Sd.Kfz.234/1

From War Thunder Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
This page is about the German light tank Sd.Kfz.234/1. For other versions, see Sd.Kfz.234 (Family).
Sd.Kfz.234/1
germ_sdkfz_234_1.png
GarageImage Sd.Kfz.234-1.jpg
Sd.Kfz.234/1
AB RB SB
2.0 2.0 2.0
Show in game
MARKET

Description

The s.Pz.Sp.Wg. (2 cm KwK 30 L/55) Sd.Kfz. 234/1 was the second production model of the Sd.Kfz.234 after the Sd.Kfz.234/2 and was a heavily armoured car reconnaissance vehicle with a simple open-top turret providing a 20 mm autocannon next to an MG42 machine gun to deal with infantry and light combat vehicles. The Sd.Kfz 234 series were primarily built as a further improvement to Germany's reconnaissance vehicles after learning of the effectiveness of said type of vehicle with combat reports of the Sd.Kfz. series 231/232/233.

It was introduced during Update 1.97 "Viking Fury" as a reward for the "Space Race" event. The Sd.Kfz.234/1 combines the familiar chassis of the Sd.Kfz.234/2 with the turret of the Sd.Kfz. 140/1. While not as heavily armoured as the latter, the mobility presented by the former's chassis gives the Sd.Kfz.234/1 excellent map manoeuvrability to utilise the 20 mm autocannon against unsuspecting opponents.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back
Hull30 / 8 / 10
Turret30 / 8 / 8
Crew4 people
Visibility84 %

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour
  • Cast homogeneous armour (Gun mantlet, Vision ports)
  • Structural steel (Side skirts)
Armour Front (Slope angle) Sides Rear Roof
Hull 30 mm (40°) Front plate
15 mm (70°), 30 mm (55°) Front glacis
30 mm (35°) Lower glacis
8 mm (34-35°) Top
8 (19-35°) + 4 mm
10 mm (21-46°) 5 mm
Turret 30 mm (33-37°) Turret front
8 mm (0-8°) Gun shield
8 mm (26-27°) 8 mm (34-37°) N/A

Notes:

  • Wheels provide 10 mm thick protection.
  • Vision ports on car body are 10 mm thick.
  • Belly armour is 12.7 mm thick.

Mobility

Reverse gearbox
Forward and backward movement is possible at the same maximum speed
Speedforward / back
AB100 / 100 km/h
RB and SB90 / 90 km/h
Number of gears7 forward
7 back
Weight11.5 t
Engine power
AB401 hp
RB and SB210 hp
Power-to-weight ratio
AB34.9 hp/t
RB and SB18.3 hp/t
Game Mode Max Speed (km/h) Weight (tons) Engine power (horsepower) Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Forward Reverse Stock Upgraded Stock Upgraded
Arcade 100 100 11.5 325 401 28.26 34.87
Realistic 90 90 186 210 16.17 18.26

The Sd.Kfz.234/1 has the same manoeuvrability as the rest of its Puma brethren. It has a maximum speed of 100 km/h, both forward and reverse in Arcade and 90 km/h forward and reverse in Realistic.

Modifications and economy

Repair cost
AB438 Sl icon.png
RB300 Sl icon.png
SB299 Sl icon.png
Crew training450 Sl icon.png
Experts3 000 Sl icon.png
Aces45 Ge icon.png
Research Aces220 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
Talisman.png 2 × 20 / 20 / 20 % Sl icon.png
Talisman.png 2 × 100 / 100 / 100 % Rp icon.png
Modifications
Mobility Protection Firepower
Mods new wheels.png
Tires
Mods new car suspension.png
Suspension
Mods new tank break.png
Brake System
Mods new tank filter.png
Filters
Mods new tank transmission.png
Transmission
Mods new tank engine.png
Engine
Mods tank tool kit.png
Improved Parts
Mods extinguisher.png
Improved FPE
Mods tank reinforcement ger.png
Crew Replenishment
Mods new tank horizontal aiming.png
Horizontal Drive
Mods tank ammo.png
20mm_kwk_30_HE_ammo_pack
Mods tank cannon.png
Adjustment of Fire
Mods tank ammo.png
20mm_kwk_30_AP_ammo_pack
Mods new tank vertical aiming.png
Elevation Mechanism
Mods art support.png
Artillery Support
Mods tank ammo.png
20mm_kwk_30_APCR_ammo_pack

Armaments

Main armament

Ammunition250 rounds
Belt capacity10 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
7.8 → 6.0 s
Fire rate450 shots/min
Vertical guidance-4° / 70°
Main article: KwK38 (20 mm)
20 mm KwK38 Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity (Belt) Fire rate Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 250 (10) 450 -4°/+70° ±180° N/A 38.1 52.7 64 70.8 75.3 7.80 6.90 6.36 6.00
Realistic 23.8 28 34 37.6 40

Ammunition

  • Default: API-T · HEFI-T*
  • Sprgr.: HEFI-T*
  • PzGr: API-T
  • PzGr 40: HVAP-T

Penetration statistics
Ammunition Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
10 m 100 m 500 m 1,000 m 1,500 m 2,000 m
HEFI-T* 5 4 3 2 2 2
API-T 37 34 23 14 9 6
HVAP-T 48 45 31 20 13 8
Shell details
Ammunition Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
HEFI-T* 900 0.12 0.1 0.1 10.2 79° 80° 81°
API-T 800 0.15 - - - 47° 60° 65°
HVAP-T 1,050 0.1 - - - 66° 70° 72°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Sd.Kfz.234/1
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
25 17 (+8) (+16) (+24) No

Notes:

  • Ammunition is modelled as 25 clips of 10 shells.
  • Racks disappear after you've fired all clips in the rack.

Machine guns

Ammunition1 800 rounds
Belt capacity150 rounds
Reloadbasic crew → aces
10.4 → 8.0 s
Fire rate1 200 shots/min
Main article: MG42 (7.92 mm)
7.92 mm MG42
Mount Capacity (Belt) Fire rate Vertical Horizontal
Coaxial 1,800 (150) 1,200 N/A N/A

Usage in battles

Even though the armour of the Sd.Kfz.234/1 is lacking, it can still bounce a hit or two from low-calibre guns from the front if lucky and when played to its advantages it can become a vital part of achieving victory over the other team. This armoured car has two main things going for it: excellent mobility (with max speeds of 90 km/h RB, 100 km/h AB) and a very effective, fast-firing autocannon with Pzgr 40 rounds that have exceptional armour penetration, where it can decimate enemies at both close and medium ranges.

With these advantages in mind, there are several playstyles for this vehicle. The first of these is to play a harasser role. Using the excellent mobility, the Sd.Kfz.234/1 can get to the best positions on the map early and lie in ambush for enemy vehicles. Once you have struck and eliminated an enemy, use the vehicle's mobility to get yourself to a new position and repeat the process.

A second option is to play it so as to get to cap zones before the other teams do, and afterwards use your vehicle as a support tank along with your teammates' tanks taking up a position behind them.

The third option, if playing in a squad (two or more) you can also use this vehicle for flanking operations.

Notable opponents:

  • KV-1's - Very well armoured for its BR and can be very dangerous (avoid if possible)
  • T-70 / T-80 - Strong frontal armour that will be hard to penetrate (but thinner side and rear armour), if you find yourself fighting one of these try to flank its position and catch it off guard.
  • USA - Most tanks of this tier can be penetrated easily by your autocannon, but be careful as some of these tanks especially BR 3.0 and up will carry .50 cal machine guns which can penetrate your armour so be careful when engaging them. Other nations tanks are relatively similar in their potency, so the same rules should be applied when engaging them.

To conclude, this armoured car is very useful when used in a harasser role, and in the other roles stated above. To make it even more useful, check the specs of other tanks & vehicles of the same BR to get a better idea on what vehicles you can pen and what you can't.

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • HVAP belts has a full composition of HVAP, able to penetrate most light tanks (e.g. T-26, M3A1, BT-5, A13) and side armour of heavier targets (e.g. B1) easily
  • The KwK38 is coupled with an MG42 with a blistering fire rate which allows quite effective suppressive fire capability on light-skinned vehicles
  • The 20 mm cannon can shoot down aircraft due to a very high elevation angle which means it can, in a pinch, act as a pseudo-SPAA
  • The quick speed (100 km/h in AB, 90 km/h in RB) allows the Sd.Kfz.234/1 to be one of, if not the first vehicle, to both, make contact with the enemy team and capture zones
  • Very fast acceleration both forward and reverse, getting out of a sticky situation is very easily if your driver is alive
  • It can average around 40 km/h off-road, which is quite fast for a wheeled vehicle
  • The front hull and turret have 30 mm of armour which is sloped to increase the thickness
  • The thin armour on the sides and rear mean that most solid shot rounds will go right through without causing much damage, which is useful against tanks with only solid shells, like all the M3/M5 Stuarts

Cons:

  • The 20 mm cannon belt consists of only 10 rounds and it gets exhausted very quickly, so reloads are very frequent
  • Weak armour from the sides and rear can be penetrated by lighter weapons like autocannons and machine guns (e.g. M13 MGMC, GAZ-AAA (DShK))
  • Can be destroyed with overpressure by HEAT projectiles like the M8 Scott
  • Poor damage of 20 mm shells means that it can be difficult effectively destroy spacious tanks like the LVT(A)(1)
  • Tall wire mesh fencing on the turret sides can give it away if attempting to hide or play stealthily while providing no armour benefits
  • The wheeled suspension makes controlling the vehicle in turns very hard as it has a tendency to drift
  • It is a wheeled vehicle so, while being racecar-like on hard surfaces, mud, water, snow and sand really slow it down (to around 20-30 km/h)
  • It is open-topped so artillery is deadly and aircraft ramming the vehicle can knock it out
  • Turret traverse speed is average, this, coupled with its tendency to drift in turns makes taking out a target after turning quite the chore
  • Unlike the Sd.Kfz.234/2, the Sd.Kfz.234/1 does not have access to smoke grenades, thus cannot safely retreat from danger
  • Ammunition detonations are very frequent

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Skins
Videos

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis
Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

  • topic on the official game forum;
  • other literature.


Germany light tanks
Pz.II  Pz.II C · Pz.II C (DAK) · Pz.II C TD · Pz.II F · Pz.Sfl.Ic
Sd.Kfz.234  Sd.Kfz.234/1 · Sd.Kfz.234/2 · Sd.Kfz.234/2 TD
Marder  Marder A1- · Marder 1A3 · Begleitpanzer 57 · DF105
  PUMA
Wheeled  Sd.Kfz.221 (s.Pz.B.41) · Class 3 (P) · Radkampfwagen 90
Other  Ru 251 · SPz 12-3 LGS
Argentina  TAM · TAM 2C · TAM 2IP · JaPz.K A2
Czechoslovakia  Pz.35(t) · Pz.38(t) A · Pz.38(t) F · Pz.38(t) n.A. · Sd.Kfz. 140/1
France  Pz.Sp.Wg.P204(f) KwK
Lithuania  Vilkas
USA  leKPz M41
USSR  SPz BMP-1

Germany premium ground vehicles
Light tanks  Pz.II C (DAK) · Pz.Sfl.Ic · Pz.Sp.Wg.P204(f) KwK · Sd.Kfz. 140/1 · Sd.Kfz.234/1 · Ru 251 · SPz 12-3 LGS · TAM 2IP
Medium tanks  Nb.Fz. · Pz.III N · Pz.Bef.Wg.IV J · ▀M4 748 (a) · ▀T 34 747 (r) · Ersatz M10
  mKPz M47 G · Turm III · Leopard A1A1 (L/44) · Leopard 2 (PzBtl 123)
Heavy tanks  ▀Pz.Kpfw. Churchill · ▀KV-IB · ▀KW I C 756 (r) · ▀KW II 754 (r)
  VK 45.01 (P) · ␠Tiger · Pz.Bef.Wg.VI P · Tiger II (H) Sla.16
Tank destroyers  Sd.Kfz.234/3 · Sd.Kfz.234/4 · Sd.Kfz.251/10 · Sd.Kfz.251/22 · 15 cm Pz.W.42
  Brummbär · Panzer IV/70(A) · VFW · Bfw. Jagdpanther G1 · Elefant · 38 cm Sturmmörser