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TL;DR: A literal SUV but with an RWS on top.
History:
The transport of weapons has always been a necessity when it comes to keeping momentum during wartime. Whether it be handguns or anti-tank cannons, all weapons are useless if they can’t face an enemy. WW1 saw the true advent of vehicle-mounted weapons, most notably cannons mounted on tractors, but also, arguably more importantly, machine guns mounted on cars and trucks. Such mountings made it not only possible to move these devastating anti-infantry weapons around easier, but do it very quickly as well. This style of vehicle would survive WW1 and continue evolving deep into and after WW2, eventually branching off into dedicated armored cars and trucks, however, as these vehicles evolved, they steadily became more expensive. So expensive that some nations couldn’t afford to develop their own or even purchase any. Nations in these situations simply went back to these vehicles’ roots; simply putting whatever weapons you have on hand onto whatever vehicles you have on hand. More often than not, the vehicles lying around were of civilian origin. Pickups, sedans, delivery vans, you name it. Their surprising effectiveness was shown to the world during the famed Toyota War, in which Chadian troops fought using these makeshift vehicles, technicals, utilizing their superior mobility to out maneuver the heavier Libyan equipment. Since then, development on cheap but fast, reliable, and small weapons platforms exploded, aided by the ever-growing market for remote weapon stations. Several vehicles came out of these developments, one of which being the strange Changan CS95 (CS/LK3), which was, obviously, a slightly modified civilian Changan CS95 SUV fitted with the CS/LK3 remote weapon station, equipped with a 12.7x108mm W85 HMG, an improved Chinese version of the famous DShK capable of firing tungsten APDS and duplex rounds. Now, it’s very unlikely that this vehicle was developed to be sold as a unit. It’s much more likely that it was developed as a marketing demonstrator meant to demonstrate the CS/LK3’s light weight and versatility as well as marketing for the CS95 series of SUVs in general. Nevertheless, the demonstrator was fully functional and even conducted firing trials. Of course, no one has actually come forward to purchase the Changan CS95 (CS/LK3) to this day, however, the CS/LK3 itself is currently in widespread Chinese service.
Place In War Thunder:
It should come as no surprise that I am not suggesting this vehicle with the intention of it going into the tech tree. I’m suggesting this vehicle purely because it would be really funny to play and would make for a great April Fools or otherwise throwaway event vehicle. At first glance, it would seem a vehicle like this would be relegated purely to the anti-air role. Under normal circumstances, this would be true, however, the W85 HMG has access to tungsten APDS capable of penetrating around 52mm of armor. Not the best by any means but more than enough to harass some lighter vehicles as well as the sides of certain lightly armored MBTs. Another, more interesting, trick the W85 has up its sleeve is its ability to fire the DVD06 duplex round. While these bullets do fly at a slower velocity of 700m/s, they also effectively double the amount of rounds you put down range, essentially turning your 600rpm to 1200rpm. We all know how potent the 12x108mm round is in the anti-air role. Its profile is also very small and generally not recognizable as a threat. The CS95 is just a civilian SUV after all. It can very easily be overlooked as a map prop or just not seen at all. All that being said, being a civilian SUV is obviously still a massive disadvantage. It has no armor, probably takes more damage from running into map objects, has poor off-road mobility, and probably would take some time to reach its top speed due to the added weight of the military components. Playstyle would be pretty unique. You’re very clearly not taking this thing out to be impressively effective, however, if you play your cards right, you can easily catch a few ratty vehicles off guard, thanks to your comparatively quiet car engine, and shred their sides before slipping away into the cracks of the forest or city and finding a position to do it over again. As previously mentioned, your silhouette is not one many players consider a threat and, as long as you aren’t moving, CAS can very easily fly over you without noticing your presence, giving you a perfect opportunity to saw off their wing with your duplex rounds. Of course, the second you are recognized as a threat is when it all falls apart. You don’t have enough pen to fight most vehicles frontally and you have no armor to stand up to a strafe. Artillery will also just kill you outright. Again, this vehicle is not meant to be effective. If added, it should be done in a way similar to the BM-31-12, which is useless a majority of the time yet still remains at 4.0. This is because it is locked at this BR by Gaijin. No amount of data saying the vehicle should be moved down will move it down because it’s not meant to be effective. It’s meant to be fun, which it very much is. If added, the CS95 (CS/LK3) should be introduced through a small event and locked at a BR of something like 7.0. It would not even compare to anything else in its bracket but it doesn’t have to.
Specifications:
Armament: W85 12.7mm HMG
Dimensions: 4.95m, 1.93m, 2.43~m (L,W,H)
Weight: 3000~kg
Armor: None
Crew: At least 2
Ammunition: AP-I, APHE (steel), APHE (tungsten), APDS, Duplex
Speed: 180~kph
Horsepower: 233hp
Pictures:
Front View:
Rear View:
3/4th View:
RWS Close-Up:
Interior:
Firing:
Sources:
https://kknews.cc/car/bq5x26j.html
https://m.xincheping.com/news/107658.html
W85 heavy machine gun - Wikipedia
PLA Mechanised Infantry Division Air Defence Systems / PLA Point Defence Systems
China SUV with Machine Gun | Combat-Ready CS95
China: unidentified company mounts machine gun on Changan CS95 SUV
Norinco 2017 Weapon Systems
Spoiler
