Handling performance of eight wheeled armoured vehicle is investigated in this study. Eight wheel drive vehicles are believed to have good performance in offroad maneuvering. In this paper eight wheeled armoured vehicle is modeled as a 204 degree-of-freedom (DOF) system that considers vehicle dynamics, tyre models, nonlinear spring characteristics and kinematic effects. The vehicle model is constructed. The work presented in this paper is of armoured multi axle 8x8 vehicle with independent double wishbone suspension system for front two axles and trailing arm independent suspension for rear two axles and dual axle steering. Wheel travel analysis for suspension and steering to verify kinematics of the system was carried out. A comprehensive multibody dynamics handling model was created and constant speed test as per SAEJ266 was simulated. Steer angle versus lateral acceleration was plotted, and it is concluded that understeer characteristics are achieved.

Keywords: Eight wheeled armoured vehicle, Steering lock angles, Multibody dynamics, Handling, Under steer, Over steer.