Straussler V-4
The Straussler V-4, also known as Light Tank V4 was a Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungarian] amphibious light tank design of the interwar period and it was designed by Nicholas Straussler. It was developed from the V-3, one of Nicholas Straussler's earlier models.
Development
V-3
In late 1932, Straussler signed an agreement with the Manfréd Weiss corporation to build a light tank prototype based on the agricultural and mountain tractor he developed earlier. Aware of the agreement between the Manfréd Weiss and Straussler, the Hungarian Ministry of Defense purchased the rights in 1933 to manufacture Straussler's tank, and ordered a second prototype from Manfréd Weiss for further development.It was expected that the V-3 would be a good starting point for a medium-sized tank developed for the Hungarian Army">Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)">Hungarian Army, 12 of which the armored units could be equipped in a short time, as it was infeasible to buy a modern, foreign development at that time. The wooden prototype was completed by June 1934, and the two vehicles were completed by the end of 1935.
The first trials of the V-3 took place in January 1936. After successful suspension tests, the ministry ordered ten test vehicles from the Manfréd Weiss Works and also envisaged a subsequent order of 100. The vehicle would have had a crew of three and was fitted with a four-cylinder engine designed by Manfréd Weiss Works, which would have given the vehicle a top speed of 60 km/h on road wheels, 40 km/h on tracks, and 8 km/h in water.
V-4
In the autumn of 1936, the designers at Manfréd Weiss were ordered to develop and build a much-improved version, the V-4. As armament, a Bofors-designed 40 mm cannon and an 8 mm Gebauer twin machine gun was installed. The hull and a new hexagonal turret was revised, which made the vehicle weigh nearly 10 tons, so the underpowered four-cylinder engine was replaced by a new eight-cylinder Manfréd Weiss engine.The General Staff of the [Armed Forces of the Republic of Hungary|general staff] was satisfied with the results of the tests of the V-4 in 1937, though the high silhouette, making the vehicle unstable, and the poorly angled armor layout was criticised. In addition, it was proposed to place another machine gun in the turret and an extra crew member, which involved the enlargement of the turret.
In the spring of 1938, the Manfréd Weiss factory in Csepel finished the second prototype of the V-4. The front of the hull was heavily modified, and the turret was enlarged as much as possible with a cupola with observation prisms on top.
Production
In August 1937, the V-4 was tested against the Swedish Landsverk L-60 and a German Panzer I. After the trials, the experts classified the Panzer I as obsolete, but decided to send both the V-4 and L-60 into service, with the latter being developed into the Hungarian Toldi light tanks, which made up the majority of the Hungarian armored forces early in World War II, while the heavier and better-armed V-4 would have been there to support the heavy units.Another trial was held for the V-4 in June 1938, during which it was again compared to the L-60, but it ended in rejection of the now 12-ton tank, with the main reason being the unreliability and poor mobility.
The real reason for the tank being considered quite good in 1936 and suddenly unacceptable in 1938, was the changing political situation. Hungary's closest allies, Italy (1922–1943)|Italy] and Germany, both started rearmament programmes earlier, which resulted in the Hungarian rearmament programme of Győr. This meant that there was no longer any obstacle to being able to buy foreign weapons, so the military leadership no longer had to be satisfied with the performance of the otherwise still somewhat decent V-4, leading to the cancellation of its development and production.