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The 4x4 VBL (Véhicule Blindé Léger - Light Armoured Vehicle) was developed in the 1980s by Constructions Mécaniques Panhard et Levassor, and entered service with the French Army in 1990. The aim was to produce an wheeled all-terrain vehicle to operate in the liaison, anti-tank and reconnaissance roles that was armoured, amphibious, NBC-protected and could be air-transported; it was to replace the jeep and other vehicles in the combat zone or unsecured areas.

The VBL soon proved itself as a multi-role, multi-purpose vehicle. Starting from 2 basic chassis (long and short), Panhard et Levassor has developed more than 13 versions.

From an operational viewpoint, VBLs have come under fire and proved their capabilities on external operations in Bosnia and Somalia among others, and currently in Kosovo.

The VBL is one of the finest vehicles in its category; it is now in service throughout the world with the forces of 14 nations which have selected it to equip a wide range of units: National Guard, Special Forces, anti-tank or air defence units, reconnaissance, riot control units, armoured units.

In France, nearly 1100 VBL are employed in reconnaissance, intelligence gathering, security and battle support roles for MBT (Leclerc) and infantry (VAB) units, in addition to command tasks for these combat units.