The ZIL

Zavod Imeni Likhacheva

Zavod imeni Likhachova, more commonly called ZIL is a major Russian truck and heavy equipment manufacturer, which also produced armored cars for most Soviet leaders, as well as buses, armored fighting vehicles, and aerosani...

-135 is a large, 8 wheeled military transport and self-propelled artillery truck produced in the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

 by the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 starting in 1966. Its purpose was to carry and launch an artillery missile

Missile

Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...

, specifically a FROG-7

FROG-7

The 9K52 Luna-M is a Soviet short-range ballistic missile complex. The 9M21 missiles are unguided and spin-stabilized. "9K52" is its GRAU designation. Its NATO reporting name is FROG-7....

, from surface-to-surface

Surface-to-surface missile

A surface-to-surface missile is a guided projectile launched from a hand-held, vehicle mounted, trailer mounted or fixed installation or from a ship. They are often powered by a rocket motor or sometimes fired by an explosive charge, since the launching platform is typically stationary or moving...

. The ZIL-135 was widely exported to other communist countries, most notably North Korea

North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

, where it is a common sight in films and military marches.

Specifications

• Length: 30.41 ft (9.3 m)
• Width: 9.19 ft (2.8 m)
• Height: 8.3 ft (2.5 m)
• GVW (without missile): 11.57 tons
• Ground clearance: 580mm (0.58 meters)
• Pitch angle: 57°
• Engine: 2 X Ural-375 V-8 6.9 liter gas engines
• Horsepower: 180 hp X 2
• Top speed: 40.39 mi/h
• Range: 248.55 mi (400 km)
• Fuel consumption: 1-3mpg