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No, Vakhtang Dzhukashvili has probably never heard of “pure”. But while the Swabian band sent you into adventure land only in your head, the Czech builds the right vehicles for it. Because the torso Buses and Transport do not go to Bottrop or Barcelona, but deep into the bush.
Who says that bus trips are only for old people, for men's choirs, country women or at best a school class? Anyone who claims that has never spoken to Vakhtang Dzhukashvili. Because the muscle-packed man in his mid-thirties, who would also be a great replacement for Rambo, neither thinks of traveling by bus, nor does he have Bottrop or Barcelona in mind. He is the boss of the Czech conversion company Torsus and builds buses with which a coffee trip can take you to the end of the world.
Jacked up and indestructible and of course equipped with official all-wheel drive technology, he turns good MAN models into special vehicles suitable for expeditions, where the name says it all. Praetorian and Terrastorm sound more like Patagonia and Taiga than Provence and Timmendorfer Strand. If he knew the Swabian band “Pur”, “Come with me to Adventure Land” would therefore probably be his biggest hit and would run in an endless loop with him. Because if there is anyone who can take a tour group to the end of the world, it is Dzhukashvili.
Offroad is the program
When the former Ford fleet seller set up his own business with this idea over ten years ago, he initially had other customers in mind: Dzhukashvili wanted to equip disaster relief workers, relief services and the United Nations, and above all oil companies, energy suppliers and mining companies. For them, he first developed the Praetorian, and for it he placed his own, almost indestructible cabin for 36 passengers on a chassis of the MAN TGM.
Because you can only drive it with a truck driver's license and because even with 34 centimeters of ground clearance, 90 centimeters of fording depth, all-wheel drive with three differentials and reduction, as well as coarse off-road tires on the massive 20-inch rims, the range of action is sometimes somewhat limited , a little later he added the little brother Terrastorm, which is based on the MAN TGE and the identical VW Crafter. Obviously with success. Dzhukashvili builds around 166.000 of the Preatorian, which costs at least 100 euros, in his Slovakian factory, and another 70.000 of the Terrastorm at prices from around 70 euros per year.
One of them now rises up in front of me and because I prefer to be a driver rather than a passenger - whether in the car or on the bus - there is only the front left seat for me. With the Praetorian, this is easier said than done: while the passengers comfortably step up a wide staircase to their synthetic leather seats with folding table and USB port, I have to climb a stepladder before I plop down deep into the buttery-soft, sprung trucker throne.
Big vehicle
Then it rumbled under me as if an earthquake was rolling in from afar and the 6,9-liter in-line six-cylinder came to life. If I can now manage the hydraulically assisted gearshift, then I'll be in control of 290 hp and 1.150 Nm and will probably get through everywhere. For now, however, I'll be content with a short stretch of gravel road and I'm glad that the giant in his indestructible armor made of matt, dyed plastic, despite the huge turning circle and the badly delayed response to each of my drive commands, has parked itself safely.
Where the Praetorian is an adventure for me as a layman in the truck on a normal dirt road, the Terrastorm feels much more familiar. No wonder, at first glance there is nothing in the cockpit that distinguishes it from a Crafter or a TGE, and Dzhukashvili and his boys have kept their hands off the all-wheel drive train, DSG and the 177 hp TDI engine. But at the latest the harness straps on the dozen seats in the back let me cling and just a few minutes later I also know why Torsus installed them.
Because if the Terrastorm was just a very normal transporter on the street, which maybe just had a bit weak knees, it now storms across the terrain without regard to losses. Outside mud and stones are splashing, in the mirror I see an endless train of dust and behind me they all tighten their suspenders again, because otherwise they jump on the seats like on a stubborn rodeo horse.
Pure stability
Only Dzhukashvili is sitting on the pillion and grinning. Because this is exactly where the Terrastorm is in its element, says the boss and praises the rustic and robust construction: Reinforced leaves in the springs at the back, more travel in the front dampers, underbody protection and off-road tires arm the Terrastorm for adventure and the protective strips around the Car bodies are so stable that they can sometimes box a cow or a kangaroo out of the way, even at full throttle if necessary, enthuses the charming bastard in the passenger seat.
Will be delivered anywhere
Of course, you don't have to order the cow catcher. Just like the snorkel, which also protects against dust when driving in a convoy, the signal system on the roof or a ladder at the rear. Because Dzhukashvili can not only deliver to the furthest corners of the world and has so far won every battle against customs. He also explicitly builds his cars according to customer specifications.
The Praetorian is therefore also available as a command center or ambulance, and in the Terrastorm it is not for nothing that it has not only equipped the floor but also the side walls with a special fastening system: his fitters or, later, the customers can use it to refurbish the minibus and rearrange the seats , Attach equipment or, if necessary, even install camping equipment. “And whatever you put into it, it stays in place even under the most adverse conditions,” beams Dzhukashvili and sends me down the jogging track again.
In the beginning, Dzhukashvili primarily had professional customers in mind, equipped military and mining companies and sent his buses to mines and gravel pits around the world. But he also registers more and more private demand. Because not only since Corona has everyone been pushing outside, and not everyone is ready to run to the end of the world. If you prefer to drive and also want to take a few friends with you, you will quickly reach your limits even with G-Class & Co and therefore prefer to book a coffee trip with one of Dzhukashvili customers, who also include tour operators, hotel owners and national park administrators .
And if “Pur” should go on tour again, he'll definitely build a suitable band bus for you. At least if the concert tour should lead to adventure land.