The ‘Stolly’, officially described as the ‘Truck, 5 ton, 6x6 Cargo, Amphibious, FV622, (Alvis Stalwart Mk2) (High Mobility Load Carrier)’ is largely a legacy of the Cold War due to its widespread use with the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) during the 1960s
When I was a kid during the 1960s, a birthday or Christmas present one year was a Lesney ‘Matchbox’ Stalwart in British Petroleum colours. It was white, said BP Exploration on each side and had a yellow plastic ‘canvas’ tilt on its load bed. At that stage, I had never seen a real one so didn’t know much about them but, I suppose, it helped me explore the unknown world behind the sofa and under the dining table as I pushed it across the plains of carpet land.
The vehicle was the Alvis-built Stalwart High Mobility Load Carrier 6x6, known to most of those familiar with it as the ‘Stolly.’ Years later, I met a Land Rover dealer who told me he’d driven Stalwarts while serving with the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). He told me tales of woe to do with transmission wind-up and the like which compounded my thoughts about not knowing anything about these big six-wheelers. Disposed of by the army, they started turning up at off-road driving centres and p…
