There are many absolutely massive land vehicles that will blow your mind. They are not your average vehicles. Some do construction or excavation. One works for NASA. Another carries some of the biggest ammunition in the world. Others can carry tons and tons of cargo. These vehicles are truly impressive.
Prepare to be amazed at this list of 10 of the heaviest vehicles in the world.
The following are the 10 heaviest land vehicles in their respective roles:
10 – Komatsu D575A-3 SD Super Dozer Dedicated Dozer
Weight: 168.2 tons
This land vehicle is a 1,150 horsepower tractor crawler that serves as a dedicated bulldozer. It was introduced in 2001, and it has a better, re-designed operator cabin than its predecessors and a powertrain electronic control system to maximize its productivity. This super dozer also boasts a large number of durability improvements like reinforced undercarriage roller guards and longer-life hoses.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Komatsu Ltd.
Length: 38 ft. 5 in.
Width: 24 ft. 3 in.
Height: 16 ft.
Weight: 168.2 tons
9 – Liebherr T282 B
Weight: 237 tons
This vehicle is the member of a series of off-highway, ultra-class, rigid frame, two axle, diesel electric, AC powertrain haul trucks. They have a 327+ ton payload capacity and are used for large scale mining operations. The largest of the series is the Liebherr T282B that has a payload capacity of 363 tons and was made for high-production mining applications all over the world.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Liebherr Mining Equipment Co.
Wheelbase: 21.5 ft.
Length: 48 ft.
Width: 29 ft.
Height: 24 ft.
Curb Weight: 237 tons
8 – BelAZ 75710
Weight: 396.8 tons
This vehicle is an ultra-class haul truck and, as of 2016, it is the world’s largest, highest payload capacity haul truck. This huge vehicle is powered by two MTU 65 liter 16-cylinder four stroke diesel engines for a total of 4,600 horsepower, two AC alternators, and 4 AC traction motors! As large as the BelAZ is, it can still reach speeds of up to 40 miles per hour.
Specs:
Manufacturer: BelAZ
Wheelbase: 26 ft.
Length: 68 ft.
Width: 32 ft.
Height: 27 ft.
Curb Weight: 396.8 tons
7 – Caterpillar 797F
Weight: 687.5 tons
This vehicle is the largest of a series of Caterpillar 797 off-highway, ultra-class, two axle, mechanical powertrain haul trucks. The 797F has the highest payload capacity of all mechanical haul trucks at 363 tons. This is also one of the largest payload capacities of any haul truck in the world. This series of trucks was designed with computer-aided design technology, which was a first for the Caterpillar brand.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Caterpillar
Operating Weight: 687.5 tons
Height (Empty): 24 ft. 5 in.
Height (Body Raised): 51 ft. 6 in.
Length: 49 ft. 6 in.
Tire Width: 31 ft. 3 in.
Payload Capacity: 400 short tons (363 tons)
6 – Terex Bucyrus RH400
Weight: 980 tons
The RH400 is an enormous hydraulic mining excavator – it is, in fact, the world’s largest hydraulic mining excavator. Originally, the vehicle was introduced by Terex in Germany, but Bucyrus bought out the mining equipment division of Terex in 2010 and then Caterpillar acquired Bucyrus in 2011. This massive excavator is powered by two diesel engines that deliver a combined 4,400 horsepower.
Specs:
Owned by: Caterpillar
Operating Weight: 980 tons
Engine Output: 4,400 horsepower
Max Digging Height: 66 ft. 3 in.
Max Digging Reach: 62 ft. 4 in.
Max Digging Depth: 7 ft. 7 in.
Max Dumping Height: 47 ft. 7 in.
5 – Schwerer Gustav
Weight: 1,350 tons
This vehicle was developed in the late 1930s and was the heaviest mobile artillery piece ever built. It was the largest caliber of rifle weapon ever used in combat and fired the heaviest shells of any artillery piece in the world. While there were other large mobile artillery pieces built after Schwerer Gustav, it was the only one to ever be used in actual combat.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Krupp
Weight: 1,350 tons
Length: 155 ft. 2 in.
Barrel Length: 106 ft. 8 in.
Width: 23 ft. 4 in.
Height: 38 ft. 1 in.
4 – NASA Crawler Transporters
Weight: 2,721 tons each
The NASA Crawler Transporters are a pair of tracked vehicles that transport spacecraft from NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building to Launch Complex 39. These crawlers were used to transport the Saturn IB and the Saturn V rockets. They were used again to transport various space shuttles from 1981 to 2011. The NASA crawler transporters were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Marion Power Shovel Company
Also Called: Missile Crawler Transporter Facilities
Length: 131 ft.
Width: 114 ft.
Height: 20 to 26 ft.
Curb Weight: 2,721 tons each
3 – Big Muskie
Weight: 12,000 tons
This vehicle stands almost 22 stories tall! It is an incredibly impressive coal mining Bucyrus-Erie excavator. It was the only one of its kind ever built and was in operation in Ohio from 1969 until 1991. Big Muskie was the largest single-bucket digging machine ever built and one of the biggest mobile earth-moving machines.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Bucyrus-Erie
Weight: 12,000 tons
Bucket Capacity: 295 tons
Height: 222 ft. 6 in.
Boom Length: 310 ft.
Machine Length: 487 ft. 6 in.
Empty Bucket Weight: 210 tons
Width: 151 ft. 6 in.
2 – Overburden Conveyor Bridge F60
Weight: 13,600 tons
This vehicle is not only the longest vehicle ever made, but it is literally the largest vehicle by physical dimensions ever built by mankind. The bridge is called the lying Eiffel Tower because of its massive size. It is used to transport overburden that lies over coal seams for coal mining. There are five overburden conveyor bridges that are all of equal size and are the largest movable technical industrial machines in the world.
Specs:
Manufacturer: Volkseigener Betrieb TAKRAF
Wheelbase: 56 in.
Length: 1,647 ft.
Width: 790 ft.
Height: 260 ft.
Curb Weight: 13,600 tons
1 – Bagger 293
Weight: 14,200 tons
Once known as MAN TAKRAF RB293, Bagger 293 is a humungous bucket-wheel excavator. It is so huge that it holds records for land vehicle size in the Guinness Book of Records! The vehicle requires 5 people to operate it and is powered by an impressive 16.56 megawatts of externally provided power. One fun fact about Bagger 293 is that it has appeared on the Westworld television series.
Specs:
Manufacturer: TAKRAF
Length: 738.2 ft.
Width: 151 ft.
Height: 314.9 ft.
Weight: 14,200 tons
Terms You May Need to Know
In order to understand the enormity of these vehicles, you must be able to comprehend the measurements. Not all of the terms detailed in the specs of the vehicles are common knowledge.
Some terms you should know to be able to better understand the size of these vehicles are:
- Ton – 1 ton is equal to 2,000 pounds
- Wheelbase – the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels
- Curb Weight – the weight of a vehicle without any occupants or baggage
- Payload Capacity – refers to the amount of weight a truck can carry – both passengers and cargo in the cab and bed
- Horsepower – a unit of power that is equal to 550 foot-pounds per second, used to measure the power of an engine
- Operating Weight – the basic weight of a vehicle that includes the driver/operator and fuel
Knowing these terms will help you relate the specific measurements of each vehicle to things that you already know in order to portray a better mental picture of the vehicle.
In Conclusion…
These land vehicles are phenomenal in size. It is difficult to fathom how big some of them are. And manufacturers are still building bigger and better vehicles every year! From mining to construction to transporting spaceships, these vehicles perform amazing jobs. They are honestly incredible.
