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Britain's Humber Armored Cars

Humber

Humber

Humber Mk I

Design

The Humber armored car was originally the Guy Mk I on the Karrier KT4 chassis, but the design and development was taken over by the Rootes Group.⁴ Guy had the specialized welding equipment necessary to continue to produce the turrets and hulls.⁴

Prototype

 

Production

Was originally produced at Guy starting in 1940 but was switched to Rootes Group and Karrier Motors Limited of Luton.

After production started the armored car received the Humber Mk I name.⁴

• Humber Mk I: 500⁴
• Humber Mk II:
• Humber Mk III:
  • Production started in early 1942⁴
• Humber Mk IV:
• Total: 5,400⁴
  • Manufacturer: Rootes Group⁴
• Armoured Car Mk I Fox I: 200⁴

Variants

• Humber Mk I: Had a welded hull.
• Humber Mk I AA: Had 4 Besa 7.62 mm MGs in turret.⁴ First used in 1943 but withdrawn in 1944.⁴
• Humber Mk II: The radiator at the rear of the vehicle was improved.⁴ The front glacis plate was improved.⁴
• Humber Mk III: Larger turret and added crew member.⁴
• Humber Mk IV: Added 37 mm gun and reduced crew to 3.⁴ The driver had a lever that controlled an aperture in the rear bulkhead and could be used to see behind the vehicle when driving in reverse.⁴
• Humber Rear Link: Mk III converted to carry extra radio equipment with a fixed turret and dummy gun.
• Armoured Car Mk I Fox I: Canadian version.⁴

Usage

First used in North Africa in late 1941.⁴

Most Numerous British Armored Car

60% of all British armored cars used in World War II were Humbers.⁴

Post World War II Usage

Some countries used Humbers into the 1960s.⁴

	Humber	Humber Mk I	Humber Mk II	Humber Mk III	Humber Mk IV
Crew	Commander, gunner, driver	32	32,4	42,4	32,4
Physical Characteristics
Weight	15,344 lb 6.39 tons3	6.85 tons2	7.1 tons2,4 7,213 kg4	7.1 tons2,4 7,213 kg4	7.1 tons2,4 7,213 kg4
Length w/gun	15'2 4.55 m3, 4.572 m2		15'4 4.57 m4	15'4 4.57 m4	15'4 4.57 m4
Length w/o gun
Height	7' 10"2 2.2 m3, 2.34 m2		7' 10"4 2.34 m4	7' 10"4 2.34 m4	7' 10"4 2.34 m4
Width	7' 2"2 2.15 m3, 2.184 m2		7' 2"4 2.18 m4	7' 2"4 2.18 m4	7' 2"4 2.18 m4
Ground clearance
Ground contact length
Ground pressure
Turret ring diameter
Armament
Main	15 mm Besa		1: 0.59" Besa MG4 1: 15 mm Besa MG4	1: 0.59" Besa MG4 1: 15 mm Besa MG4	37 mm4
Secondary
MG	7.92 mm Besa
MG - coaxial			1: 0.312" Besa MG4 1: 7.92 mm MG4	1: 0.312" Besa MG4 1: 7.92 mm MG4	1: 0.312" Besa MG4 1: 7.92 mm MG4
Side arms			1: 0.303" Bren light MG4 1: 7.7 mm Bren light MG4	1: 0.303" Bren light MG4 1: 7.7 mm Bren light MG4	1: 0.303" Bren light MG4 1: 7.7 mm Bren light MG4
Quantity
Main
Secondary
MG
Side arms
Armor Thickness (mm)	153		154	154	154
Hull Front, Upper
Hull Front, Lower
Hull Sides, Upper
Hull Sides, Lower
Hull Rear
Hull Top
Hull Bottom
Turret Front
Turret Sides
Turret Rear
Turret Top
Engine (Make / Model)	Rootes2		Rootes4	Rootes4	Rootes4
Cylinders	62		64	64	64
Net HP	902,3		954	954	954
Cooling	Water2
Transmission
Fuel type	Gasoline2		Petrol4	Petrol4	Petrol4
Octane
Capacity
Performance
Traverse
Max speed	45 mph2 72 kph2, 75 kph3		45 mph4 72 kph4	45 mph4 72 kph4	45 mph4 72 kph4
Cross country speed
Road range	250 miles2 402 km2		250 miles4 402 km4	250 miles4 402 km4	250 miles4 402 km4
Cross country range
Turning radius
Elevation limits
Fording depth
Trench crossing
Vertical obstacle
Suspension (Type)
Wheels each side
Return rollers each side
Track length
Tires
Track width
Track centers/tread

Sources:

1. The Encyclopedia of Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles - The Comprehensive Guide to Over 900 Armored Fighting Vehicles From 1915 to the Present Day, General Editor: Christopher F. Foss, 2002
2. The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II, Chris Bishop, 1998
3. Jane's World War II Tanks and Fighting Vehicles The Complete Guide, Leland Ness, 2002
4. World Encyclopedia of Armored Fighting Vehicles, Jack Livesey, 2006

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