Mercedes-Benz L 321

The Mercedes-Benz L 321 was a diesel truck built from June 1957 at the Mannheim plant, where the L 311 and L 312 were also made. It was designed for a higher payload than those two, initially 5.5 tonnes, and was sold as a flatbed, a tipper and a semi-trailer tractor, with either a cab-over cab or a conventional bonnet. The all-wheel-drive versions were made only with a bonnet. Production at Mannheim ended in 1959. Power came from the OM 321 inline six-cylinder four-stroke diesel, which displaced 5,103 cubic centimetres and used pre-chamber injection with water cooling. It rode on a modular ladder frame with wheelbases of 3,200 to 4,830 millimetres, rigid axles on semi-elliptic springs, hydraulic brakes with compressed-air assistance and a fully synchronised five-speed gearbox.