I bumped into this curiosity on motorgraphs.com. Some of their captions are very wrong and this one is labelled as a Siddeley 4 seater tourer of 1909 fitted with additional armour plating. I can't say I know much about early trucks so I can't say what it is.
I assumed, though from the source that it would be British but the soldiers are definitely post-1909 and are wearing Adrian style helmets. I assumed that these soldiers were therefore French and this was a WW1 era photo.
I don't recall ever seeing this vehicle before or anything similar but I'm curious if anyone knows more.
-- Edited by vollketten on Tuesday 26th of September 2017 07:38:19 PM
Starting point: Those soldiers are Belgian. Now where does that take us?
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"Sometimes things that are not true are included in Wikipedia. While at first glance that may appear like a very great problem for Wikipedia, in reality is it not. In fact, it's a good thing." - Wikipedia.
I am by no means an expert. But I do humbly offer the following observation.
I have stood next to, and spoken with the owner of, a 1912 Belgian Minerva motorcar.
That vehicle has a wheelbase remarkably similar to that of the depicted vehicle.
It is not beyond reason that such a vehicle was sourced, either by purchase,
donation, or governmental requisition, and converted in the then usual ad-hoc manner.
As the soldiers are identified as Belgian, a Belgian vehicle, would make sense,
after a fashion, hence my suggestion of Minerva open-topped motorcar.
That does not, of course, account for the style of wheels, but I imagine
the wheels would have been changed during the conversion/armouring of the vehicle.
I hope this suggestion helps in the research.
kind and Respectful Regards, Uyraell.
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"Honi-Soit Qui Mal'Y Pense" :
"Ill unto he who ill of it thinks"
Edward III, Rex Britania, AD1348.
"Wan Schon is besser schon"
"Be It Done, Best be It Be Done Well"
Attributed to Frederich Barbarossa,
Rex Germania, AD1123 to 1190.
