M4A3E2 (France)

This page is about the heavy tank M4A3E2 (France). For other M4 Shermans, see M4 Sherman (Family). For other uses, see M4 (Disambiguation).

▄M4A3E2

ARL-44 (ACL-1)

AMX M4

▄M4A3E2

ARL-44 (ACL-1)

AMX M4

France

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	5.7	5.7

Class:

Heavy tank

Research:40 000

Purchase:135 000

Show in game

Description

The ▄Assault Tank M4A3E2 Jumbo is a Rank III French heavy tank with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB) and 5.7 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.75 "La Résistance". This is a Jumbo provided to the Free French Forces by Americans.

The M4A3E2 looks like a standard Sherman medium tank, but it is still a weighty tank and is used as a breakthrough tank to attack fortified enemy positions. It is certainly not a medium tank like normal Shermans. It is a great tank when fighting Tigers as the 88mm cannons cannot penetrate the armour of the M4A3E2 from its sides when angled efficiently. As such, it allows players to get close to Tigers and attack them from the sides, or force them to retreat. When fighting Panthers, the M4A3E2 is less effective as the 75mm cannon on the Panther can penetrate the armour of the Jumbo Sherman from the front even when angled more than 30 degrees at 500 meters. Only at close range can high-velocity guns, such as Soviet 85mm or German 88mm guns, penetrate the frontal glacis. However, larger calibers, such as the Soviet 122mm gun, will slice right through the armor.

It takes on the general look of an M4A2 but is much more armoured (and uses a Ford gasoline engine). The M4A3E2 features the double-layered front armour giving the vehicle its distinctive 101.6 mm total front armour. It provides its boast of being better armoured than the Tiger I. The transmission housing is considerably beefier, too, from the addition of armour at the area as well. The front of the T23-style turret is distinctive with the very blocky gun mantlet and circular barrel shroud around the rather underwhelming 75 mm gun barrel.

The sides and suspension look like the usual game with the M4 Sherman series, but with minor differences. The flat side armour of the hull, instead of 38.1 mm thick, is now 76.2 mm thick for much more reliable side protection. However, the lower side hull around the bogie suspension area is still only 38.1 mm thick, vulnerable to most conventional anti-tank weapons. Another minor difference is the tracks. The T48 rubber chevron tracks are equipped with extended end connectors to improve ground pressure performance for the additional weight of the armour.

However, the rear does not have any extra armour and is much thinner. The roof of the tank is thinly armoured as well, only having 19.5 mm on the hull and 25.4 mm on the turret, so beware as artillery barrages tend to set engine compartment modules on fire.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull101 / 76 / 38

Turret177 / 152 / 152

Crew5 people

Visibility122 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, turret roof, cupola roof)
• Cast homogeneous armour (turret, cupola, gun mantlet, transmission housing, MG port)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	63.5 + 38.1 mm (47°) Front glacis 25.4 + 34 mm MG port 114.3-139.7 mm (cylindrical) Transmission housing	76.2 mm Top 38.1 mm Bottom	38.1 mm (10°) Upper plate 38.1 mm (7°) Lower plate 38.1 mm (24°) Lower glacis	63.5 + 38.1 mm (42°) Front glacis 19.5 mm Centre 19.5 mm (8°) Rear - Centre 19.5 mm (24°) Rear - Sides
Turret	152.4 mm (0-52°) Turret front 177.8 mm (4-60°) Gun mantlet	152.4 mm (4-42°)	152.4 mm (0-79°)	63.5 mm (28°) Front 25.4 mm Centre
Cupola	51 mm (conical)			51 mm Outer ring 25.4 mm Centre

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick, while bogies are 10 mm thick and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 25.4 mm thick.
• Hull underside right above the tracks are 9.5 mm thick.

The M4A3E2 Jumbo presents very little frontal weak spots in an engagement. It is best to try and force the Jumbo to try and angle his vehicle towards the player or his allies. An angle more than 30 degrees can expose the much weaker lower side hull armour in the suspension that is only 38.1 mm thick. With a powerful enough gun, a round can penetrate this area and damage the crew, or even set off the ammunition all cluttered up on the bottom of the tank.

If a frontal engagement is unavoidable and are unfortunately armed with guns unable to penetrate through the front glacis, there are only two areas that are viable. First is the machine gun port, which is one of the areas that is not layered with the extra 38.1 mm added on top of the base armour. Guns like the Panzer IV 75 mm KwK 40 guns that are unable to cleave through the front glacis can push their luck in this area, with small "sweet spots" that the round can pass through. Another way to attack the M4A3E2 in this scenario is exploiting a shot-trap in the gun mantlet. The small corner flaps on the bottom corners of the gun mantlet have a tendency to deflect rounds downwards onto the 19.5 mm hull roof armour. While this will be left to the ricochet chances, it is still possible and can be used if no other scenarios are favorable.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB38 / 5 km/h

RB and SB36 / 5 km/h

Number of gears5 forward

1 back

Weight37.8 t

Engine power

AB954 hp

RB and SB500 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB25.2 hp/t

RB and SB13.2 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	38	5	37.8	646	954	17.09	25.24
Realistic	36	5		442	500	11.69	13.23

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 010 → 2 486

RB2 176 → 2 691

SB3 022 → 3 738

Total cost of modifications35 100

68 400

Talisman cost1 300

Crew training39 000

Experts135 000

Aces550

Research Aces390 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

90 / 140 / 150 %

154 / 154 / 154 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 500 155 Suspension Research: 1 600 Cost: 3 100 105 Brake System Research: 1 600 Cost: 3 100 105 Filters Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 145 Transmission Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 250 Engine Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 250	Improved Parts Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 500 155 Improved FPE Research: 1 600 Cost: 3 100 105 Crew Replenishment Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 145	Horizontal Drive Research: 2 300 Cost: 4 500 155 Adjustment of Fire Research: 1 600 Cost: 3 100 105 75mm_usa_APCBC_ammo_pack Research: 1 600 Cost: 3 100 105 Elevation Mechanism Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 145 75mm_usa_APCR_ammo_pack Research: 2 200 Cost: 4 300 145 75mm_us_M89_Smoke_ammo_pack Research: 3 800 Cost: 7 400 250

In Tier I, Parts and Horizontal Drive should of course be the prioritized modules for repairs and turret traverse speed. These two will also unlock Tier II modifications and grant access to the very vital FPE and M61 shot, the former for preservation against fires and the latter to improve damage in the battlefield.

Then in Tier III, Crew Replenishment should be obtained for crew survival improvement and the APCR T45 shot for improved armour-piercing power. After that, everything else could be done at one's own priorities, but Engine should be invested for better automotive performances and M89 for the smoke capabilities.

Armaments

Main armament

75 mm M3 cannon

Vertical stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in one plane while moving

Ammunition104 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

6.5 → 5.0 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 25°

75 mm M3					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	104	-10°/+25°	±180°	Vertical	19.4	26.9	32.6	36.1	38.4	6.50	5.75	5.30	5.00
Realistic					14.3	16.8	20.4	22.6	24.0

Ammunition

• M72 shot - AP - Solid shot, stock shell. An armour-piercing shell with acceptable penetration but poor post-penetration damage.
• M48 shell - HE - A low-velocity shell useful against soft targets, in particular when hitting an open-topped vehicle. Harmless against any enclosed vehicle with more than 10 mm of armour.
• M61 shot - APCBC - A capped armour-piercing shell with a better penetration than the M72 thanks to its ballistic cap and a good post-penetration damage thanks to its explosive filler.
• T45 shot - APCR - Subcalibre round with high penetration but only on flat surfaces, with a high muzzle velocity but a poor post-penetration damage potential.
• M89 - Smoke shell - A very low-velocity shell deploying a smoke screen on impact, useful to blind enemy vehicles that are too remote for you to disable so that you can progress towards objectives.

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
M72 shot	AP	91	88	78	67	57	49
M48 shell	HE	10	10	10	10	10	10
M61 shot	APCBC	104	101	90	78	68	59
T45 shot	APCR	139	135	121	105	91	79

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
M72 shot	AP	619	6.3	N/A	N/A	N/A	47°	60°	65°
M48 shell	HE	463	6.3	0.0	0.1	666	79°	80°	81°
M61 shot	APCBC	618	6.79	1.2	14	63.7	48°	63°	71°
T45 shot	APCR	868	3.81	N/A	N/A	N/A	66°	70°	72°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
M89	259	3	13	5	20	50

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M4A3E2 (identical).

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
104	100 (+4)	50 (+54)	0 (+104)	No

Notes:

• As they are modeled by sets of 2, shells disappear from the rack only after you fire both shells in the set.
• Turret empty: 100 (+4) shells.

Machine guns

12.7 mm M2HB machine gun

Ammunition600 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate575 shots/min

Vertical guidance-10° / 30°

Horizontal guidance-60° / 60°

7.62 mm M1919A4 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition3 000 rounds

Belt capacity250 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate500 shots/min

12.7 mm M2HB
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	600 (200)	577	-10°/+30°	±60°

The roof-mounted M2HB .50 cal heavy machine gun is very good at knocking out tracks, punching through lightly armoured vehicles and shooting down low-flying aircraft. Use it sparsely because of its low ammo count.

7.62 mm M1919A4
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	3,000 (250)	500	N/A	N/A

The small calibre of the M1919A4 machine gun makes it largely ineffective against all armoured vehicles but the ones with an open compartment. It still can be used to ping targets as a rangefinding help or to mow down minor obstacles blocking your line of sight.

Usage in battles

The M4A3E2 is best in assaulting enemy positions with allies. Its great mobility for a heavy tank, especially with its armour, makes it a vehicle able to charge into battle and take anything head-on with confidence. It can act as a bullet magnet against enemy tanks more worried about the M4A3E2, diverting fire that would've gone to more vulnerable teammates. Though the 75mm gun's AP performance is not suited to the type of enemies expected at the BR, it can still harass enemies and the gun is lethal enough that enemies will be forced to show their front armour towards the Jumbo else a 75 mm penetrates their side armour. Their focus on the Jumbo can allow allies to move around and eliminate them. During all this, take care not to overangle and show the lower side armour too much as this will allow vehicles to penetrate through down there and damage modules, even the ammunition storage if they are lucky.

Another role the M4A3E2 is good in is as a flanker. Due to its great mobility as a heavy tank, the M4A3E2 Jumbo can manoeuvre like a medium tank around the battlefield. This is also beneficial to the 75 mm gun as it would permit the M4A3E2 a chance to attack the weaker side armours of enemy vehicles. Once flanking around and finding a prime position in a fire angle right into an enemy chokepoint, minimize exposure to anything but the front armour and the M4A3E2 can remain a formidable obstacle to all opponents. Take care not to be outflanked by enemy players aware of the M4A3E2 position.

Due to the M4A3E2 Jumbo having a slightly higher battle-rating than the other M4 Shermans at 4.7, it can be up-tiered against tanks such as the Panther D and Tiger H1, meaning its 75 mm cannon starts becoming less effective. For this reason, it is advisable to take the T45 APCR ammo into battle once unlocked, at least enough to take on the armoured targets the Jumbo will face.

Enemies worth noting:

The Soviet 85 mm can be a threat, so caution is advised when going up against tanks armed with the 85 mm, such as the T-34-85, SU-85, and IS-1. The Jagdpanzer 38(t) and Jagdpanzer IV can be tricky when facing off against them. Their frontal armour are too thick and sloped for the 75 mm M3 gun to have any effect on it. For these two targets, it is advised to target their tracks and transmission and then flank for a side shot, where the armour is much weaker. Also, the Dicker Max wields a 105 mm that can penetrate the front plate of the M4A3E2 Jumbo, so caution is advised against those as well. Finally, there is one common opponent from the Soviet/Chinese tree: IS-2. Its 122 mm gun can easily penetrate the Jumbo, regardless of angle and distance. To destroy it, shoot at it when it's reloading or is unaware of your presence. For the 1943 model, aim at the cupola or the curved part of its hull armour that blends into the side. It has only 4 crew so killing all the turret crew (3, which is easy) will destroy it. For the 1944 model, only aim at the turret or the cupola as its hull is very strong.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent 75 mm gun with APCR rounds.
• High rate of fire for main gun.
• Excellent gun depression.
• Very strong turret armour from all sides, very good at hull down position.
• Very good at leading a spearhead towards a capture point where it can provide cover to weaker allied tanks with more powerful guns.
• Excellent frontal armour, about 101 mm thick!
• Excellent all around turret armour, average 152 mm thick!
• Can absorb a lot of damage.
• Better mobility than the Russian KV-1 and the British Churchill.
• Equipped with gun stabilizer, making it more accurate at moving and when preparing a shot after moving.
• Good acceleration.
• Incredibly tough when angled.
• Wide tracks enable it to have a decent off road mobility, unlike other previous Sherman models.
• Learning curve from previous Sherman variant will help a lot at mastering this tank.

Cons:

• 75 mm gun lacks penetration against heavy tanks
• It needs allies support to be effective in battle as it cannot deal serious damage on its own.
• Armour weak spot above the gun-mantlet (63.5 mm @ 60°).
• Small bottom corners on M4A3E2 gun mantlet can serve as shot traps.
• Side armour better than normal, but still weak (76.2 mm), but the lower side hull armour is even worse (38.1 mm).
• Very thin rear armour.
• Inability to compound angle greatly due to very weak lower side hull armour that would be penetrated.
• Tall profile makes it a bigger target.
• Bad off-road manoeuvrability.
• Low top speed of 35kph.
• Reverse speed is bad.
• Hull MG is a weak spot.

History

Development

Even before the invasion of Normandy, the Allied commanders had to figure out a method in order to breach heavily-defended fortification lines such as the Siegfried Line blocking the path from France to Germany. One of the solutions was for the implementation of "assault tanks" to enter enemy territory and root out the enemy fortifications. The initial plan was for the production of the M26 Pershing tanks to fulfill this role, but setbacks in its development caused the M26 deployment to be delayed until 1945. A quick solution must be made to fill this "assault tank" role for the invasion of Europe in 1944.

The US ordinance then took their abundant M4 Shermans in stock and fixed them up for the new role they've been assigned in. Taking a M4A3 Sherman model, the armour was upped from around 76.2 mm initial thickness to 102 mm and angled at 47 degrees from vertical. This modified M4 Sherman's armour when angled would then be 150 mm line-of-sight (LOS) thick and 180 mm effective. The side armour is also increased to 76.2 mm thick and the turret is redesigned to provide more protection. These modified Shermans were designated the M4A3E2 by the Ordnance Department, whereas the nickname "Jumbo" was likely a post-war invention. At the end of the modifications, the Sherman "Jumbo" now weighed about 42 tons and moves a lower speed of 22 miles per hour. A drawback to the increased weight of the Sherman is that the Vertical Volute Suspension System (VVSS) from the Sherman was unable to take the weight easily, so extra care was taken by the crew members to not break the suspension.

In March of 1944, the US Army ordered for 254 of these vehicles to be delivered for use for European Operations. Intended for the assault on the Normandy Beachhead, it was deployed in Normandy after D-Day to assist the infantry push through German defenses. The M4A3E2 originally came with the 75 mm guns to support infantry with its better HE shells compared to the planned 76 mm installment, but the 76 mm was installed later in the campaign and called the M4A3E2 (76) W Jumbo.

French service

Due to the low numbers of M4A3E2 issued to the ETO, most went towards the US Army units. However, there is one known M4A3E2 that was issued to the French 1st Armoured Division (Division Blindée (DB)), an unusual case as most of the M4A3E2 inventory was headed to the Twelfth United States Army Group, whereas the French 1st DB was with the US Sixth Army Group. Information is not well known about this sole M4A3E2, but it served in the headquarter platoon of the 2nd Squadron of the 2nd African Chasseur Regiment (2e régiment de chasseurs d'Afrique). On 16 April 1945, lieutenant Amédée de Falgayrac, commander of the 1st platoon in the 2nd Squadron, was killed by shrapnel at Ortenberg, Germany. The M4A3E2 was then renamed Lt Falgayrac a few days later in honour.

The French did obtain a number of M4A3E2 surplus for use in the post-war period.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M4A3E2 (France) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

How to destroy the Jumbo - War Thunder Official Channel

M4A3E2 (France) Tank Review - NUSensei

See also

Other M4A3E2 vehicles in the game

• M4A3E2
• Cobra King
• M4A3E2 (76) W

External links

• [Wikipedia] M4 Sherman - M4A3E2
• [Tanks Encyclopedia] Assault Tank M4A3E2 Jumbo

France heavy tanks
B1	B1 bis · B1 ter
2C	2C · 2C bis
ARL-44	ARL-44 (ACL-1)
AMX-50	Somua SM · AMX-50 Surbaissé · AMX-50 Surblindé
USA	▄M4A3E2