Introduction

In World War 2, the German Wehrmacht relied heavily on 1.5 ton trucks, the Type 2.5-32 was one of them. The truck was built at the Opel plant in Brandenburg. Equipped with a 6-cylinder engine, the same used in the Kapitan Saloon car, the truck had many uses, including that of an ambulance.

A recent release by ICM has this World War 2 German Ambulance truck now available in 1/35 scale.

Contents

• 3 sprues of plastic
• 2 sprues of clear plastic
• 6 Poly Rubber like tires
• 1 sheet of decals
• 1 instruction booklet

Review

Opening the box, you find the three major sprues in a single plastic bag, with the two clear sprues in separate plastic bags. The plastic is molded in a tan color, which is kind of handy for the end resulting color. Looking over the sprues, the plastic looks to be very well molded, with some great looking detail. Unfortunately there does seem to be some ejector marks that will need to be dealt with, especially on the inside of the frame parts, including some bracing that will be facing outwards. Beyond the ejector marks, the rest of the moldings lack any flash or sink marks.

The kit does include what looks to be a well detailed frame, engine, and running gear. There are some small detail parts for the axles and steering linkage and should add some great looking detail from below. Some of the parts are fine and will require some delicate care getting them off the sprues and handling them. A nice engine is provided but unfortunately, like a lot of kits lately, the hood is molded shut, thus some cutting and scratch building will be needed to show off any extra work you may want to do to the engine. For wheels the kit includes the poly-rubber tires, this turns some modellers off, as for me, I personally like to replace these with resin aftermarket for better tread detail, and weighted look when available. That said the poly-rubber ones included do have nice detail, and the seam down the middle is barely noticeable.

The cab on the real truck was somewhat barren, as is the kit. The kit does include a nice looking dash, and does include decal for the instruments, which should add a great appearance. One drawback is the lack of texture on the floor. This may not be an omission, as I was unable to find any interior images of the Typ 2.3. A nice touch though is the interior detail on the doors, with separate interior door panels. Thus for those who like to put the extra work into the cab, you can show it off.

The rear shelter is a multi-piece affair, first by building the lower cargo bed with side, then constructing the upper shelter that will fit down onto the cargo bed, much like the real thing. While there is nice plank work for the bed and shelter, there is no wood grain texture on the planks. This can be a hit or miss for some modellers. The biggest disappointment is the lack of the ambulance interior detail, and the molded closed end doors. Thus anyone wanting to detail the backend will need to do some cutting and scratch building.

The instructions are presented in a small 12 page booklet format. The construction is done over 41 steps, and looks straight forward and should make assembly easy.

As for markings, the set includes marking for one vehicle, stated to be in Russia from 1942-1943. The decals look to be very well printed, and well with in register.

Conclusion

Overall this looks to be a great kit from ICM, and should build into a great looking World War 2 German ambulance. Unfortunately there is no interior detail for the rear ambulance shelter and there are some tricky ejector marks that will need to be dealt with. Being a great subject, I would highly recommend this kit.