Part of the Mannschafstransportwagen (MTW) experimental equipment program.
The armored car should be built on the basis of its own specially designed chassis, capable of providing high mobility, maneuverability and the ability to cross water obstacles by swimming. Propeller allowed to move through the water with a sufficiently high speed.
In 1932, the command, after reviewing the test results, decided to abandon the armored vehicles built under the Mannschafstransportwagen program. They turned out to be too complicated and expensive for mass construction, meeting the requirements of the army. The MTW program did not produce the desired results and the further development of
the MTW family projects was abandoned.

Artist's view of the production model ! Never completed.

Only one which was completed with a turret and fully tested. It received conical Rheinmetall-Borsig turret with rational armor angles, and with two independently moving MG-08/15 machine guns (instead of a cannon and a MG). With the 6 cylinder Daimler-Beh M36 (100 hp) engine it had max speed of 90 km/h and range of 250 km, exceeding the requirements. A propeller could be attached as floating drive.

In 1930, after being tested in Germany, the Magirus ARW prototype was transported to Soviet Union, to "Kama" tank proving ground near Kazan, for further testing (to overcome Versal Treaty restrictions). Further fate of that single Magirus ARW prototype is unknown; already in 1932, the Mannschaftstransportwagen program was canceled due to finansial situation - the vehicles were too expensive to be built in series.