Type 74 (G)

Type 74 (G)

Type 74 (G)

Japan

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.3	9.3	9.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Medium tank

Purchase:8 730

STORE

This page is about the Japanese premium tank Type 74 (G). For the regular version, see Type 74.

Description

The Type 74 mod G/Kai is a premium gift rank VI Japanese medium tank with a battle rating of 9.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.87 "Locked On". Compared to its tech tree counterpart, the Type 74, it has a minuscule upgrade to its protection in the form of sideskirts and had the IR floodlight replaced by a thermal imaging system.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, Side skirts)
• Cast homogeneous armour (Turret, Gun mantlet, Cupola)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	40 mm (73°) Front glacis - upper section 80 mm (64°) Front glacis - lower section 80 mm (57°) Lower glacis 50 mm Hull over the tracks 50 mm Driver port	50 mm (44°) Top - front part 35 mm (44°) Top - center and rear parts 30 mm Bottom 10 mm Side skirts 10 mm (55°) Belly	20 mm Top 20 mm (47°) Bottom	25 mm
Turret	132 mm (25°) Turret front 200 mm (40°) Gun mantlet - upper section 100 mm Gun mantlet - lower section	132 mm (30°) Front half 67 mm (40°) Rear half	37 mm (18°) Vertical part 40 mm (70°) Turret ring area	67 mm (82°) Front 37 mm Rear
Cupola	80 mm (61°)	80 mm (55°)		80 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• Frontally, the driver port as well as the hull over the tracks are weak spots on the Type 74 (G).
• The bottom of the hull is only 10 mm thick, making it vulnerable to powerful HE shells shot under the belly.

The armour on the Type 74 is nothing special and shouldn't be relied upon to surviving a shot from the enemy. It is therefore better to not get hit by an enemy tank shell to begin with. Its only merit is being able to resist autocannon rounds from light tanks or IFVs, which can buy precious seconds for the Type 74 (G) to retaliate before the enemy gets a good shot.

With four crew members, the survivability of the Type 74 (G) after penetration is on-par with other tank designs from USA and Germany. The prominence of APFSDS shells in this rank combined with the thin armour of the Type 74 (G) can mean instances where an APFSDS penetrates the armour and goes right through with minimal shrapnel damage, and so relatively little interior damage outside of the APFSDS' direct flight path.

The special thing about this tank is its pneumatic suspension. It give you the possibility to be fully hull-down on mountains. That capacity can make the Type 74 (G) less visible and therefore less exposed to enemy fire.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	59	19	38.5	1116	1,660	28.99	43.12
Realistic	54	17		637	870	16.55	22.6

The Type 74 (G)'s mobility is pretty decent and comparable to the OF-40 Mk 2 or Leopard A1A1, but slightly slower. The Type 74 (G) however has a reverse speed of only -14 km/h against -25 km/h for the previously mentioned tanks.

While the Type 74 (G) can outspeed Russian, British and most American medium tanks, don't expect to be faster than a BMP, TAM, Bradley or the faster premiums like OF-40 MTCA or AMX-30 Super.

Armaments

Main armament

The gun is identical to the tech tree version of the Type 74, a L7A3 105mm cannon. It possess one of the more potent kinetic shells with its Type 93 APFSDS penetration power. Although the reload time is not as fast as other 105 mm armed tanks that can be encountered, like the Leopard A1A1, OF 40, and the AMX-30 Super, the Type 93 APFSDS has an even greater penetration power than the L44 cannon on the Leopard A1A1 (L/44).

The gun comes with a stabilizer so firing on the move with the Type 74G is possible. However, the gun depression of 6 degrees is, on paper, relatively poor that doesn't allow for effective fighting from ridgelines, requiring a position that exposed the tank more to get a shot at your target. However, the pneumatic suspension of the Type 74 (G) can compensate for the lack of gun depression, and so it must be utilised to get the most out of the Type 74 (G).

105 mm L7A3					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	50	-6°/+9°	±180°	Two-plane	22.8	38.1	38.4	42.5	45.18	8.7	7.7	7.1	6.7
Realistic					14.3	20.3	20.4	22.6	24.0

Ammunition

The available ammunition offers a complete range to engage all types of targets:

• Type 91: HEATFS; a shaped charge that can penetrate any vehicle's armour frontally. Like the APFSDS shot, increased armour thickness results in reduced amount of spalling (shrapnel) after penetration. You are able to take out enemies on any distance, since the HEAT round does not lose penetration with distance traveled - very handy on large maps like Kursk. Unlike APFSDS it has one downside: given that it is a chemical round, its fuse is highly sensitive in regards to its practical application in battle. As a result, virtually anything, such as trees or even a fence, will set it off prematurely, so you cannot fire through obstructions with this kind of round. Knowledge of potential opponents vehicle layouts will be very handy to use.
• Type 75: HESH; high-explosive squash head projectiles work very differently from other shell types. It ignores any angle, except for ricochet, and deals damage by metal-flakes which are blown off inside the armour by the exterior explosion. To create this deadly shrapnel inside the tank, make sure to only hit armour plates which are a direct part of the interior crew compartment of the tank. Hitting exterior parts of a tank like spaced armour, the suspension, tracks etc. will not harm crew members/modules at all. Currently, only true armour thickness (as opposed to the line of sight thickness) will provide sufficient means of protection, benefiting the USSR turret designs and in general German tanks. Like all high-explosive shells, the fuse is very sensitive and can be set-off by most objects e.g. fences, trees, pillars. The slow muzzle velocity of this shell can make it quite hard to hit targets at longer distances, but at the same time it can be handy because its arc trajectory, allows it to land hits on enemies hiding behind shallow hills.
• M735: APFSDS; a kinetic rod with high penetration power but without explosive. It is capable of easily penetrating the majority of the foes it meets, but these rounds do require finesse as to their placing. Because the projectile lacks an explosive filler, the best bet is to try and either knock out the majority of the enemy tank's crew or to destroy the enemy by ammo or fuel detonation through hitting their respective storage capacities. This, of course, requires knowledge about the vehicles the Type 74 (G) may face - so be sure to use the game's X-Ray view in the hangar and analyse the potential foes for their weak spots! Also, keep in mind that with increased armour thickness the amount of shrapnel shrinks.
• M416: Smoke; useful to blind enemy vehicles that are too remote for you to disable so that you can progress towards objectives.
• Type 93: APFSDS; a kinetic rod with increased penetration power compared to the M735.

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
Type 91	HEATFS	400	400	400	400	400	400
Type 75	HESH	127	127	127	127	127	127
M735	APFSDS	353	350	342	333	322	312
Type 93	APFSDS	405	403	396	388	378	370

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%
Type 91	HEATFS	1,150	10.5	0.0	0.1	1,270	65°	72°	75°
Type 75	HESH	760	10.8	0.4	0.1	2,700	73°	77°	80°
M735	APFSDS	1,501	3.7	N/A	N/A	N/A	76°	77°	78°
Type 93	APFSDS	1,501	3.4	N/A	N/A	N/A	78°	80°	81°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
M416	730	11.4	20	5	25	50

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Type 74 (G)

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
50	16 (+34)	7 (+43)	1 (+49)	No

• Racks 2 and 3 are first stage ammo racks. They total 15 shells and get filled first when loading up the tank.
• These racks are also emptied early: the rack depletion order at full capacity is: 3 - 2 - 1.
• To go into battle with the frontal ammo rack empty, pack 16 (+34) shells, the rack depletion order will then be 3 - 2.

Machine guns

12.7 mm M2HB
Mount	Capacity (Belt capacity)	Rate of fire (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
Pintle	600 (200)	577	-10°/+40°	±120°

7.62 mm Type 74
Mount	Capacity (Belt capacity)	Rate of fire (shots/minute)	Vertical guidance	Horizontal guidance
Coaxial	4,500 (250)	500	N/A	N/A

While it's not recommended, it's still possible to use 12.7 mm to fight light tanks like AUBL/74 HVG or Rooikat Mk.1D and most SPAA tanks at <100 m range.

Do not charge them with just the MG, especially at long range, as even poorly armored rank V light tanks can survive frontal MG fire long enough to disarm and explode Type 74 - let them come to you, hit them with the main gun and ensure they never move again by firing at their sides or flat parts, while hiding yours.

Any melee oriented light tanks like BMP-2 or Warrior with add-on armour will have enough armour to absorb the MG fire and will greet Type 74 back with point blank ATGM attack, which machine guns will be unable to stop at such range.

Usage in battles

The Type 74G is a classic MBT with good mobility and firepower. It's fast enough to be somewhat competitive with its peers (although low-speed acceleration and maneuverability are lacking, which makes urban fighting sometimes tedious), and can sometimes reach favourable early-game positions before the enemy. The Type 74G is slower than the AMX-30 Super, OF-40 (MTCA), and most IFVs, so watch out for those tanks in situations where mobility is required. The Type 74G's reverse speed is mediocre, so peeking an enemy in order to take a shot can be dangerous; the enemy may have time to fire back before the Type 74G can retreat into cover. All in all, this tank has good mobility, but it can't be depended on in a pinch, and it certainly doesn't give the Type 74G a significant advantage over the enemy.

The armour on the Type 74 is nothing special and shouldn't be relied on to survive a shot from the enemy. Any APFSDS shell can penetrate the Type 74G's armour from practically any angle. It is therefore better to not get hit by an enemy tank shell to begin with. The armour's only merit is being able to resist machine gun and autocannon rounds from light tanks or IFVs such as the BMP-2, which can buy precious seconds for the Type 74 (G) to retaliate before the enemy gets a good shot. With four crew members, the survivability of the Type 74 (G) after penetration is on-par with other tank designs from USA and Germany. The prominence of APFSDS shells in this rank combined with the thin armour of the Type 74 (G) can mean instances where an APFSDS penetrates the armour and goes right through with minimal shrapnel damage, and so relatively little interior damage outside of the APFSDS' direct flight path.

With the Type 74G, it is recommended to take no more than 15 shells into battle, since these first 15 shells are stored in a relatively safe compartment in the turret. With these shells, the tank is able to penetrate most enemy tanks except at very long ranges. The Type 93 APFSDS shell is one of the best at this tier, and a quick reload time lets the Type 74G be a deadly weapon on the battlefield. The Type 74G has a worse rotation than most Western MBTs, although it is better that that of Russian tanks. This difference can mean the difference between life and death in situations where quick aiming is important. This tank is also able to use a pneumatic suspension system to lower or raise its hull on its suspension. This is useful when firing from behind cover. The Type 74G can go fully hull-down when behind a ridgeline, and ridgeline sniping is therefore one of this vehicle's strengths. While it's not recommended, it is possible to use the tank's 12.7 mm machine gun to fight light tanks like the AUBL/74 HVG.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts	Horizontal Drive	Type 75	M735
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Adjustment of Fire	LWS/LR
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Elevation Mechanism	M416
IV	Transmission	Engine	Smoke grenade	Artillery Support	Type 93	NVD
This is a premium vehicle: all modifications are unlocked on purchase

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent mobility, enough to be competitive and reach most of your favourite positions
• Very good APFSDS shell (Type 93) - one of the best in its rank
• Good lineup with Type 89, Type 87, Type 16 and regular Type 74
• Some armour to stop autocannons from IFVs and MBTs, such as the BMP-2, XM803, MBT-70 and the French tanks with 20 mm coax guns
• Pneumatic suspension

Cons:

• Slower than for example Leopard A1A1 or OF-40, and quite a bit slower than AMX-30 Super and OF-40 MTCA
• Worse turret rotation than other western MBTs, but still better than Russians
• Mediocre reverse speed at only 16 kph compared to the mentioned competitors
• Generally a little bit more sluggish in the steering than the other Nations MBTs

History

In 1993, a program was launched to upgrade 4 Type 74 tanks to a new Type 74 Kai (mod. G) standard. The tanks were equipped with the NBC protection system of the Type 90, a passive infrared camera like the Type 90, a laser detection device linked with smoke launchers and side skirts. The program was abandoned quickly as the upgrade proved too expensive in a context of military budget reduction due to the end of the Cold War.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Type 74 (G) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

Type 74G: Slower Top Tier Experience - Napalmratte

Real Sound Recording: Type 74 Edition - DMM GAMES Official Channel

JGSDF Type 74: 360° Video - DMM GAMES Official Channel

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis

• STB-1
• Type 74

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• Leopard A1A1
• AMX-30 Super

External links

• [Shop] Type 74 mod G/Kai and Pre-Order of the Japanese Packs

Japan premium ground vehicles
Light tanks	Ha-Go Commander · Type 16 (FPS)
Medium tanks	Chi-Ha Short Gun · Chi-He (5th Regiment) · Ka-Chi · Chi-Nu II · Type 74 (G) · Type 90 (B) "Fuji"
Heavy tanks	Ro-Go · ▅Heavy Tank No.6
Tank destroyers	Ho-Ri Prototype · Type 75 MLRS