Autocult ups the ante on the Amphicar with the Amphi-Ranger

RMA Amphi-Ranger 2800 SR “Rettung” (Germany, 1985)

Full Speed Ahead Through the Water

Most off-road vehicles are designed to keep going when the pavement ends. The RMA Amphi-Ranger 2800 SR took that idea considerably further. When the land ended, it simply kept going.

The unusual amphibious vehicle was developed by Rheinauer Maschinen- und Armaturenbau GmbH, a German company whose core business involved equipment for gas, oil and water pipelines. Development began in the early 1980s, with production starting in 1985. Its original purpose was decidedly practical—giving pipeline operators a vehicle capable of reaching difficult sections of infrastructure across roads, rough terrain, riverbanks and water.

The name explained much of what was underneath. “RMA” came from the manufacturer, while “2800” referred to the displacement of its 2.8-liter Ford V6, an engine also associated with Ford models such as the Granada and Scorpio. Early versions produced about 135 hp. The letters “SR” were equally important. They stood for seawater resistant, reflecting the considerable effort required to make a vehicle survive repeated exposure to water—especially salt water.

On dry land, the Amphi-Ranger behaved much like an unusually capable four-wheel-drive utility vehicle. It offered selectable all-wheel drive and differential locks and could reach roughly 140 km/h on the road. At the opposite extreme, it could crawl at around 3.5 km/h, useful when negotiating rough ground, shorelines or other difficult terrain.

Then came its party trick.

For water travel, a propeller drive beneath the rear of the vehicle could be lowered into position. Depending on configuration, steering was accomplished with the front wheels or an auxiliary rudder. Once afloat, the Amphi-Ranger could make about 15 km/h, turning an ordinary-looking—if rather boxy—off-roader into a small powered boat.

That combination made the vehicle especially useful for emergency services. The Hessian Water Police began using Amphi-Rangers in 1987 for patrol work on lakes, waterways and shore areas. Their duties included monitoring shipping, checking fishing activity and carrying out other assignments where officers needed to move seamlessly between land and water. One surviving former police vehicle is now preserved at the German Police Oldtimer Museum in Marburg.

Perhaps the most fitting use, however, was on Germany’s North Sea coast around Cuxhaven, where Amphi-Rangers became specialized mudflat rescue vehicles. There, rapidly rising tides can strand walkers far from shore. The amphibious Rangers could drive across the exposed tidal flats and continue operating as the water came in—an ability few conventional rescue vehicles could match.

The rescue versions carried decidedly more serious equipment than their recreational appearance might suggest, including a stretcher, vacuum mattress, emergency medical kit, communications equipment and loudspeaker system. Some were also fitted so that a radar reflector could be mounted on the roof during operations in fog.

And these vehicles were not simply historical curiosities. Amphi-Rangers in the Cuxhaven area continued to participate in real rescue operations decades after production ended. In one documented 2024 incident, an Amphi-Ranger reached two people caught in the mudflats by incoming water and brought them to safety before other responding units were needed.

Production remained tiny. Sources generally place total output at around 70 vehicles between 1985 and 1995, although some records cite 66. Most went to industrial operators, government agencies or specialist users; private buyers were rare. With a price in the neighborhood of 95,000 to 100,000 Deutsche Marks, this was never going to be an everyday alternative to a family SUV.

But then, an everyday SUV could not leave the highway, cross a beach, enter the sea, and keep moving.

For the Amphi-Ranger, the shoreline wasn’t the end of the road. It was simply where the next part of the journey began.