Sd Kfz 234/3 (Late)

includes one Sd Kfz 234/3 (7.5cm) half-track with crew.

The Sd Kfz 234 series was the second German variant of the 8-wheeled armoured car concept (designed to replace the Sd Kfz 231 and variants). Instead of having an armoured hull bolted to a chassis the new design combined the chassis in the armoured hull.

The most famous of the Sd Kfz 234 series was the Sd Kfz 234/2 Puma armed with a 5cm KwK 39 L/60 gun. The upgrade to the 5cm gun was an attempt to address a common complaint by armoured car crews; that when forced to engage the enemy they lacked the sufficient firepower needed to force a decisive outcome.

To further the German quest for superior firepower, a close-support version was developed mounting a 7.5cm L/24 gun; this version was designated the Sd Kfz 234/3. The 7.5cm gun was mounted in an open-topped superstructure that replaced the turret. The sides of the fighting compartment were raised to provide the crew some degree of protection with the 7.5cm gun was mounted with its original gun shield.

A secondary armament was provided by a MG34 mounted parallel to the vehicle’s main gun and afforded the crew a much needed deterrent when facing enemy infantry. However, by late 1944 the war was going badly for the Germany and in November Hitler ordered that the short-barrelled 7.5cm gun be replaced with the 7.5cm PaK40 anti-tank gun to further increase the vehicle’s potency. Therefore, production of the Sd Kfz 234/3 ceased in December 1944 in favour of the Sd Kfz 234/4.