| 155 mm Gun Motor Carriage M40 | |
|---|---|
M40 in the US Army Ordnance Museum. |
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| Type | Self-propelled artillery |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 36.3 metric tons (80,000 lb) |
| Length | 9.1 m (29 ft 10 in) |
| Width | 3.15 m (10 ft 4 in) |
| Height | 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) |
| Crew | 8 (Commander, driver, (6x) gun crew) |
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| Armor | 12 mm |
| Main armament |
155 mm M2 gun 20 rounds |
| Engine | Wright (Continental) R975 EC2 340 hp (253 kW) |
| Power/weight | 9.36 hp/t |
| Suspension | HVSS (Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension) |
| Operational range |
170 km (106 mi) |
| Speed | 38 km/h (24 mph) on road 23 km/h (14 mph) off road |
The 155 mm Gun Motor Carriage M40 was a US self-propelled artillery vehicle built on a widened and lengthened Medium Tank M4A3 chassis but with Continental engine and with HVSS (Horizontal Valute Spring Suspension) that was introduced at the end of the Second World War. Equipped with a 155 mm M2 gun, it was designed to replace the earlier M12 Gun Motor Carriage. Its prototype designation was the T83, but this was changed to the M40 in March 1945.
A single pilot vehicle was used in the European Theatre in 1945 by 991st Field Artillery Battalion, along with a related 8 inch Howitzer Motor Carriage T89 which was sometimes also equipped with a 155 mm barrel.[1] From there it was deployed during the Korean War.
After World War II the M40 was used by the British Army, who designated it 155 mm SP, M40.
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The Army planned to use the same T38 chassis for a family of SP artillery:
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