Meet the world's most hardcore off-road bus

Travelling by bus can be a mixed bag. You’ll either glide quickly to your stop, or you’ll be stuck next to someone unfamiliar with deodorant.

You’re also trapped on normal, Tarmac-clad roads. But what if there was a bus that could take you up a volcano without breaking a sweat? Meet the Torsus Praetorian and Terrastorm, buses built for the end of days.

Torsus is the brainchild of Ukrainian Vakhtang Dzhukashvili. It was founded in 2014 and development of its first vehicle, the 35-seat Praetorian, began in 2017. And it’s quite the monster.

All four wheels are powered by a 12-speed 6.9-litre MAN diesel six-cylinder motor offering more than 840lb ft – adequate to tear over almost any terrain.

Thanks to an intense amount of engineering, it can wade up to 680mm and climb 65% inclines without issue. Should it encounter rocks, lumps or bumps, its all-round air suspension is equipped to keep the ride as smooth as physics allows.

Dzhukashvili says that the inspiration to make something quite so hardcore came from the beginning of the Russo-Ukrainian war in 2014.

He explains that what should have been a safe corridor out of conflict turned into a shooting range, and because of the state of the roads, regular buses couldn’t handle the terrain.

“Our idea was that an off-road bus would at least give them a chance… Without that, you don’t have one,” he says.

“Then we started putting things together – the transportation of people in aid programmes, the Ukrainian war, militaries, mining.” He adds that it’s neither an armoured truck nor a specific military vehicle, but it can be used by the forces should they wish.

The latest Praetorian is a hard thing to miss, especially when presented in bright yellow. It’s tall, wide and long, and its tyres are so large they could probably house a young family.