The US GPV 8×8 Wheeled Captain and Colonel APC forms part of The General Purpose Vehicles (GPV) company, system of wheeled medium tactical vehicles, which include a family of trucks and a family of armoured personnel carriers.

The armoured personnel carriers are:

4×4 Sentry
6×6 Commander
8×8 Captain (short)
8×8 Colonel (long)
10×10 General

This page covers the Captain and Colonel. The easiest visible markers between both vehicles is the Captain has seven panoramic periscopes on the front of the vehicle for the crew and the Colonel has 13 for forward vision.

The vehicle has an all-round level of protection from machine gun up to and including calibre 7.62mm’s. It can be built from various materials (such as aluminium and titanium) and thickness to meet the operators requirements. The vehicle also has a V-Shaped bottom to increase protection against mines.

The vehicle can be fitted with various sized turrets and the ability to mount different calibre weapons in them, as well as Remote Weapon Stations.

The engine is a 350hp Caterpillar C7 six-cylinder diesel engine with a five-speed automatic electronically shifting transmission.

The engine is located in the middle of the vehicle and off-set to one side with a corridor running along side it to connect the front cab and the rear for the troops.

The rear seats up to ten troops with space for gear and equipment stowage. They can exit the vehicle via doors located between the 2nd and 3rd road wheels or a door in the rear.

The front cab is occupied by the driver and commander. They have forward looking periscopes and good situational awareness thanks to external cctv and monitors in the cab. The Overhead Display Panel (ODP) in the cab offers a complete diagnostics system for operating and maintaining the vehicle.

They also have roof hatches and retractable wire cutter arms to protect them from decapitating wires placed across roads.

Both the front and rear crew areas are heated and air-conditioned with separate area controls. A nuclear biological and chemical warfare over-pressure filtration system, together with a carbon filter bank, is installed on the vehicle.

The 8×8 variant has been seen in the US being used by Law Enforcement and GPV also help develop the Turkish Pars 8×8, hence both vehicles similar appearance.