2 years ago

The Sd.Kfz. 234 was a armoured car designed and built in Germany during World War II.
The Sd.Kfz. 234 was developed in the early 40s and were based on the earlier Sd.Kfz. 231/232/233 (8-Rad) and keeping the experience of fast-moving, hard-hitting wheeled reconnaissance vehicles during the early invasions of Poland and France in mind.
The first trials with the prototype started around July, 1942. Due to problems with the excessive noise of the first engine, a second model was developed, the Tatra 103.
The vehicle had eight-wheel steering and was able to quickly change direction thanks to a second, rear-facing, driver's seat
The vehicles were lightly armoured, armed with a 20, 50 or 75 mm main gun, and powered by a Tatra V12 diesel engine.

■ Sd.Kfz. 234/2, had a turret armed with a 5 cm L/60 gun, which was originally intended for the VK 1602 Leopard light tank. It was produced from late 1943 to mid 1944.
■ Sd.Kfz. 234/1, had a simpler open turret Hängelafette 38) armed with a 2 cm KwK 38 gun, it was manufactured from mid 1944 to early 1945.
■ Sd.Kfz. 234/3, served as a support vehicle for the reconnaissance vehicles. It had an open-topped superstructure, in which a short-barreled 7.5 cm K51 L/24 gun was installed.
■ Sd.Kfz. 234/4, which replaced the L/24 gun with the 7.5 cm L/46 PaK 40. This was yet another attempt to increase the mobility of this anti-tank gun. however, the 234 chassis was stretched to its limits. This variant was manufactured from the end of 1944 to the end of hostilities in 1945.

■ As WW2 entered its final stages the ever resourceful German units on the ground, starved of supplies, turned to using whatever was at hand.
Most likely this example is a field modification serving with the 20 Pz.Div Hungary April 1945. The recovery of a 234/2 body and a turret from a damaged Panzer II Ausf. L Luchs resulted in this enigmatic but simple field conversion.

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■ Information obtained from several sites.
■ Wikipedia
■ tanks-encyclopedia
■ the.shadock.free.fr/Surviving_Panzers
■ preservedtanks
■ pantser.net
■ the.shadock.free.fr/Tanks_in_France

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