- Rover Light Armoured Car
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Rover Light Armoured Car 
Rover Light Armoured Car in Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum, Puckapunyal, Victoria, Australia.Type Armoured car Place of origin 
AustraliaSpecifications Weight Mk1 5.2 tonnes, Mk2 5 tonnes Length Mk1 6.1 m, Mk2 5.6 m Width 2.3 m Height 2.1 m Crew 5 (Commander, Driver, 2 Gunners, Wireless operator) Armor 16 mm Main
armament0.303 (7.7 mm) Vickers MMG Secondary
armament0.303 (7.7 mm) Bren LMG Engine Ford V8
95 hp (71 kW)Power/weight 19 hp/tonne Suspension 4x4, leaf spring Operational
rangekm The Light Armoured Car (Aust), also known as Rover, was an armoured car produced in Australia during the Second World War.
Contents
History and description
At the outbreak of World War II the United Kingdom was unable to meet the needs of the Commonwealth for armored fighting vehicles. It led many Commonwealth countries to develop their own AFVs.
A Light Armoured Car in 1942
The Rover was designed in 1941. It utilized Ford 3-ton CMP truck chassis, either F60L or shorter F60S. The armoured bodies were produced by Ruskin Motor Bodies Pty Ltd of Melbourne. The production was stopped in 1943, a total of 238 cars were built.
The Rover entered service with the Australian army in April 1942. It never saw combat and was used mostly for crew training. A long narrow opening at the top of the hull earned the vehicle a nickname mobile slit trench. Late in 1943 Australia started to receive US-made armoured cars and the Rover was soon declared obsolete.
There are two restored Rover Mk II cars on display in Australian museums, at the National Military Vehicle Museum in Port Adelaide and at the Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum at Puckapunyal, Victoria.
Variants
- Mk I - F60L chassis (40 units).
- Mk II - F60S chassis (198 units).
References
- Michael K. Cecil - Australian Military Equipment Profiles vol. 3, Australian Scout and Armoured Cars 1933 to 1945, 1993 Australian Military Equipment Profiles, ISBN 0-646-14611-4.
External links
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