| Sumida M2593 armoured car | |
|---|---|
 Type 91 armoured car | |
| Place of origin | Empire of Japan |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Ishikawajima Motorcar Factory (l/k/aIsuzu) |
| Produced | 1931[1] |
| No. built | 1,000[1] |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 7.7 tons[2] |
| Length | 6.57 meters[2] |
| Width | 1.9 meters[2] |
| Height | 2.95 meters[2] |
| Crew | 6[2] |
| Armor | 8 mm to 16 mm (front)[2] |
Main armament | 1x 6.5 mm machine gun or 1x 7.7 mm machine gun |
Secondary armament | Slits for rifles or light machine guns |
| Engine | 4-cyl gasoline (petrol) 45 hp |
| Suspension | wheeled |
Operational range | 241 km (150 mi) |
| Maximum speed | 40 km/h road, 60 km/h rail[2] |
TheSumida M.2593 (Type 91) was anarmoured car produced by theEmpire of Japan in the 1930s. It couldoperate on both the roadway and railway lines. There were two main versions of the Sumida M.2593 produced. The Type 91 armoured railroad car was used by the army and the Sumida Model P armored car was used by theSpecial Naval Landing Forces (SNLF) of the navy.
Designed by theSumiya firm, beginning in 1931 the M.2593 was produced at theIshikawajima Motor Works.[1] A defining feature of this vehicle is that its six road wheels could be exchanged for flanged railway wheels.[3] When not in use, the tires would be secured to the sides of the hull.[2] It had four built-in jacks to raise the vehicle when the wheels were changed. It would take ten to twenty minutes to change the wheels.[4] The front and rear sets of wheels could even be adjusted to variousrail gauges. The car was capable of 25 mph (40 km/h) on road and traveling at higher speeds on rails, going up to 37 mph (60 km/h).[2]
The car was successful in covering great distances in the 1937invasion of China. They were also used in Manchuria, to "guard railway lines".[1] They could be coupled together and operate on the rails like "rolling stock". This led them to be used in joint operations with trains and were used for reconnaissance by the army.[2] The M.2593 had a crew of six men, and was armed with either one 6.5 mm machine gun[2] or one 7.7 mmmachine gun. A total of 1,000 units of all versions of this armoured car were produced.[1]
One version of the Sumida M.2593 (Type 91) was produced without a main fixed machine gun for armament.[5]
A variant produced by Ishikawajima was known as theSumida Model P armored car. It was used by theSpecial Naval Landing Forces (SNLF) of theImperial Japanese Navy (IJN).[6]
 Japanese armored fighting vehicles of World War II | |||||||||||||||
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| Tankettes | |||||||||||||||
| Light tanks | |||||||||||||||
| Medium tanks | |||||||||||||||
| Amphibious tanks and vehicles | |||||||||||||||
| Self-propelled artillery (includingtank destroyers) | |||||||||||||||
| Armored cars | |||||||||||||||
| Half-track and full-tracked vehicles | |||||||||||||||
| Other | |||||||||||||||
| Prototypes |
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