The Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus (German: mouse) was a prototype German super-heavy tank from the Second World War. Only two prototypes of the vehicle were built probably in 1943. The Maus, however, never entered mass production. The vehicle was powered by a single engine Daimler-Benz MB509 1,200 hp. It was armed with a single 128mm KwK 44 L / 55 cannon, a single 75mm KwK 44 L / 36.5 cannon and one 7.92mm MG34 machine gun.
Design work on the new German super heavy tank began in 1942. The responsible for the project was prof. Ferdinand Porsche, who in the new tank put emphasis primarily on powerful weapons capable of fighting enemy tanks at distances of up to 3,500 meters, and equally strong armor. The first wooden models were ready in 1943, and shortly thereafter, two prototypes of the vehicle were built. However, at the end of this year, the entire program was canceled and the Maus did not go into series production. During the field tests and test drives carried out in 1943-1945, the great firepower of the tank was confirmed, but at the same time its great disadvantage was its terrible maneuverability in the field, very low top speed in the field (only 13 km / h!) And high failure rate of the transmission and chassis, resulting from the huge weight of the vehicle.
The Landkreuzer P-1000 Ratte (German: rat) was a project of a German super-heavy tank from the Second World War. The car project was never developed as a prototype, let alone entered into mass production. The P-1000 Ratte was going to be driven either 2 MAN V12Z32 / 44 engines with a total power of 8,500 HP or 8 Daimler-Benz MB501 engines with a total power of 16,000 HP. The planned armament of the vehicle is 2 280mm guns, 1 128mm KwK 44 L / 55 cannon, 8 20mm FlaK38 cannons and 2 15mm MG151 / 15 machine guns.
The first project of the P-1000 Ratte was created in 1942. It envisaged the creation of not so much a tank, but rather a land cruiser with a huge mass and main armament, the caliber of which was equal to the caliber of the guns of the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau battleships! Interestingly, work on this unusual vehicle probably began shortly after, but was discontinued in 1943. The size and weight of the P-1000 Ratte made it very vulnerable to air attacks and the fire of all types of artillery. The almost zero maneuverability of this vehicle in the field or the inability to overcome major water obstacles on the available bridges was also problematic. All these issues made the P-1000 Ratte project debatable from its inception and questioned its combat value.