
Weighing In at 80 Tons: Two Decades of Upgrades Force the U.S. Army to Cancel M1A2 SEPv4 and Redesign the Abrams
The U.S. Army has cancelled the M1A2 SEPv4 upgrade program after the Abrams tank ballooned to nearly 80 tons, exhausting its upgrade margin. Lessons from Ukraine—where cheap drones destroy million-dollar tanks—accelerated the rethink. The next-generation M1E3 Abrams features an unmanned turret, crew relocated inside the hull, a hybrid diesel-electric engine, and a modular open-systems architecture, with prototype testing set to begin this autumn.
Source: 19FortyFive Defense Tech










