| AMX-32 | |
|---|---|
 AMX-32 on display at the museum of the armoured vehicles of Saumur. | |
| Type | Main battle tank |
| Place of origin | France |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1975–1979 |
| No. built | 6 prototypes |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 38 tonnes (42short tons; 37long tons) (1st prototype) 40 tonnes (44short tons; 39long tons) (2nd prototype) |
| Length | 9.45 m (31 ft 0 in) (gun forward) |
| Width | 3.1 m (10 ft 2 in) |
| Height | 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in) (roof) |
| Crew | 4 (commander, gunner, loader, driver) |
| Armor | spaced armour |
Main armament | CN 105 F1 rifled gun or a 120 mmCN 120-25 smoothbore tank gun |
Secondary armament | 1× 20 mm M693 autocannon 1× 7.62 mm AAN F1 machine gun |
| Engine | Hispano-Suiza HS-110-2-SR 800 hp (600 kW)-800 hp (600 kW) |
| Power/weight | 20 hp/tonne |
| Transmission | SESM Minerva ENC 200 (automatic, 5 fwd & 5 rev) |
| Suspension | Torsion bar with shock absorbers |
Operational range | 530 km (330 mi) |
| Maximum speed | 65 km/h (40 mph) |
TheAMX-32 was a Frenchmain battle tank developed byAMX andAPX in the late 1970s during theCold War as an export tank to fit in a specific market niche of nations with smaller defence budgets. While six prototypes were built, it failed to garner interest for foreign sales.
Themantlet, the turret sides and the hull noseplate of the AMX-32 are hollow, the outer layers are made ofdual hardness steel plates which are particularly effective against kinetic energy projectiles.[1]
The frontal armour of the AMX-32 was successfully tested against 57 mm armour-piercing rounds of theASU-57 at 500 m range[2] and 75 mm tungsten-cored PCOT rounds fired from theAMX-13 light tank at 1000 m range.[1] The turret side armour can withstand impacts of 23 mm armour-piercing rounds. The turret roof has been thickened to be protected fromautocannons shells fired byfighter-bombers at a steep angle of 30°.
In addition, the AMX-32 features sixsmoke grenade dischargers and a dense white smoke screen can be generated by injecting vaporized diesel fuel into the exhaust system.
Turret traverse and main gun elevation are powered by an electro-hydraulic drive. The main gun can be stabilized through servo-control; using inputs sent by the stabilized mirror head of the commander's M527 panoramic sight.
The gunner uses anAPX M581 telescopic sight with ×10 magnification with a built-in APX M550laser rangefinder (a.k.a.CILAS TCV 80). The possibility of misalignment are reduced as the sight is an integral part of the mantlet. A Thomson CSF DIVT-13 low light television camera (LLLTV) with a ×1 magnification allows night observation up to 1200 m. The image obtained is displayed on two TV monitors (gunner and commander). The gunner also has two episcopes for direct observation.
The commander has the latest iteration of the TOP 7 cupola with eight episcopes. Each episcope has a button placed under it allowing to quickly bring his sight toward the observed area.[3] A SFIM M527 gyrostabilized panoramic sight with three channels; two daylight (×2 and ×8) and one night (×1) with light intensification allowing night observation up to 300–400 m.
The loader has at his disposal one left-facing episcope and two rotating periscopes.
The AMX-32 was powered by a 24,790 cc (1,513 cu in) 800 horsepower (600 kW)Hispano-Suiza (thenRenault) HS-110-2-SR diesel engine fitted with twinHolset turbochargers and intercooler. The engine is coupled to an automatic, power shifting, SESM Minerva ENC 200 transmission with five forward and reverse gears.
