jan 1, 1915 - USA/France (1915-18) Armored car – about 220 built

Description:

In 1915, the French were desperate to get more armored cars. Besides some foreign supplied models, they also sought to build some, based on locally available chassis. One of these chassis were made by White in the US, and that model was also produced locally, under licence. The armored bodies were supplied by Ségur & Lorfeuvre. Those built based on US-built chassis were called modele 1915, and had left-hand drive.

The French White AC model 1918
The model 1917-18 White 4×2 was based on locally-built White trucks, the French using the nude chassis with the White engine, transmission & gearbox, leaf springs, rear axle with doubled tires, and made their own complete armored body at Ségur & Lorfeuvre, in 1917. The latter was composed of approximately 30 bolted panels on a rigid steel frame. The hull was flat, but there were two bulges on the fighting compartment, were two doors were situated. There were armored shutters for the driver and commander, and small side sights with armored flaps opening upwards on the sides, as well as at the rear. This vehicle was indeed fitted with a French reverse steering system in case of an emergency, that a rear driver could use. The engine hood was armored with two access doors, and the radiator had a series of armored shutters for cooling. The turret was remarkable, as it was large enough to accommodate two men, serving two weapons, one at each end, generally a combination of the short barrel Puteaux (SA-17) 37 mm (1.46 in) gun and a Hotchkiss 7.5 mm (0.3 mm) light machine-gun, or two LMGs. The turret was sloped, with two side panels that could be opened. There were mudguards at the front, and storage boxes fixed above the rear ones, while tooling (shovel, pickaxe and others) were fastened on the sides of the driving compartment. These 200 vehicles were used on the western front until the end of the war, and kept in service until 1930.

Added to timeline:

Date:

Images:

Geo: