An off-road-capable vehicle, tough enough for remote routes and with enough room for a small camper at the same time: that was the idea Sylke and Norbert Frommherz started their new project with, the Puch 230GE with a high roof. The two live in Coswig (Anhalt) and have been travelling off the beaten track since the 1980s.
They gathered their first experience trail driving, and later took numerous tours to the Alps, Corsica, Sardinia and North Africa. Along the way they travelled in a Toyota Land Cruiser, a Land Rover Defender and an MB 1019 truck. The choice of the current vehicle was meant to carry on this tradition and at the same time allow a build stripped back to the essentials.
The starting point: a Puch 230GE with a high roof
The choice fell on a Puch 230GE high-roof from Swiss military stock, built in 1991, painted olive green and with a petrol engine. The vehicle had previously been in service as a radio car and has a body by the Langenthal AG company that is very well insulated from the factory. When bought, the Puch had around 68,000 kilometres on the clock and was in excellent condition, technically and cosmetically. After a fresh TÜV and historic-vehicle registration, the build began.
Preparation and insulation
First they stripped out the interior, removed rust spots and repainted the metal. On this base came the new floor build: wooden battens were bonded with Sikaflex 554, with 32 millimetres of Armaflex XG as insulation in between. They lined the wheel arches with alubutyl. The radio box already came with solid insulation, so a bit of extra work with felt on the inner surfaces was enough.
Furniture: light, sturdy and functional
For the interior they deliberately chose wood. The material has been part of their projects for many years, so a wooden furniture frame made sense. The interior was to offer two people room to sit and sleep, so it got a U-shape. On the left came a compact kitchen area with room for a cool box and power station. The area at the front and on the right serves as a seating corner during the day and is extended into a sleeping space at night with extra boards. The bed measures 120 x 190 centimetres.
The seating and sleeping modules are made of 12 millimetre phenolic-coated plywood, the furniture surfaces of 6 millimetre poplar. That keeps the weight low. A flexible table mount carries a 60 x 40 centimetre board that can be used at night to extend the bed.
Power supply: a simple solution instead of a cable tangle
In earlier vehicles there were many metres of cable; this time the power supply was to be as uncomplicated as possible. The Puch got a 230-volt shore-power connection that feeds a 2400-watt FossiBot power bank. This can also be charged while driving via a 3000-watt pure sine wave inverter, or alternatively via a 200-watt solar panel. A night heater will only follow in a later stage of the build.
Weight, effort and cost
The build took about six weeks. The cost came to around 3,000 euro. Since the old military fit-out brought a lot of weight and was completely removed, the total weight barely changed despite the build. New handling characteristics or limits on payload are therefore not an issue.
On the outside, the Puch stays true to itself
Because of the historic-vehicle registration, outward changes were to be kept to a minimum. Only lashing rails and chequer plate on the roof and bonnet were added. The vehicle’s basic character was preserved.
Cooking and being on the road
Cooking happens almost always outdoors, preferably with a Trangia gas stove. A simple dish like spaghetti bolognese suits the minimalist build well. For longer trips, good mattresses, a good book and a good mood are at the very top of the packing list. Less useful, it turned out, was a bad book, which could not lift the mood on the road.
Outlook and next projects
So far Sylke and Norbert have only been out on weekend tours with the Puch. The first big trip takes place in spring 2026 and leads to Scotland. On the to-do list are a night heater and the conversion of a military trailer to hold two bikes.
After many vehicles and conversions, the two are happy with the current project. Every trip to come will bring new ideas, but the Puch 230GE high-roof makes a solid, reliable base for them.
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