KS 750 was the better machine of the two. The German Army did wind up using the R75 along with other designs, including those produced by DKW. 

In August 1942, Zundapp and BMW were able, through 70 percent usage of standardized parts due to the Schell Programme, to co-operate on developing a design called the BW43, which used the BMW sidecar fitted to the Zundapp KS 750. It was agreed that BMW would continue to produce the R75 design until production reached 2,200 machines. At that stage the two companies would then combine resources to co-produce the BW43. However, Allied air raids on the BMW plant prevented that from happening. Today, it is these versions of the Zundapp motorcycle which are of great interest to vehicle enthusiasts and the ones most often seen at shows. 

During the final stages of the war in 1945, Zundapp still managed to produce 115 machines with the serial numbers recorded as being 618,170 and ending with 618,284. However, there are 1,715 machines unaccounted for when computing forward from the last known wartime serial number. 

In the months after the end of the war some German factories producing motor vehicles were pressed back into operation as a means of providing employment to the German workforce. One of these was Volkswagen, which began making vehicles in June 1945. Zundapp also entered the post-war civilian market and supplied machines for a range of purposes from commercial businesses to leisure use.

Records show Zundapp built 205 motorcycles in 1946, with the production run commencing with serial number 620,001. The company produced a further 76 machines in 1947 and another 68 in 1948, giving a total output of 349 when the production run ended with the last machine having the serial number of 620, 349. Apart from those serial numbers, the other 347 machines do not appear to have any recorded serial numbers. It is known that the Finnish Army acquired 349 KS 750 machines, and it is safe to assume these were from the production runs between 1946 and 1948. In 1984 the company ceased production and its doors closed for the final time, leaving behind a remarkable legacy of machines from the war years.

It was in 2021 that re-enactor Josef Wolf, a member of the British-based re-enactment group called the Second Battle Group, (SBG), finally acquired his Zundapp KS 750. The SBG has won critical acclaim for its depiction of the SS Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler and its roles in such projects as the 1997 movie “Saving Private Ryan” and several documentaries. Wolf’s Zundapp often adds to displays presented by the SBG at re-enactment events, and frequently joins at least two other Zundapp machines.

Wolf has traced his Zundapp’s production date to October 1944 and the motorcycle entered service in November that year. At one point it was used by a U.S. Army unit, but it went missing when a Polish partisan “acquired” it. 

As a restoration project, it took three years and six months, during which time Wolf replaced and removed replica features to get it to the standard which it is seen today. The machine receives an annual mechanical overhaul by a specialist on the south coast, who brings in any spare parts required. In the time that Wolf has been in possession, he has replaced the battery box and brackets, aluminum freshwater (“Trinkwasser”) bottles, trailer hook and even located a Sandrik jerrican’stamped with the SS runes. This was known as the Wehrmacht-Einheitskanister (Armed Forces Standard Canister) holding 20 liters, equal to 5.3 U.S. gallons of gasoline.

We were coming to the end of our meeting when Wolf dropped an unexpected surprise on me by asking if I would like a ride in the sidecar. Such an offer simply cannot be refused, and Wolf took me on a thrilling high-speed ride around the show ground. The few bumps and dips in the ground were of no matter. I was holding tight to the handrail and enjoying every moment. It was clear to me how vulnerable the men riding motorbikes would have felt in combat. He ended the ride by demonstrating how the machine could turn in a 360-degree radius on its own axis due to the wide arc of the front wheel steering through the handlebars. 

The experience is now stored in my mind along with all the other memories involving historical military vehicles. Meanwhile, Wolf remains busy with his Zundapp, replacing any worn parts and continuing to take it to shows where it is enjoyed by many enthusiasts.