Sd.Kfz.234/1

Sd.Kfz.234/1

Sd.Kfz.234/1

Germany

I Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.0	2.0	2.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Light tank

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Show in game

MARKET

Description

The s.Pz.Sp.Wg. (2 cm KwK 30 L/55) Sd.Kfz. 234/1 is a premium gift rank I German light tank with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced during Update 1.97 "Viking Fury" as a reward for the "Space Race" event.

General info

Survivability and armour

Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.

Mobility

Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.

The Sdkfz.234/1 has the same manoeuvrability as the rest of the Puma brethern. It has a maxiumum speed of 100km/h, both forward and reverse in Arcade and 90km/h forward and reverse in Realistic.

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

Armaments

Main armament

Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: {{main|Name of the weapon}}. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.

20 mm KwK38					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	250	-4°/+70°	±180°	N/A	14.3	__.__	__.__	__.__	__.__	7.8	_.__	_.__	_.__
Realistic					8.9	__.__	__.__	__.__	__.__

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Default	36	34	26	19	14	10
Sprgr.	2	2	2	2	2	2
PzGr	36	34	26	19	14	10
PzGr 40	64	63	26	8	3	1

Ammo racks

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
250	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__ (+__)	__

Optics

Sd.Kfz.234/1 Optics
	Default magnification	Maximum magnification
Main Gun optics	x1.8	x3.5
Comparable optics	___

Machine guns

Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.

7.92 mm MG42
Mount	Capacity (Belt capacity)	Rate of fire (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
Coaxial	1,800 (150)	1,200	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I	Tires		Parts	Horizontal Drive	Sprgr.
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Adjustment of Fire	PzGr
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Elevation Mechanism
IV	Transmission	Engine		Artillery Support	PzGr 40

Pros and cons

Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".

Pros:

• HVAP Belts are full HVAP rounds unlike the Flak 38 HVAP belts.
• The HVAP belts can penetrate a Sherman's side armour and so will have no difficulties at its Battle Rating.
• Relatively fast reload at around 7 seconds.
• It has the ability to scout, which is unique for a vehicle at such a low Battle Rating.
• The quick speed, (100km/h in AB, 90km/h in RB) allows the Puma to be one of, if not the first vehicles to both make contact with the enemy team and capture zones.
• The scouting feature allows it to repair allies, making the Sdkfz.234/1 an even more useful asset to the team.
• The KwK 38 is coupled with an MG42 with a blistering fire rate which allows quite effective suppressive fire capability.
• The 20mm cannon can shoot down aircraft due to a very high elevation angle. This means it can, in a pinch, act as a pseudo SPAA.
• It, despite having wheels, can average around 40km/h off road which, for a wheeled vehicle, is quite fast.
• The thin armour on the sides and rear mean that most solid shot rounds will go right through without causing much damage.
• Very fast acceleration both forward and reverse, getting out of a sticky situation is very easily if your driver is alive.
• The front hull and turret have 30mm of armour which is sloped to increase the thickness.

Cons:

• The 20mm cannon has a 7 second reload and in an urban environment, that could be the difference between life and death.
• The 20mm cannon's belt consists of only 10 rounds and it gets exhausted very quickly, this means that reloads are very frequent.
• Weak armour from the sides and rear. Can be penetrated by machine guns. Autocannons, aircraft and machine guns will shred the Puma.
• Can be hull broken by the 57mm Chi-Ha. (And anything bigger.)
• The wheeled suspension makes controlling the vehicle in turns very hard as it has a tendency to drift.
• It has a wire mesh 'skirt' above either side of the turret which gives away its position in Realistic. You need to hide all of it to be stealthy and there aren't many places other than buildings which are tall enough to do so. The wire mesh doesn't count as armour either.
• It is a wheeled vehicle so, while being race car-like on hard surfaces, mud, water, snow and sand really slow it down. (To around 20-30km/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 Sdkfz.234/2, the Sdkfz.234/1 does not have access to smoke grenades.
• While basically having the exact same cannon as the Flakpanzer I, 38 and Wirbelwind, unlike them, ammunition dentonations 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

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the tank;
• other literature.