Armored Personnel Carrier M75, late production^1-9

The M75 was based on the chassis of the cargo tractor T43E1, which used the same suspension as the 76mm gun tank M41. Initially known as an armored infantry vehicle but later renamed armored personnel carrier, the M75 resembled a box on tracks, and its exhaust pipe emerged from the front of the vehicle's roof and vented the engine exhaust to the right. Two large hinged rear roof doors opened towards the center of the vehicle over the passenger compartment, and infantry access was provided by two large doors in the rear of the hull. The brush guard for the right headlight cluster was extended to also protect the exhaust pipe later in the production run. Starting with International Harvester vehicle serial number 377 and FMC vehicle serial number 1327, changes were instituted into production. Early M75s had thinner roof armor at .375" (.953cm) and thicker floor armor at 1.25" (3.18cm), and the first two and last two road wheels on each track were damped with shock absorbers on early vehicles. When the changes commenced, the center two shock absorbers were eliminated; sandshields were deleted; the bump stops for the center three wheels on each track were changed to solid steel from the earlier volute spring version; the taillights, external fire extinguisher handles, and auxiliary generator and engine side access door handle had their niches in the hull removed, leaving them mounted on the face of the armor; the rear fuel filler gained an armored cover; the auxiliary engine was eliminated, and its access cover on the hull roof was replaced by a flat plate; the twin 75-gallon (280L) rubber fuel tanks were replaced by a single metal 150-gallon (570L) tank; the hull drain valves were replaced by plugs; riveting on the hull interior was overtaken by welding; new rear door and roof hatch handles were designed; the fire extinguisher system was improved; and the driver received a new instrument panel with the addition of a tachometer. The driver and commander each had a vision cupola, and the driver's could be equipped with an infrared periscope in late vehicles.

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References

1. TM 9-755B Full-Track Armored Infantry Vehicle T18E1. Washington, D.C.: Department of the Army, 20 May 1952.
2. TM 9-7418 C2 Operation and Organizational Maintenance Armored Full Tracked Personnel Carrier M75. Washington, DC: Department of the Army, 11 December 1961.
3. Hunnicutt, R.P. Bradley: A History of American Fighting and Support Vehicles. Navato, CA: Presidio Press, 1999. Reprinted with permission from Bradley, R.P. Hunnicutt ©1999, available from Presidio Press, 505B San Martin Drive, Suite 160, Navato, CA 94945.
4. ORD 9 SNL G-260 List of All Service Parts of Carrier, Personnel, Full-tracked, Armored, M75. Washington, DC: Department of the Army, 9 July 1955.
5. TM 9-1755BB/TO 19-100AD-1 C2 6-Cylinder, Horizontally-opposed, Air-cooled Gasoline Engine (Continental Model AO-895-4). Washington, D.C.: Departments of the Army and Air Force, 11 December 1959.
6. FM 17-77 Crew Drill Armored Infantry Vehicle, Full-track M75. Washington, DC: Department of the Army, 16 December 1953.
7. TM 9-6059 Periscope M19. Washington, DC: Department of the Army, 23 April 1953.
8. Sola, Samuel, Vincent Bobkowski, and Kara Crocker. Weapon Mounts for Secondary Armament. Santa Monica, CA: G. O. Noville & Associates, Inc., April 1957.
9. Crismon, Fred W. U.S. Military Tracked Vehicles. Osceola, WI: Motorbooks International, 1992.

Last updated 22 Nov 2024.
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