The Mark II of 1941 ("South African Reconnaissance Vehicle M II") appeared with a lengthened chassis for better ground contacting and was given an all-wheel drive capability for much-improved cross-country performance. While early forms mimicked the same armament scheme and riveted hull construction as found in the Mark I, later vehicles arrived with all-new turrets (octagonal in their appearance) armed with a 0.55 Boys anti-tank rifle and BREN machine gun as well as welded hull plates for better survivability. Total Mark II production yielded 887 vehicles.
In 1941, a new version also appeared in the Mark III. The wheelbase was reduced and production was quite notable through 2,630 units realized - making this the definitive model form in the series. The Mark IIIA followed and saw its turret removed to fit a simplified shielded machine gun ring for up to 2 x machine guns.
The Mark IV of 1943 saw the original design revised externally while, internally, much of the original running gear was retained. A new, two-man turret was added that fitted the QF 2-pounder main gun to provide better support against light armored vehicles in the field beyond what the traditional machine gun fits offered. A coaxial machine gun was eventually fitted in later production models while a roof-mounted machine gun was also added on a pintle mounting to provide effective local air defense. A conversion kit was developed to help bring earlier marks up to the Mark IV standard but supply could not meet the wartime demand so the Mark IVF was hastily designed in its place which switched use to a Ford Canada F60L 3-ton truck chassis and drivetrain. 1,200 of this model were produced, mainly for the British Army.
The fighting forces of South Africa attempted to formulate their own design through the Mark V initiative of 1942 - developed in direct response to the German Schwerer "Panzerspahwagen", an 8x8 wheeled armored car powered by an 8-cylinder gasoline-fueled engine and armed with a 20mm KwK 30 series turreted main gun (with coaxial MG34 machine gun armament). The South African response was similar in that it used eight wheels across four suspended axles and power was through a paired Albion 6-cylinder engine set with drive power to the center two axles. Primary armament was to become useful QF 6-pounder (57mm) main gun though testing proved the vehicle was not up to the rigors of wartime service. This initiative was abandoned after the sole prototype as attention shifted to a new approach.
The South African Mark VI followed in 1943 and revised the earlier Mark V approach by pairing two Mercury 8-cylinder engines and drive power was now to all eight wheels with steering given to the front and rear axle sets. Trialed armament included both a 2-pounder and 6-pounder main gun fitting to a three-man, power-assisted turret. The vehicle would be locally-defended by up to three .303 machine guns. Despite the improved form and function, the vehicle failed impress British authorities due to unreliability and was not pursued beyond two prototypes.
This laboring paved the way for the Mark VII to emerge - essentially offered an improved version of the earlier Mark IIIA. However, this program met the fate of the earlier 8x8 wheeled marks and was cancelled while in the pilot stage - armament was to be just a single machine gun fitting. Similarly, the final Mark VIII failed to impress as it could not fit anything larger than the 2-pounder main gun in the turret being offered.
The last recorded use of Marmon-Herrington armored cars was in the 1990s by Greek forces.
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