T18 Boarhound

Infobox Weapon
name=T18E2 Armored Car


caption=
origin=USA
type=Armoured car
is_vehicle=yes
length= 6.2 m
width= 3.1 m
height= 2.6 m
weight=26.8 t
suspension=wheels, 8 x 8
speed=80 km/h
vehicle_range=400 km
primary_armament=57 mm gun M1
secondary_armament=2 x .30 Browning M1919A4 machine guns
armour=9.5 to 50.8 mm
engine=2 x GMC 6-cyl.
engine_power=2 x 125 hp / 2 x 92 kW
pw_ratio=9.4 hp/tonne
crew=5

The T18 "Boarhound" was an American heavy armoured car produced in small numbers for the British Army during the Second World War.

History

In July 1941 the US Army Ordnance issued specifications for heavy armored car (along with another specification for medium armored car, which resulted in the T17 Armored Car). The prototype was developed in 1942 by the Yellow Coach. It was large 8x8 (eight wheels, all driven; called an "eight-by-eight") vehicle with four front wheels used for steering. Thick armor brought the weight to 26 tons, about the weight of contemporary medium tanks. Initial armament consisted of a 37 mm gun M6 in a turret with a coaxial .30 inch machine gun and another .30 inch MG in the bow mount. By then it was clear that the anti-tank performance of the 37 mm gun was insufficient and the production version, the T18E2, which was named Boarhound by the British received the 57 mm gun M1, the US-manufactured variant of the QF 6 pounder.

The United States Army had never shown interest in the vehicle. The British Army placed order for 2,500 units, but high production costs and poor cross-country performance led to cancellation of the order after only 30 were delivered. The T18 was never used in combat.

The only surviving vehicle is displayed in the Bovington Tank Museum, UK.

Variants

*T18 - original version with 37 mm gun.
*T18E1 - six-wheeled version. Development was canceled.
*T18E2 - version with 57 mm gun.

References and external links

*George Forty - "World War Two Armoured Fighting Vehicles and Self-Propelled Artillery", Osprey Automotive.
* [http://www.warwheels.net/T18E2BoarhoundArmoredCarINDEX.html Warwheels.net]