T55E1

T55E1

T55E1

USA

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.3	4.3	4.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Tank destroyer

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

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Description

The 3 inch Gun Motor Carriage T55E1 is a premium gift rank III American tank destroyer with a battle rating of 4.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced during Update "Hot Tracks" as a reward for Battle Pass: Season II, "Steel Centurion".

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull0 / 0 / 0

Turret0 / 0 / 0

Crew4 people

Visibility84 %

The armour on the T55 is next to none, even a random burst from a machine gun can easily kill you or critically wound your crew. However, as this vehicle cannot be hull broken and fuzed shells tend not to detonate inside your tank, your most dangerous enemies are vehicles equipped with heavy machine guns or autocannons. The ammo rack is your biggest weak spot, however if you only load 10 or 12 shells, your side racks are empty and your centre rack is mostly empty. Any plane is a danger and you should seek cover and hide from them.

Armour type:

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	___ mm	___ mm Top ___ mm Bottom	___ mm	___ - ___ mm
Turret	___ - ___ mm Turret front ___ mm Gun mantlet	___ - ___ mm	___ - ___ mm	___ - ___ mm
Cupola	___ mm	___ mm	___ mm	___ mm

Notes:

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB87 / 58 km/h

RB and SB80 / 54 km/h

Number of gears7 forward

2 back

Weight13.7 t

Engine power

AB565 hp

RB and SB296 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB41.2 hp/t

RB and SB21.6 hp/t

The T55 can move at around 80 km/h (50 mph) forward and backwards. It drives more like a car than it does a tank and has a hard time to flip. Your wheels can also allow you to climb to vantage points before anyone else.

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	87	58	13.7	_,___	565	__.__	41.24
Realistic	80	54		_,___	296	__.__	21.61

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB1 035

RB1 249

SB1 692

Crew training10 000

Experts210 000

Aces550

Research Aces790 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 100 / 150 / 190 %

2 × 154 / 154 / 154 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tires Suspension Brake System Filters Transmission Engine	Improved Parts Improved FPE Crew Replenishment	Horizontal Drive Adjustment of Fire 76mm_usa_APCBC_ammo_pack Elevation Mechanism

Armaments

Main armament

76 mm M7 cannon

Ammunition42 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

6.5 → 5.0 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 15°

Horizontal guidance-9° / 9°

The 76 mm M7 cannon is a high velocity anti tank gun, and can punch through the armour of most tanks all the way up to 6.7. The M62 APCBC shell has enough explosive filler to take down most tanks in one well aimed shot. The gun also reloads very quickly, meaning you can get the first shot before the enemy can.

76 mm M7					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	42	-10°/+15°	±9°	N/A	__._	__._	__._	__._	__._	_.__	_.__	_.__	_.__
Realistic					__._	__._	__._	__._	__._

Ammunition

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
M62 shell	APCBC	__	__	__	__	__	__
M42A1 shell	HE	__	__	__	__	__	__
M79 shot	AP	__	__	__	__	__	__

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%
M62 shell	APCBC	___	_.__	__	_._	___	__°	__°	__°
M42A1 shell	HE	___	_.__	__	_._	___	__°	__°	__°
M79 shot	AP	___	_.__	__	_._	___	__°	__°	__°

Ammo racks

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

Usage in battles

You should use the T55 as a flanking tank or sniper at the beginning of the match. Your speed outclasses other vehicles and you can use it to get to a flanking position or a sniping point. Then use your gun's excellent angles to aim at a place where you can see the enemy's side. Try not to get hit by anything as the first thing most tankers will do is to spray the treeline with MG fire, the MGs the enemy has are dangerous and you should run away from them. Once the enemy is pushed back, you can emerge from your position and use your superior speed to get to the enemy and ambush it in an unexpected spot.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Powerful 76 mm cannon
• Very high forward and reverse speed
• Great offroad capabilities

Cons:

• No armour (even MGs can kill you)
• No turret for the tank and cannot turn in place
• Taking damage to one wheel can severely hamper performance
• Doesn't turn very well

History

The T55 and T55E1 GMCs were given the nickname "Cook Interceptor" due to them being designed by the Cook Brothers.

The Cook Brothers Equipment Company designed an experimental 8x8 wheeled desert vehicle which a prototype of was completed by 1942, according to photographic evidence. The vehicle used a chain drive, and the wheels were set up in two 4x4 bogies, each with it's own engine. The desert vehicle was used as the basis of a wheeled tank destroyer after they received a contract from the US Army in August 1942. One prototype was built by the Allied Machinery Manufacturing Company and was called the T55 GMC (GMC standing for Gun Motor Carriage). The T55 had the front engine moved to the rear of the hull in order to fit the main armament, a 3 inch or 76.2 mm M7 gun, at the front of the hull. After initial testing of the T55 GMC in December 1942, the Cook Brothers were requested by the Army to design an improved version.

The redesigned version of the T55 GMC was named the T55E1 GMC and it was basically a simplified version of the T55; both the T55 and T55E1 gained the unofficial nickname of "Cook Interceptor", signifying their designers. The largest visual difference was a much lower profile. The T55E1 GMC retained the 76.2 mm M7 gun from the T55 GMC, which was mounted in the front of the hull; it was casemate mounted rather than turret mounted. The T55E1 was lighter than the T55 it was based on, and as such it had a significantly improved driving performance. Powered by two Cadillac engines at the rear, the maximum speed of the T55E1 was 80 kilometers per hour or 50 miles per hour.

The single T55E1 GMC prototype was completed in early 1943 and underwent testing at the desert proving grounds of Fort Irwin in California. In the same year the Army decided that all self-propelled gun designs would be based on tracked tank chasses rather than on wheeled chasses. As such the T55E1 GMC project was dropped and it never entered production.

Devblog

The American T55E1 wheeled tank destroyer was created on the chassis of an experimental all-terrain 8x8 vehicle. The Cook Brothers company received an order for the development of the project in August 1942, and in the fall, the first prototype, named the T55, was ready at the Allied Machinery Manufacturing facility. After the first tests, the military suggested that the designers modify the vehicle, since some issues appeared during the tests. So, at the beginning of 1943, the T55E1 appeared - a more densely assembled and improved version of a promising self-propelled gun.

The T55E1 role in combat was assumed as fire support of advancing infantry, while being able to operate on any type of surface. The T55E1 had no turret, and the massive 76 mm M7 gun was located on the front of the vehicle. This arrangement required the shifting of the power plant of two 110-horsepower engines to the vehicle’s rear. At the same time, the SPG received a low profile, sufficient traverse angles and excellent elevation angles. The upgraded T55E1, due to improved driving characteristics and a decrease in total weight, showed a speed of just over 50 mph (80 kph) in tests and good results in overcoming obstacles. At the same time in 1943, a special commission recommended that the army completely abandon the use of armored wheeled vehicles in favor of tracked platforms, and the Cook Brothers project was closed. But we are sure that this curious tank destroyer will definitely find a place in War Thunder!

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See also

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

External links

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