page_title: Vanajan Autotehdas
section_title: Vehicles for the Finnish Defence Forces
hierarchical_section_title: Vanajan Autotehdas / Vehicles for the Finnish Defence Forces
caption_attribution_description: English: Vanaja VKN3600 4×4, a prototype made for Finnish Defence Forces.
context_page_description: Vanajan Autotehdas Oy was a producer of heavy vehicles based in Hämeenlinna, Finland. The company was founded as Yhteissisu Oy in 1943 by the Finnish government and a number of major Finnish companies with the aim of producing lorries and buses for the Finnish Defence Forces. World War II was over before the company could start series production; it was renamed Vanajan Autotehdas and the marque became Vanaja. Subsequently, the production consisted of outdated lorry models, partly built from military surplus materials. After overcoming initial difficulties, the company modernised its products, became profitable and grew until the mid-1950s. Many major components, including engines, were imported. Diesel engines became widely available in 1955, and in 1959 VAT introduced its most significant innovation, the full load lifting tandem axle mechanism, which improved off-road capability significantly; the system is now used in Sisu vehicles.
  The company started producing bus chassis in 1950, and the superstructures were built by a number of Finnish coach builders. The last models were appreciated by a number of bus operators, and missed after production was stopped.
context_section_description: The Finnish Defence Forces carried out a winter test for potential military vehicles in March 1958. 35 candidate vehicles from the two domestic producers and various importers were driven around Finland. VAT sent four vehicles to the test, three of which were 4×4s and one was an ordinary, rear-wheel driven vehicle. During the five days' testing period, all vehicles were continuously fully loaded. For part of the journey, the vehicles had to tow an eight-ton field cannon. The vehicles were tested for off-road capabilities in even, 50-to-70 cm (20-to-28 in)-deep snow. One of the Vanajas was destroyed in an accident. The domestic vehicles performed well in the test; in some cases the rear-wheel driven Sisus and Vanajas outperformed the 4×4-driven foreign competitors. None of the vehicles were clearly better than the others but the result convinced the Defence Forces of the capabilities of the domestic vehicles and led to several deals for SAT and VAT.
  In 1960, VAT delivered the first Vanaja VAKS lorries, which were intended for general use in garrisons, to the Defence Forces. The later versions were called AS-33. 155 units were produced. Vanaja NS-47 was the first Finnish 4×4 off-road lorry designed primarily for military use. A few dozen vehicles were ordered between 1962 and 1964, and were used for hauling 35 mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannons and heavy artillery.
caption: The Vanaja VKN3600, a prototype of a light 4×4-lorry for the Finnish Defence Forces
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