Centauro I 120

Centauro I 120

Centauro I 105 R

Centauro I 120

Centauro I 105 R

Italy

VII Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
11.7	11.7	11.7

Class:

Light tank

Research:350 000

Purchase:950 000

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Description

The Blindo Pesante Centauro, 120 mm is a rank VII Italian tank destroyer with a battle rating of 11.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.97 "Viking Fury".

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

LWS

Notifies about the vehicle's exposure to laser emissions

Armourfront / side / back

Hull20 / 15 / 15

Turret20 / 20 / 20

Crew4 people

Visibility136 %

The armour of the Centauro MGS is the same as the previous Centauros, mediocre against everything but calibres smaller than 14.5 mm HMG fire. It has additional armour plates which give it decent armour protection to artillery fire and fragmentation as well as autocannons. However, it is still prone to hullbreak. The lack of armour is however compensated by adopting a playstyle based on the increased mobility to position your vehicle in unexpected spots. This is what the Centauros excel at. Fast speed, manoeuvrability and relatively small profile helps it disguise, move and stay under cover at almost all times.

Armour type:

• High Hardness Rolled Armor
• Alluminium alloy 7020
• Composite Screens

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	15 mm (80°)	15 mm Top 15 mm Bottom	15 mm	10 - 15 mm
Turret	20 mm Turret front 20-40 mm Gun mantlet	20 mm	20 mm	20 mm
Cupola	20 mm	20 mm	20 mm	20 mm

Notes:

• The wheels and suspension bars are 10 mm thick.
• The rear of the turret is covered with 5 mm of structural steel.

Composite Appliqué Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	30 mm (80°) upper glacis 50 mm (44°) lower glacis	30 mm Top 50 mm Bottom	N/A	N/A
Turret	50 mm Turret front 5 mm Gun mantlet	5-20-30 mm	5 mm	5 mm

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB123 / 25 km/h

RB and SB110 / 23 km/h

Number of gears10 forward

4 back

Weight25.1 t

Engine power

AB992 hp

RB and SB520 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB39.5 hp/t

RB and SB20.7 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	123	25	25.1	739	992	29.44	39.52
Realistic	110	23		460	520	18.33	20.72

Like the previous Centauros, it has one of the best mobility for wheeled vehicles. It has the same performance as the Blindo Armata B1 Centauro despite the additional armour and a heavier gun. It still lacks performance on snow and somewhat on sand. However, it has the best weight/power ratio for wheeled vehicles of similar size. It should be noted that the MGS, as previous Centauros, is not amphibious.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 467 → 5 866

RB3 509 → 5 937

SB3 697 → 6 255

Total cost of modifications279 900

457 000

Talisman cost3 000

Crew training270 000

Experts950 000

Aces2 200

Research Aces1 210 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

140 / 160 / 200 %

244 / 244 / 244 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tires Research: 12 000 Cost: 19 000 320 Suspension Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 290 Brake System Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 290 Filters Research: 15 000 Cost: 23 000 400 Transmission Research: 19 000 Cost: 29 000 500 Engine Research: 19 000 Cost: 29 000 500	Improved Parts Research: 3 600 Cost: 19 000 320 Improved FPE Research: 3 300 Cost: 17 000 290 Crew Replenishment Research: 15 000 Cost: 23 000 400 Smoke grenade Research: 19 000 Cost: 29 000 500	Horizontal Drive Research: 12 000 Cost: 19 000 320 120mm_NATO_APDS_FS_ammo_pack Research: 12 000 Cost: 19 000 320 NVD Research: 12 000 Cost: 19 000 320 Adjustment of Fire Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 290 LWS/LR Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 290 Airstrike Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 290 Elevation Mechanism Research: 15 000 Cost: 23 000 400 Improved optics Research: 15 000 Cost: 23 000 400 Scout UAV Research: 15 000 Cost: 23 000 400 Artillery Support Research: 19 000 Cost: 29 000 500 120mm_DM_APDS_FS_ammo_pack Research: 19 000 Cost: 29 000 500

Armaments

Laser rangefinder

Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder

Night vision device

Improves visibility by enhancing natural light or active illumination.

Thermal imager

Allows to see thermal radiation in the infrared range day and night

Main armament

120 mm OTO Melara 120/45 cannon

Two-plane stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving

Ammunition33 rounds

First-order9 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

6.5 → 5.0 s

Vertical guidance-6° / 16°

The Centauro MGS has access to the powerful 120 mm OTO Melara 120/45 smoothbore cannon, the same cannon mounted on the Ariete MBT. It has the same handling as it utilizes the same ammunition and has the same ballistic performance.

120 mm OTO Melara 120/45					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	33	-6°/+16°	±180°	Two-plane	25.2	__._	__._	__._	__._	_.__	_.__	_.__	_.__
Realistic					17.0	__._	__._	__._	__._

Ammunition

The Centauro MGS has access to a wide variety of ammunition which are the deadliest at the game, specially the CL3143.

• DM12A1: this is the starter HEAT-FS round when it comes stock. It can be considered mediocre as the MBTs faced at the battle-rating are more than capable of withstanding it. However, it is specially useful when dealing at long distances and when lightly armoured vehicles are seen (SPAA for example) as they will be hull broken once hit.
• DM33: this is a round seen in most NATO MBTs in the game (or similar to them), it has decent performance and is able to kill pretty much everything it faces with exception of Russian MBTs with CONTACT-5 ERA (unless the K5 is destroyed first).
• CL3143: this is the best performance round in the Italian tree and the second best in game (first one is DM53/63). It is able to penetrate and destroy all MBTs in the game, even Russian MBTs with CONTACT-5 ERA.

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
DM12A1	HEATFS	480	480	480	480	480	480
DM33	APFSDS	481	478	470	461	450	440
CL3143	APFSDS	625	622	613	601	588	575

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%
DM12A1	HEATFS	1,140	13.5	0.05	0.1	2,150	65°	72°	77°
DM33	APFSDS	1,640	4.3	N/A	N/A	N/A	78°	80°	81°
CL3143	APFSDS	1,705	5.6	N/A	N/A	N/A	78°	80°	81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Centauro I 120

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
33	21 (+12)	9 (+24)	0 (+33)	No

Note:

• Contrary to previous Centauros, the MGS does not have a side ready rack.

Machine guns

12.7 mm M2HB machine gun

Ammunition1 200 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate575 shots/min

Vertical guidance-8° / 20°

Horizontal guidance-45° / 120°

7.62 mm Beretta MG42/59 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition4 600 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate801 shots/min

7.62 mm Beretta MG42/59 machine gun

Ammunition2 000 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate801 shots/min

The MGS is armed with the already seen MG42/59 and a newly mounted M2HB. As seen in previous Centauros, the 7.62 mm are only effective against low flying aircraft and obstacle removal, they are inefficient for anything else. However, the M2HB is a nice addition to the anti-aircraft capabilities and even anti-tank capabilities. It is able to damage gun barrels and tracks upon continuous firing and able to take down SPAA like the Tunguska, Roland SAM and ADATS due to their low armour.

12.7 mm M2HB
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	1,080 (200)	577	-8°/+20°	-45°/+120°

7.62 mm Beretta MG42/59
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	4,500 (200)	1,200	N/A	N/A
Pintle	2,000 (200)	1,200	-8°/+20°	±120°

Usage in battles

The Centauro MGS should be played as the rest as the Centauros but not quite. Speed, firepower and low profile should be used to perform flanking manoeuvres, get quickly into sniping positions and surprise the enemy.

As a flanker:

The role is pretty straight forward: use your speed and agility to get behind the enemy, cause confusion and engage them as fast as you can. The MGS, like the other Centauros, does not have the issue of needing to stop in order to make a successful flanking. Thanks to the two-plane stabilizer, it is able to fire while moving in order to make the enemies' life difficult when engaging you.

As a sniper:

Like previous Centauros, this is nothing new as the use of thermals, really good zoom sights, fast muzzle velocity rounds and laser rangefinder make this one of the easiest "point-and-click" vehicle in the game. It is recommended to utilize APFSDS when doing long range engagements all the times. Not only for the fact it has much better penetration than the HEATFS but also because of the muzzle velocity. The speed makes it easier to aim than the HEATFS.

Cap rusher:

This is nothing new for any of the Italian wheeled vehicles. Spawn, rush as fast as possible a cap point, capture, leave as fast as possible. This can be done really easily with this Centauro despite what looks like a "sluggish" Centauro. The MGS should not be underestimated in terms of speed.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• 120 mm APFSDS offers improved penetration and damage over the 105 mm gun
• Extremely fast and mobile on road
• Has night vision devices and generation 1 gunner thermals
• Good turret traverse speed
• Smoke grenades cover player when there is danger
• 12.7 mm MG is effective against similar light vehicles/helicopters
• An aced crew can fire the second best APFSDS round in the game every five seconds
• Access to the scouting ability

Cons:

• Little to no protection against most projectiles
• Hull-breakable by chemical rounds
• Tall and long
• Very sluggish on soft terrain (mud, snow or sand)
• Rearward turret placement, sometimes frontal hull is exposed while turret is still behind cover
• Only -6 degrees of gun depression
• Stock grind is difficult with vehicle having low manoeuvrability, thin armour and stock HEAT-FS before modifications are unlocked

History

The story of the B1 Centauro MGS starts during the late stages of the Cold War, there was a need of up gunning the B1 Centauro, already in service in the Italian army, so the Iveco-Oto Melara Consortium (CIO) would take lead. An evaluation of sorts would begin in which the B1 Centauro would have an entirely new turret applied to it. The new turret would be called "HITFACT 105-120 mm (LOW RECOIL FORCE TURRET)", the turret had almost the same weight as the 105 mm turret of the B1 Centauro series (1/2/3), but with an increase in ballistic protection. The new cannon replaced the standard 105 mm cannon with an Italian-made 120 mm one (this brought the firepower on par with the majority of MBTs).

The turret was made in such a way that it could easily be installed on pretty much anything that could support it, and since it was lightweight this really allowed it to outclass a lot of what it would face. Another reason it being lightweight helped it, was how it had little to no effect to its mobility, which meant the best of both speed and firepower could be achieved. Among other changes, the Hitfact turret would incorporate many advancement that would not be prevalent on many vehicles of its class before.

The gun would controlled by a new FCS, which included a gunner's self-stabilized day and night IR thermal camera periscope, with an integral eye-safe laser rangefinder. On the turret of the MGS, there is also numerous periscopes positioned at 360°, which can be used by both the gunner and the commander. The MGS is also capable of firing all NATO standard 120 mm munitions, and has shown it can fire rounds such as DM11, a high explosive round with a programmable fuse. One last noteworthy addition were the appliqué screens around the vehicle, which it's said can protect against low calibre autocannon fire.

The MGS would first be shown to the public in its official debut, at IDEX 2003. During the course of its development, the MGS's would enter limited production, and be used by the Italian army, mainly for testing, such as how a 120 mm version of the Centauro would be(this later on lead to the development of the B2 Centauro). Due to this, the B1 Centauro MGS would change and be offered for export, and as it was being showed in multiple expos, it ended up getting picked up by the Royal Omani Guard. It is not known how many they currently have in service, but what is known is that they decided to repaint them in a tan/brownish pattern to better suit its operational environment. Other than that, Leonardo has kept on marketing the turret system on multiple different hulls, such as one being on the Patria AMV and another being presented on top of a German Marder.

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

• https://forum.warthunder.com/index.php?/topic/434781-b1-centauro-romor/