1978 Rottweiler
'78 Rottweiler Wagon 4 door
The 1978 Rottweiler was the succesor of the 1975 Borzoi, but with less number of trims. Mastin was still trying to find an identity within the market, and now that some of the models had been in the market for a couple of years, Mastin executives decided to re design must of the line up by 1978, taking now more time to the designing and engineering instead of rushing things up.
The Rottweiler was launched in november 1978 a couple of months after its sibling, the Malamute.
Background
Months later after the launch of the Borzoi, engineers started to work on the new chassis for the upcoming models, from the ground up. An anti corrosion ladder chassis with double wishbones in the front and solid axle leaf was the base of the design. During this time, the Malamute project was begining as well and eventually used the same platform, but heavily modified for a more off road oriented use.
The exterior design between the two models was similar, sharing some number of parts and panels, but the Kelpie design was less agressive in comparision to the malamute’s.
Finally, in 1978 was released to the market (US, Mexico and Canada) with 2 different trims. The 4 door wagon and 2 door pickup. Both using the same 4.6L Mastiff V8 used in the 1978 Vaquero.
It included a spare tire carrier
Features
| TECHNICAL | 4 door wagon | 2 door pickup |
|---|---|---|
| Engine: | Mastiff V8 | |
| Placement: | Front Longitudinal | |
| Type: | 90° V8 | |
| Block/head: | iron/iron | |
| Valvetrain: | Overhead Valve | |
| Fuel System: | Single 4 barrel Carb | |
| Bore/Stroke: | 100mm x 74mm | |
| Displacement: | 4,650cc | |
| Max Power: | 153hp @ 4,500rpm | |
| Max Torque: | 200lb-ft @ 2,900rpm | |
| Transmission: | 4 Speed Auto | |
| Drivetrain: | RWD + manual locking differential | |
| Chassis type: | Ladder Frame | |
| Chassis/panels: | Corrosion resistant steel | |
| Front suspension: | Double Wishbone | |
| Rear suspension: | Solid Axle w/leaf | |
| Brakes F/R: | Vented/solid dics | |
| Tire size: | 235/75R15 118Q | |
| Weight: | 1,688 kg | 1531kg |
| Top Speed: | 150km/h | |
| 0-100km/h: | 12.3s | 11.6s |
| 400m: | 18.31s | 18.07s |
| Fuel economy: | 8.8mpg - 3.74km/l | 9mpg - 3.8km/l |
| EQUIPMENT | 4 door wagon | 2 door pickup |
|---|---|---|
| Seats: | 5 (2/3) | 3 |
| Manual adjustment: | Y | Y* |
| AM/FM radio: | Y | Y |
| Tape player: | Y | Y |
| Speakers**: | 4 | 2 |
| Power steering: | Y | Y |
| Tow: | 1,431kg | 1,223kg |
| Load: | 2,143kg | 1,210kg |
| Safety rating: | 41.5 | 38 |
*Middle seat is adjusted with driver’s seat
**15 watt speakers
Also available in pick-up version
Price and Stats
1978 Rottweiler 2 door pickup $18,302 ($2,942 when new)
1978 Rottweiler 4 door wagon $19,994 ($3,214 when new)
it’s always hard to fill out all that space with fixtures on bigger car bodies.
