SdKfz 234
| SdKfz 234/2 |
Model of an SdKfz 234/2 Puma |
| Type |
eight-wheeled amoured car |
| Place of origin |
Nazi Germany |
| Specifications |
| Weight |
10,500 kg (23,148 lb) |
| Length |
6.02 m (19 ft 9 in) |
| Width |
2.36 m (7 ft 9 in) |
| Height |
2.10 m (6 ft 10 in) |
| Crew |
4 |
|
| Armor |
9-30 mm (.35-1.18 in) |
Main
armament |
•(Puma) 1x50 mm (2.0 in) L/60 KwK 39/1[2]
•(234/1) 1x20 mm (0.79 in) autocannon
•(234/3) 1x75mm K51 |
Secondary
armament |
1x7.92 mm (0.312 in) machinegun |
| Engine |
14,825 cc (905 in3) Tatra 103[1] V12 diesel
157 kW (210 hp) |
| Suspension |
wheeled |
Operational
range |
1,000 km (625 mi) |
| Speed |
85 km/h (53 mph) |
The SdKfz 234 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 234, or special purpose vehicle 234) was an eight-wheeled armoured car used by the German Army in the Second World War. It broadly resembles the SdKfz 231 (8 rad).[3]
Design
The combat experience of the existing 8-wheeled armoured cars during the German invasions of Poland and France, indicated some deficiencies in the current design. Therefore, in August 1940 an improvement program was started, based on a new set of requirements learned from these combat experiences. The result was the SdKfz 234.[4]
Developed from the Büssing-NAG SdKfz 232, design of the Sd Kfz 234 began in 1940.[5] It was to have a monocoque chassis with eight wheels, like its predecessors, and an aircooled engine for use in North Africa.[6]
Chassis were built by Büssing-NAG in Leipzig-Wahren, while armoured bodies were provided by Deutsche Edelstahlwerke of Krefeld and turrets by Daimler Benz in Berlin-Marienfelde and Schichau of Elbing, with engines from Ringhoffer-Tatra-Werke AG of Nesseldorf.[7]
Service history
Protracted engine development meant the desert campaign was over before the 234 arrived, but it nevertheless proved useful on the Eastern and Western Fronts.[8] It was quite formidable, but not many were built before it was replaced by the simpler 234/1, with a 20mm gun, in 1944.[9]
Variants
There were four main variants.
- 234/1 - 1 x 2 cm KwK 30 L/55 autocannon, 1 x MG34 Machinegun. This design featured an open-topped turret. Around 200 were produced.[4]
- 234/2 "Puma" - 1 x 5 cm KwK 39 L/60, 1 x MG34. Employed a fully enclosed turret originally designed for the VK1602 Leopard light tank. The turret front was protected by 30 mm armor set at an angle of 20° from the vertical. The sides and rear had 10 mm armor set at 25°, and the top plate was 10 mm armor. The gun mantlet was rounded and was 40 to 100 mm thick. 101 were produced between September 1943 and September 1944.[4]
- 234/3 - 1 x 7.5 cm K51 L/24 in open-topped superstructure replacing the turret. 88 built between June and December, 1944.[10]
- 234/4 "Pakwagen" - 1 x 7.5 cm PaK 40 L/48 in open-topped superstructure replacing the turret. 89 built between December 1944 and March 1945.[11]
References
Notes
- ^ Hogg, p.221, "Sd Kfz 234/2".
- ^ Hogg, Ian V. Greenhill Armoured Fighting Vehicles Data Book (London: Greenhill Books, 2000), p.221, "SdKfz 234/2".
- ^ Hogg, p.221, "SdKfz 234/2".
- ^ a b c Green, Michael. Anderson, Thomas. Schulz, Frank. German Tanks of World War II. Zenith Imprint, 2000.ISBN 9780760306710
- ^ Hogg and Weeks, p.185, "SdKfz 232, 233, and 234 (8 rad) Armoured Cars".
- ^ Hogg and Weeks, p.185, "SdKfz 232, 233, and 234 (8 rad) Armoured Cars".
- ^ Hogg and Weeks, p.185, "SdKfz 232, 233, and 234 (8 rad) Armoured Cars".
- ^ Hogg and Weeks, p.185, "SdKfz 232, 233, and 234 (8 rad) Armoured Cars".
- ^ Hogg, p.221, "Sd Kfz 234/2" & "Sd Kfz 234/1".
- ^ Hogg, p.221, "Sd Kfz 234/2".
- ^ Hogg, p.221, "Sd Kfz 234/2".
Sources
- Hogg, Ian V. Greenhill Armoured Fighting Vehicles Data Book, p.221, "Sd Kfz 234/1", "Sd Kfz 234/2", "Sd Kfz 234/3", & "Sd Kfz 234/4". London: Greenhill Books, 2000. ISBN 1-85367-391-9.
- ____, and Weeks, John. Illustrated Encyclopedia of Military Vehicles , p.185, "SdKfz 232, 233, and 234 (8 rad) Armoured Cars". London: Hamlyn, 1980. ISBN 0-600-33195-4.
- "s. Pz. Sp. Wg. (5 cm) Sd. Kfz. 234/2: German 8-Wheeled Armored Car", Catalog of Enemy Ordnance, U.S. Office of Chief of Ordnance, 1945.