M13/40 (III)

This page is about the Italian medium tank M13/40 (III). For other versions, see M13/40 (Family).

M13/40 (III)

M13/40 (I)

M14/41

M13/40 (III)

M13/40 (I)

M14/41

Italy

I Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.0	2.0	2.0

Class:

Medium tank

Research:2 000

Purchase:2 100

Description

The Fiat-Ansaldo M13/40 III Serie (shortened as M13/40 (III)) is a rank I Italian medium tank with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic".

M13-40 (III) is a superior version of M13-40, which has reload speed and default camouflage of model (II), while retaining gun depression of model(I). You can distinguish it visually from other 2 by spotting small "bump" on it's turret's top(above the gun), which was made so that the gun can depress with the new loading mechanism.

The M13/40 (III), as with the rest of the family, is typically used as a breakthrough tank or a "blockade runner" due to the fact that it is very resistant to enemy fire, especially when angled, and can disable or destroy enemy vehicles with only one shot when up close. Beware, however, around the 500 m mark the cannon ammunition starts to lose its punch and can fail to penetrate effectively, and it's not any faster than other tanks of the family.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull30 / 25 / 25

Turret45 / 25 / 25

Crew4 people

Visibility82 %

Most of the hull armour is flat, so despite quite high frontal armour values the M13/40 (III) must always be angled when engaging an enemy combatant or risk easy penetration of the vehicle. The side armour value is not as good as the front, but at extreme angles, it becomes more effective. The turret, however, is not as reliably weak. The strange angles of the mantlet and small size makes the turret quite strong against Rank I vehicles and even if a shot does penetrate, the mantlet will likely absorb enough of the shrapnel to keep your turret crew relatively unharmed.

As long as you angle your tank right, you will have 36 to 50 mm of effective armour thickness and use it to block enemy shots. If a hull-down position is available, that will be your best option to increase surivability. Destroy British tanks and any SPG as soon as possible, as every single one of them can destroy your tank. It is also worth prioritizing Soviet and certain USA tanks as well, however not every one of them can penetrate your armour reliably.

The rear end is also rather long, so enemies could pick this piece off if it is exposed. But it's better to be shot at your engines, than your crew compartment, located in the middle of the tank. Don't give your opponent any time to do that and make them go away before they started firing onto your second tier.

This tank has the desert camouflage as the default one, which means you will be at a disadvantage on non-desert maps at first in terms of stealth.

Armor Composition:

• Rolled Homogeneous Armor
• Cast Homogeneous Armor - Interior Mantlet
• Structural Steel - Fenders, Storage Boxes
• Tracks
• Structural Steel of Chassis - Suspension

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	30 mm (12°) Upper Plate 25 mm (80°) - 30 mm (66°) Upper Glacis 30 mm (Curved) Lower Glacis	30 mm Upper Front 25 mm Upper 25 mm Lower	25 mm Upper 3 Levels 27 mm Lower Level	15 mm Crew Compartment 5 mm - 15 mm Engine Compartment
Turret	45 mm (13°) Turret front 30 mm + 40 mm (Curved)Gun mantlet	25 mm		15 mm

Notes:

• Turret Ring Guard - 50 mm
• Fenders, Storage Boxes - 4 mm
• Tracks - 20 mm
• Suspension - 10 mm to 15 mm
• Main Gun - 15 mm
• Machine Guns - 5 mm

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB36 / 6 km/h

RB and SB32 / 5 km/h

Number of gears4 forward

1 back

Weight13.6 t

Engine power

AB248 hp

RB and SB130 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB18.2 hp/t

RB and SB9.6 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	36	6	13.6	201	248	14.78	18.24
Realistic	32	5		115	130	8.46	9.56

Mobility of the M13/40 (III) is sluggish on anything but flat land, but it's adequate as long as you don't try to climb steep hills or to cross the entire map fast. Attempting steep hill flank will just get you stuck and leave you exposed to enemy fire.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB196 → 252

RB225 → 289

SB272 → 350

Total cost of modifications4 450

2 670

Talisman cost300

Crew training600

Experts2 100

Aces45

Research Aces110 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

10 / 20 / 20 %

100 / 100 / 100 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 300 Cost: 180 60 Suspension Research: 200 Cost: 120 40 Brake System Research: 200 Cost: 120 40 Filters Research: 370 Cost: 220 75 Transmission Research: 480 Cost: 290 100 Engine Research: 480 Cost: 290 100	Improved Parts Research: 300 Cost: 180 60 Improved FPE Research: 200 Cost: 120 40 Crew Replenishment Research: 370 Cost: 220 75	Horizontal Drive Research: 300 Cost: 180 60 Adjustment of Fire Research: 200 Cost: 120 40 47mm_m39_APBC_ammo_pack Research: 200 Cost: 120 40 Elevation Mechanism Research: 370 Cost: 220 75 Artillery Support Research: 480 Cost: 290 100

Armaments

Main armament

47 mm 47/32 mod.35 cannon

Ammunition87 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

3.8 → 2.9 s

Vertical guidance-15° / 25°

Ammunition is good enough for flank shots and direct shots at flat armour up to 500 m. Post-penetration effect is enough to destroy most opponents of rank 1 with one or two shots.

Upgraded ammo does not have increased performance against flat armour, however against angled armour it does increase your chances to penetrate turrets along with angled armour and damage something like French tanks at longer range.

Overall, almost nothing can deflect your shots at 100-200 m range.

47 mm 47/32 mod.35					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	87	-15°/+25°	±180°	N/A	13.33	18.45	22.40	24.77	26.35	3.77	3.33	3.07	2.90
Realistic					8.33	9.80	11.90	13.16	14.00

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Granata Perforante mod.35	APHE	55	52	41	30	22	17
Granata Perforante mod.39	APBC	54	52	46	39	33	29

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Granata Perforante mod.35	APHE	630	1.5	1.2	9.0	30	47°	60°	65°
Granata Perforante mod.39	APBC	630	1.44	1.2	9.0	30	47°	60°	65°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M13/40 (III)

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
87	79 (+8)	54 (+33)	1 (+86)	Yes

Turret empty: 54 (+33)

Machine guns

8 mm Breda Mod. 38 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition1 536 rounds

Belt capacity24 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate600 shots/min

8 mm Breda Mod. 38 machine gun

Ammunition1 536 rounds

Belt capacity24 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate600 shots/min

Although the pintle-mounted machine gun cannot traverse independently of the turret on the horizontal, its limited vertical traverse can make it useful against unprotected SPAA as well as strafing aircraft. The coaxial-mounted machine gun is hard to use for anything, as it's limited by the traverse of the main gun. Additionally, it has a very small magazine size so it's recommended not to needlessly fire your machine guns throughout the battle, and keep a full magazine at all times.

8 mm Breda Mod. 38
Mount	Capacity (Belt capacity)	Rate of fire (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
Coaxial	1,524 (24)	600	N/A	N/A
Pintle	1,524 (24)	600	-10°/+20°	N/A

Usage in battles

Try to push through enemy fire, while being angled at least 30° to your enemy. Destroy anyone who dares to fire at you, specifically targeting SPGs and those who forgot to angle their armour. Upgrade your ammunition for a better damage profile.

Alternatively, take a slightly flanking direction near to your team and use your strong characteristics to intercept any fast-moving vehicles while moving along with your team. After finishing the cleanup, flank main battle and destroy defenceless opponents.

It's not worth fighting heavily armoured vehicles alone while being angled without upgraded ammo. At a range of 500 m, you will probably only penetrate each other's turret and it's more up to luck than anything. One possibility if fighting from this range, your shell can potentially incapacitate turret crew, disabling the tank and allowing a team member with heavier firepower to finish the target off without the threat of being fired upon.

Tanks equipped with autocannons can destroy you from the rear and sides, however, they often go for engines first. Keep an eye out for them.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• When angled, can take shots from most 1^st rank tanks without consequences
• Can destroy tanks faster than M13/40 (I), dominating in direct combat
• Very thick mantlet - about 40+30 mm overall
• Excellent gun depression

Cons:

• Gun performance is unimpressive
• Slow and unable to climb well
• While being slow, you are also forced to always drive at an angle as not to allow someone to set up for a direct shot

History

Intended to replace the unsatisfactory M11/39, the M13/40 retained its main mechanical features, but with a more powerful gun in a fully rotating turret. The M13 was slow, unreliable, and suffered from the tank commander doubling as the gunner. Similar to early Russian and French tanks, it did not receive radios as standard equipment until 1942. Nevertheless, it became the standard Italian medium tank from 1941 on, and is the best known Italian tank of the war. In War Thunder, the M13/40 (III) represents those made earlier in the production run, with hydraulic traverse gear and radios in place. They have less maximum ammunition than the (I) model as a result.

The tank first saw service with the 3rd Medium Tank Battalion (Battaglione Carri M) in Libya's Sollum-Halfaya region. It later equipped 132nd "Ariete (Ram)" Armoured Division (Divisione Corazzata) in North Africa. From January to April of 1941, it also saw action in Yugoslavia and Greece with the 131st Centauro (Centaur) and 133rd Littorio armoured divisions. For a short time after the first rush of British victories in North Africa in early 1941, there were enough captured M13s to equip a British armoured unit, 6th Royal Tank Regiment, in Libya. These were all lost in turn to Rommel's offensive in March of that year. In late August of 1941, Italian medium tank platoons increased their number from four to five.

When Italy surrendered in September 1943, 22 M13s were captured by Germany, who handed them over to the Italian fascist forces. It is uncertain how many in total were produced, as many were converted to M14/41s: estimates range from 710 to 1,049.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M13/40 (III) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

M13/40 (III), Italian, Tier-1 / Reserve, Medium Tank - Angry Nerd Gaming

TOP 5 Reserve Tanks discusses the M13/40 (III) at 1:49 - War Thunder Official Channel

See also

Related Development

• M14/41 - (Successor)

Tanks of comparable role, configuration and era

• Pz.35(t)
• T-26
• A13
• Ha-Go

External links

• [Wikipedia] M13/40 tank
• [Tanks Encyclopedia] Carro Armato M13/40
• [Military Factory] Carro Armato M13/40

FIAT-Ansaldo
Autoblindo	AB 41 · AB 43
Light Tanks	L6/40 · L6/40 (31 Rgt.)
Medium Tanks	Celere Sahariano
M11/39	M11/39
M13/40	M13/40 (I) · M13/40 (II) · M13/40 (III)
M14/41	M14/41 · M14/41 (47/40)
M15/42	M15/42
P40	P40 · P40 "G.C. Leoncello"
Tank Destroyers
L3/33	L3/33 CC
Semovente L40	47/32 L40
Semovente M41	75/18 M41 · 75/32 M41 · 90/53 M41M
Semovente M42	75/34 M42
Semovente M43	105/25 M43 · M43 "G.C.Leoncello" · 75/34 M43 · 75/46 M43
SPAAs	M42 Contraereo