Berliet Dauphin K

The Berliet K series, sold at first as the Citroën Dauphin K01, was a light truck of 2.5 to 5 tonnes payload built for Berliet and Citroën together at the Berliet plant in Vénissieux from 1968 to 1978. It came out of the June 1967 merger of Citroën heavy truck division with Berliet, which needed a strong partner after the failure of the Stradair, and it was meant to replace both the Stradair and the Citroën Belphégor. The brief was simple, no novelty and no air suspension, so the chassis was a classic Berliet one and the cab came from the Stradair with its nose cut off. Citroën contributed the high pressure braking, a petrol version used a four cylinder engine derived from the one in the DS 21, and the diesel came from Perkins. The first models were the 350K, 450K and 480K, with a 180K of 3.5 tonnes that car licence holders could drive, and a 530K with a MAN engine came in 1976. After a short time under the Citroën name it continued as a Berliet until 1978.