Rebirth of the 1980s: The Military Industry Empire

"Come on, let's install the engine and gearbox and test it out!" someone suggested.

Just talking about it here is, after all, armchair strategy. We still need to put it into practice. The reason we got this chassis from Factory 960 is to be able to test it.

Install the engine and gearbox!

Everyone got busy.

Since it was designed with the Steyr engine in mind, the mounting positions were already prepared. Even so, it took four or five hours to install the engine.

This wasn't just installing the engine, but also installing various accessories: air filter, exhaust pipe, fuel tank, battery, and so on. As for the driver's cab, there wasn't one yet, just a simple seat in the driving position, with a steering wheel, clutch, brake, accelerator, etc. in front. There weren't even turn signals.

"Manual fuel pump, bleed the air!" After everyone finished the installation, they began to prepare for starting.

If it were a gasoline car, you could just add fuel if it ran out. But diesel engines are different. The fuel in a diesel engine is pressurized by a high-pressure fuel pump into the fuel injectors. If the fuel runs out, air will get into the fuel lines. At this point, no matter how you turn the key, you won't be able to start the engine. You must bleed the air from the high-pressure fuel lines. The initial start of the engine is also like this.

Everyone was working diligently on the preparations, and another ten minutes or so passed.

"Okay, let's try starting it!"

Wang Jinman sat in the driver's seat and turned the key. The electric motor roared instantly, and the engine emitted puffs of black smoke. Then, a powerful sound rang out.

It started!

The 490-horsepower engine sounded very deep and powerful. This is the most powerful vehicle diesel engine in China!

Wang Jinman revved the engine a few times, then shouted, "Everyone be careful, I'm going to drive!"

The crowd dispersed. Wang Jinman carefully stepped on the clutch, shifted into gear, and while revving the engine, slowly released the clutch. The moment the power engaged, he immediately felt a huge push in the back, and the vehicle shot out.

"Wrong gear, this is the high range!" Zhao Zhiqiang reacted and shouted loudly from below.

The old Jiefang had five gears, the Dongfeng 140 had five gears, and the Jiefang 141 had six gears. But after introducing Steyr, it immediately had eight gears.

With so many gears, if they were just stacked side by side, the driver could easily shift into the wrong gear.

Therefore, as the number of gears increased, there were also nuances in the engine's gear shifting. For example, Steyr's eight gears were divided into two ranges, high and low, with four low-speed gears and four high-speed gears.

Start with the low-speed range, and when the speed increases, switch to the high-speed range. The original first gear becomes fifth gear, adding four more gears. In fact, it is achieved by the combination of a four-speed main gearbox and a high-low-speed auxiliary gearbox.

This switching can be done by toggling the button below the gear lever up and down, or by toggling the pneumatic device on the gear lever left and right, depending on the gear lever.

As for this 490 engine, the original eight-speed gearbox was no longer sufficient. Therefore, this gearbox is a dedicated 12-speed gearbox, with low-speed range from first to sixth gear, and high-speed range from seventh to twelfth gear.

Trucks actually have so many gears? That's natural. Not to mention 12 gears, there are even 16 gears, and even a few with twenty gears. This is so you can always find a suitable gear to keep the truck engine running in the most economical range. At the same time, this also determines that some truck drivers don't want to slow down once they pick up speed, because every time they shift up or down, it's a test of their right hand.

Now, the gear is in the high-speed range, and starting is in seventh gear. Fortunately, the engine is powerful, otherwise it would definitely stall.

Wang Jinman stepped on the clutch, and the vehicle stopped again. He toggled the high-low-speed knob and found that the knob was correct. It seemed that the middle air pipe was connected incorrectly.

Restart!

The vehicle started steadily, and everyone was very impressed.

"The power system and transmission system are well-matched, and the vehicle runs smoothly. It looks very good." Old Zhu concluded: "In my opinion, this vehicle needs to continue to be developed. Complete the vehicle development as soon as possible. Maybe we can still make it in time for the National Day parade in October this year."

Qin Yang quickly shook his head: "No, no, that won't work. Forcing it will cause problems."

Tanks must participate in the parade, after all, to strengthen national prestige and military power. Armored vehicles participating in the parade will not show their powerful performance. If it breaks down in the middle, it will be a laughing stock around the world. Qin Yang doesn't think this is a good suggestion.

"The chassis still needs to undergo long-term testing, especially testing on various road sections. Whether it's the severe cold of the north or the scorching heat of the south, it must be able to withstand it. It's too early to finalize the design," Qin Yang continued.

"Well, it's still early. President Qin, how do you plan to design the upper structure? Will you install mirrors in the front?"

Wheeled infantry fighting vehicles are transformed from armored trucks. In the beginning, they all had glass. There were two pieces of bulletproof glass in the front, and there were also armor plates on the outside. In low-risk situations, the armor plate blocking the glass plate would be flipped open, so that the driving experience was closer to that of an ordinary car. In high-risk areas, the armor plate would be closed, and the periscope would be used to drive.

What about our vehicle? Will we use this method as well?

The historical Type 92 armored vehicle is like this. However, Qin Yang shook his head: "No, this will reduce the bulletproof capability. Our armored vehicle must be designed with a sloped bulletproof shape, just like a tank."

The front of the armored vehicle, viewed from the side, is a chamfered wedge shape, like the wedge-shaped additional modules of tank armor, except that the tip is cut off in the front. In this way, under the limited steel plate protection, an optimal bullet-deflecting shape can be obtained.

In later generations, new-generation armored vehicles are almost all designed in this way. The domestically produced Type 09 armored vehicle is also like this. However, because the front of the vehicle is too sloped, it is impossible to arrange bulletproof glass. Bulletproof glass must be placed vertically.

"Won't this make driving inconvenient?"

"How is it inconvenient? It's the same as a tank. Usually, you just stick your head out to drive," Qin Yang said. "In high-risk situations, you just crawl inside and use the periscope. It's not much different from previous armored vehicles, but for the convenience of driving, we'll use automatic transmission in the future."

Automatic transmission eliminates frequent shifting, reduces driver fatigue, and will definitely be implemented in the future.