Red marquis at 11:17, 22 June 2010

2010-06-22T11:17:07Z

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'''Motor War Car''' was the first [[armored car (military)|armored car]] ever built. It was designed in 1902 by F.R. Simms and a single prototype was built by Vickers & Maxim. The vehicle was an improvement over Simms' earlier design known as "[[Motor Scout]]" which was the first armed (but not armored) vehicle powered by a gasoline engine.

The vehicle had Vickers armor 6 mm thick and was powered by a 16 hp Daimler engine giving it a maximum speed of around 9 miles per hour (14.5 km/h). The armament, consisting of two Maxim guns, was carried in two turrets with 360° traverse. Some sources also mention a single QF 1 pounder pom-pom.<ref>{{cite book
| last = Macksey
| first = Kenneth
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title = The Guinness Book of Tank Facts and Feats
| publisher = Guinness Superlatives Limited
| date = 1980
| location =
| pages = 256
| url =
| doi =
| id =
| isbn = 0851122043}}</ref><ref>{{cite book
| last = Tucker
| first = Spencer
| authorlink =
| coauthors =
| title = The European Powers in the First World War
| publisher = Routledge
| date = 1999
| location =
| pages = 816
| url = http://books.google.com.au/books?id=gv3GEyB19wIC&pg=PA65&lpg=PA65&dq=%22Motor+War+Car%22&source=web&ots=JqgaStq67G&sig=6x8oCdFDRrwPo7uBCIk47aipCyw&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=3&ct=result
| doi =
| id =
| isbn = 081533351X}}</ref>

It had a crew of four. Simms' Motor War Car was presented at the Crystal Palace, London, in April 1902.<ref>''Armoured Fighting Vehicules of the World'', Duncan, p.3</ref>

Another armoured car of the period was the French [[Charron-Girardot-Voigt 1902]], presented at the ''Salon de l'Automobile et du cycle'' in Brussels, on 8 March 1902.<ref>Gougaud, p.11, ''L'Aube de la Gloire, Les Autos-Mitrailleuses et les Chars Français pendant la Grande Guerre'', 1987, Musée des Blindés, ISBN 2904255028.</ref>

==References==
* ''Armoured Fighting Vehicules of the World'' Volume I, Cannon Books, 1998, ISBN 1899695028

==External links==
*[http://www.geocities.com/pentagon/quarters/1975/armcar1.htm "Armoured cars (1896-1913)"]
*[http://ww2armor.jexiste.fr/BritTanks/English-Files/1-Vehicles/09-ArmoredCars/Others/Other-ArmoredCars-1.htm "Armored cars"]
*[http://director.io/tanquesyblindados/index.htm Tanques y Blindados: Historia del carro de combate]

[[Category:Armoured cars]]

Motor War Car - Revision history

Red marquis at 11:17, 22 June 2010