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In the 1920s and 1930s, the French automobile industry was characterised by numerous individual manufacturers which produced only small series of motor vehicles. After the Great Depression, the need for motor vehicles increased noticeable. Even the larger manufacturers could not cover the increased need - a reason for the high number of American motor vehicles being sold in France. During the occupation time, French manufacturers produced large numbers of various vehicles for the Wehrmacht. Some French manufacturers produced substantial quantities of lorries for the Wehrmacht. Above all Citroen, Renault, Peugeot and Matford are to call. In addition, there were the enormous stocks of captured vehicles after the west campaign.
The Wehrmacht used buses of French manufacturers, too. Mainly these were captured during the west campaign in 1940. Later, only few exemplars were manufactured for the Wehrmacht by some of the French manufacturers. France had a large type variety of buses, too. The best known buses were made by Citroen, Isobloc and Renault.
Wheeled artillery tractors had a long tradition in the French army which reached back far before World War I. Wheeled tractors for the French army were mainly manufactured by Laffly and Latil until the capitulation of the French Republic. Production of some types was continued for the German Wehrmacht. Furthermore, Latil was involved in the development of a wheeled tractor for the east front – the Radschlepper-Ost.
Not less than 88 infantry divisions, 3 motorised infantry divisions and one armoured division of the Wehrmacht were equipped predominantly with French motor vehicles. These vehicles helped to cover a part of the enormous need of motor vehicles.
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