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Dodge 50 Series


The Dodge 50 Series, later known as the Renault 50 Series were light commercial vehicles produced in the UK by Chrysler Europe and later Renault Véhicules Industriels between 1979 and 1993.

The 50 series included a wide range of chassis and body configurations, including two distinctly different cab designs, and spanned the 3,500–7,500 kg (7,700–16,500 lb) revenue weight range. Various engines were offered, including the Perkins Phaser and 4.236, and there was also a four-wheel-drive version, the RB44, built by Reynolds Boughton (now known as Boughton Engineering).

Bodybuilding companies converted many into various configurations from tipper trucks to buses. Many were built as "chassis cabs" to have box bodies fitted; these were widely used by utility companies in the UK. They often came fitted with compressors and generators. Gradually this kind of vehicle fell out of favour, partly due to reliability issues relating to combining plant equipment with the vehicle drivetrain. The vehicle is otherwise toughly built. The utility companies today favour smaller vans with towed generators. The four-wheel-drive version saw some use with the British army since it was one of very few British-built trucks of the class, and it could carry considerably more stores and equipment than even the largest Land Rover models.

Chrysler received financial assistance from the British Government which was desperate to support the ailing British motor industry. However, having inherited various struggling car and commercial vehicle marques (and factories) from the Rootes Group, notably the commercial marques Commer and Karrier, in addition to various French concerns, Chrysler Europe struggled to return a profit. In 1978, Chrysler pulled out of their European operations altogether, selling them to Peugeot. The cars and small vans became known as Talbots.


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