At the end of the First World War, the German army, monopolized by other urgent productions, notably ammunition, no longer had the means to develop armored vehicles. Despite everything, Daimler was still working on a vehicle that could succeed its Daimler 1915 armored car and in order to save time, kept the chassis of the 100 horsepower Krupp-Daimler KD-I tractor. The chassis was stiff enough to serve as the basis for an armored car, there was enough power to move a heavy chassis and armor, large-diameter wheels and all-wheel drive ensured sufficient mobility. At the same time, the military still needed, in addition to all-wheel drive, two driving positions for moving forward and backward in the event of ambushes.
The design of the armored car, although in general terms it continued the « German armored boxes » of the First World War, was completely original. The fighting compartment was divided into two zones, the front part, immediately behind the driver’s seat, was made in the form of a block over the entire width of the vehicle, the beveled rear parts of which were equipped with loopholes for firing with machine guns to the rear and sides. The large wheels, inherited from the KD1, were protected by armored discs, which also provided additional protection for the armored hull. The rear part of the armored hull was narrow and had a door with a loophole at the rear for the evacuation of the crew.
The most important change was the installation for the first time of a round rotating turret with a machine gun in a German armored car. The turret was located in front of the rear axle of the vehicle, a combat searchlight with armor protection was installed on its roof. One of the machine guns could be installed in the rear of the hull.
The tactic of use, already developed by the Russian army in 1914, was to fight in reverse, the main concentration of fire to the rear and then exit the combat zone in forward motion with maximum speed. When the project of the vehicle was ready, the question of its use as a combat vehicle no longer arose, the empire capitulated and, under the Treaty of Versailles, did not have the right to have armored forces. At the same time, the Allies examined armored cars, called strassenpanzerwagen (armoured cars for the roads), and their use on the battlefield being questionable, authorized the production of 40 Daimler DZR armored vehicles for the needs of the Reichswehr in 1919 -1920. It should also be noted that the allies wanted a strong enough German army to prevent the country from tipping over to a communist regime. It was not until 07/22/1920 that the note from Boulogne allowed the German police to have 150 armored vehicles for the maintenance of order without the possibility of moving off-road and armed with a maximum of two machine guns . Next to that, the Reich Army was allowed to own 105 unarmed, armored personnel carriers.This is how the 20 Ehrhardt 17/19s that still remained in the inventory and the 40 Daimler DZR-19s that the army still possessed could be turned over to the police ans served until the late 1930s.
Production years: 1919-1920
Brand: Daimler
Number: 40
Weight: 10500 kg
Dimensions: lenght5580 mm x width2100 mm x height 3100 mm
Armor: 4-12 mm
Armament : 2 x MG-08
Engine: Daimler M1574, 100 cv
Speed: 45 km/h
Crew: 7/8