SU-85A

This page is about the Soviet tank destroyer SU-85A. For the SPGs with an enclosed superstructure, see SU-85 and SU-85M.

SU-85A

SU-85A

USSR

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.0	4.0	4.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Tank destroyer

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Show in game

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Description

The SU-85A is a premium gift rank II Soviet tank destroyer with a battle rating of 4.0 (AB/RB/SB). This vehicle was introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic" and offered as a reward during the 2018 Festive Quest event.

This tank destroyer was created for testing at the end of 1943, as a potential successor of the SU-76M. The most notable difference was the replacement of the older 76 mm gun with an adapted version of an 85 mm anti-aircraft cannon. Ultimately the vehicle was not accepted for anything beyond testing due to poor mechanical performance.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull25 / 15 / 15

Turret25 / 10 / 10

Crew4 people

Visibility75 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, superstructure)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	25 mm (59°) Upper glacis 25 mm (25-38°) Driver port 30 mm (31°) Lower glacis	15 mm	15 mm 4 mm Vent	25 mm (31°) Front glacis 7 mm Hull 4 mm Engine access panel
Superstructure	25 mm (24°) Gun shield 35 mm (cylindrical) Gun mantlet 35 mm Gun mount	10 mm (20°)	10 mm 6 mm Door

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 10 mm thick while tracks are 15 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 7 mm thick.
• There is an additional inner wall (10 mm thick) separating the driver compartment from the crew compartment.
• There is an additional inner wall (10 mm thick) on the right side separating the radiator from the crew compartment.

Like the SU-76M it derives from, the SU-85A's armour leaves a lot to be desired. The chassis itself is loosely based off of the light tanks T-70 and T-80. As a result, the lower frontal plate is 30 mm RHA, the upper plate and front of the crew compartment is 25 mm RHA, and the gun mantlet is 35 mm. There is a relatively small additional armour plate (25 mm) that is welded onto the upper frontal plate in front of the engines to give them slightly better protection. The sides and rear are 15 mm (hull) and 10 mm (crew compartment), making this vehicle vulnerable to heavy machine gunfire. This vehicle is also open-topped, making it a prime target for fighters looking to strafe an easy kill. All in all, this vehicle is the embodiment of a "glass cannon", unable to defend itself from anything but perhaps a glancing blow.

At its battle rating where one of the most common ammunition type used is APHE or APCBC, this vehicle has abysmal survivability. In most cases, the armour is just thick enough to arm the fuse in these shells- With a large fuel tank, lots of ammunition, and a crew packed into such a tight space, it is likely the shell will do crippling damage or knock the tank out with a single hit.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB44 / 6 km/h

RB and SB41 / 6 km/h

Number of gears4 forward

1 back

Weight12.2 t

Engine power

AB267 hp

RB and SB140 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB21.9 hp/t

RB and SB11.5 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	44	6	12.2	199	267	16.31	21.89
Realistic	41	6		124	140	10.16	11.48

Based on the chassis of the SU-76M, the SU-85A benefits from the same average mobility: it accelerates rather slowly but steadily and is able to reach a maximum speed of 43 km/h in a dozen of seconds. Braking happens quickly but the hull briefly wobbles afterwards, delaying your targeting process. The lack of neutral steering makes turning on the spot slow (3 km/h): make sure to build a little speed before turning and you'll turn much faster (10 km/h). The reverse speed is poor: it will not get you out of a dangerous situation quickly. The SU-85A reaches 11 km/h when fording and 11 km/h when driving uphill. The tracks will grant you a decent mobility on hard terrain (solid ground, roads) but a slightly poorer mobility on soft terrain (mud, snow, sand). Light and medium obstacles (fences, posts, bushes and small trees) are not a problem but large obstacles (trees, concrete blocks and parked vehicles) will hinder your mobility: avoid them.

The SU-85A has two coupled 70 horsepower motors, giving it a combined output of 140 HP. As it utilizes high-revving gasoline motors, it doesn't have nearly as much torque to move around compared to diesel engines.

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB794

RB950

SB1 040

Crew training10 000

Experts115 000

Aces400

Research Aces640 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 80 / 120 / 150 %

2 × 142 / 142 / 142 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Suspension Brake System Filters Transmission Engine	Improved Parts Improved FPE Crew Replenishment	Horizontal Drive 85mm_APHE_ammo_pack Adjustment of Fire Elevation Mechanism 85mm_APCR_ammo_pack

Armaments

Main armament

85 mm D-5S cannon

Ammunition42 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

9.6 → 7.4 s

Vertical guidance-4° / 18°

Horizontal guidance-8° / 8°

85 mm D-5S					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	42	-4°/+18°	±8°	N/A	6.2	8.5	10.4	11.5	12.2	9.62	8.51	7.84	7.40
Realistic					4.2	4.9	6.0	6.6	7.0

The D-5S gun offers a very good penetration power at its battle rating. Its high muzzle velocity allows for pretty flat firing trajectories. The accuracy drop is noticeable from 1,200 m distance and becomes a handicap beyond 1,500 m. The gun has a very limited traverse on the horizontal axis. This can make the tracking of a target difficult as the gun quickly reaches a stop. You should take that constraint into account when positioning your hull at a firing spot. Furthermore, the rotation speed of the gun is slow compared to other tanks at the same rank or battle rating who can turn their gun in average 2 to 3 times faster than you do.. The elevation angle of the gun is good, allowing you to fire at an elevated position but the depression angle is poor, making it impossible to fire from behind a ridge. Lacking a stabilizer, the tank can't reliably fire on the move. The reload time of the gun is rather long but in line with other Soviet tanks equipped with a 85 mm cannon. The gun recoil is average for a Soviet vehicle and not important enough to throw your gun off target after firing, except when firing at targets beyond 1,500 m.

Ammunition

The available ammunition allows for engaging all types of targets:

• BR-365K: APHE; an armour-piercing shell with good penetration power and an explosive filler that will destroy any tank it penetrates.
• BR-365A: APHEBC; an armour-piercing shell with a reduced penetration power but a bigger explosive filler.
• BR-365P: APCR; a composite round with the best penetration power but no explosive filler and that will only penetrate flat vertical surfaces. It loses its advantage in penetration power beyond 1,000 m compared with conventional shells.
• O-365K: HE; a high-explosive shell useful for destroying open and lightly armoured vehicles.

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
BR-365K	APHE	148	143	126	106	90	77
BR-365A	APHEBC	135	133	124	114	104	95
BR-365P	APCR	195	187	154	122	96	76
O-365K	HE	19	18	17	16	15	14

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%
BR-365K	APHE	792	9.2	1.2	14	77	47°	60°	65°
BR-365A	APHEBC	792	9.2	1.2	14	164	48°	63°	71°
BR-365P	APCR	1,050	4.99	-	-	-	66°	70°	72°
O-365K	HE	785	9.54	0.2	0.1	741	79°	80°	81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the SU-85A

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
42	38 (+4)	31 (+11)	1 (+41)	No

Notes:

• Shells are modeled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.
• Open-topped compartment empty of ammo: 31 (+11).

Usage in battles

In realistic battles, this vehicle plays best from the sidelines in a support role. It does not possess the speed to rush anywhere, even if it is not slow. It does not have the ability to take a hit without enduring crippling damage. It can hide behind walls and relatively low cover and remain hidden where a taller light or medium tank would likely be spotted. Its gun is superior to other guns at its BR range, such as American short 75 and 76 mm guns commonly found on Shermans and German 75 mm guns found on Panzer IV's. As such, the SU-85A can typically penetrate most tanks it battles against through their frontal armour out to distances in excess of a kilometre.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• 85 mm D5-S cannon is powerful against common tanks like M4A2, Cromwell, Pz.IV
• Relatively small target / low silhouette
• Great variety of ammunition to deal with all types of opponents

Cons:

• Armour is not thick enough to protect the crew from much of anything, making the vehicle a "glass cannon".
• Open-topped (often strafed by planes)
• Crew is grouped tightly together - A penetrating shot that does not result in ammunition or fuel detonation will likely incapacitate several crew members.
• ±8° horizontal gun traverse limit means that it might have to constantly adjust the hull, revealing itself
• Low reverse speed

History

While working to develop an SPG that could vie with the most modern German tanks, the designers in the GAZ design bureau came up with a simple plan: take the SU-76M, the production of which had already been mastered, and create a new, more powerful weapon based on it. The project was developed with two 85 mm cannons, the D-5S and the S-53S. The version with the D-5S ended up being built for testing purposes, and the vehicle came to be called the SU-85A. During testing it became clear that the recoil of the powerful cannon was too great for a light SPG, which led the engineers to install a new gun and upgrade the defensive characteristics of their creation. However, by 1945 the modernized vehicle known as the SU-85B had become decidedly out of date, and the military decided to cancel the project.

- From Devblog

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the SU-85A from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

Keep it or Sell it? SU-85A Event Tank - Virus

SU-85A; Is it worth it? - Many Miles Away

SU-85A - The Ugly with the 85 mm - Napalmratte

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis

• SU-76M / SU-76M (China) / SU-76M (5th Gv.Kav.Corps)

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• 90/53 M41M
• Pvkv m/43 (1946)

External links

• [Devblog] SU-85A Premium SPG

Gorky Automobile Plant (Го́рьковский автомоби́льный заво́д)
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Light Tank	T-60 · T-70 · T-80
Tank Destoyer	SU-76M · SU-76M (5th Gv.Kav.Corps) · SU-85A
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Rocket	BM-8-24

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2022	Winter Quest
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Pilot stars	TIS MA · J6K1
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Pilot stars	M.B.152C1 · Fw 190 C
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Pilot reward	▂P-63C-5
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Pilot reward	I-301
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