The SdKfz 231 Schwerer Panzerspähwagen was a heavy armored car used by Germany during World War II.
Description[]
The 231 was powered by a single 150 hp, 8-cylinder Büssing-NAG L8V engine, and had a maximum speed of 85 km/h on roadways. The 231 measured 5.85 meters long, 2.20 meters wide and 2.35 meters high, and weighed 8,300 kilograms. The 231 was armed with a 20 mm KwK 30/38 L/55 self-loading cannon, for which 180 rounds of ammunition was carried, and coaxial 7.92 mm MG 34 machine gun in the dorsal turret, and carried 1,050 rounds of machine gun ammunition. Armor protection varied from 5 mm to 18 mm at the thickest.[1] A crew of four was required for the 231 to fully operate, and comprised of a commander, gunner and two drivers, one facing forwards, and the other backwards, allowing the 231 to be driven in either direction with equal ease. The maximum range of the 231 was 300 kilometers.
Variants[]
Three main variants of the SdKfz 231 were produced, one being the SdKfz 232 Schwerer Panzerspähwagen, which was an armored radio vehicle version of the 231, and later served as both a radio vehicle and reconnaissance vehicle as of 1941, replacing the 231. The SdKfz 233 Schwerer Panzerspähwagen was a heavy combat variant armed with a 75 mm KwK 37 L/24 short barrel gun in an open-top fixed turret structure. The SdKfz 263 Schwerer Panzerfunkwagen was the final variant, a mobile radio communications vehicle featuring an open-top fixed turret structure and armed with only a 7.92 mm MG 34 machine gun. The 263 also carried large antenna frames for long-range communications.
History[]
When the cross-country capabilities of the earlier SdKfz 231 Leichter Panzerspähwagen were deemed insufficient, the Wehrmacht contracted Büssing-NAG to develop a new eight-wheeled armored car with all wheel drive and all-wheel steering, as well as two driver positions in both the front and rear. While Büssing-NAG was tasked with the design assembly, Deutsche Werke was tasked with producing the armored bodies. The official SdKfz 231 was produced from 1937 to 1941, and in the July of 1941 was deemed unnecessary as all reconnaissance roles required of the 231 could now be fulfilled by the newer 232 without the radio equipment. The 232 was produced from 1938 to 1943. The 233 variant was produced from 1942 to 1943, some 109 being built, and further ten converted from the 263 radio communications vehicle in 1942.
References[]
| |||||||||||