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this formed the armored formations of the Bundeswehr. before the Leopard coming into their arsenal.
Actually, the M47 and M48A2C were the Leopard's predecessors. The M48A2GA2 was a rebuild series that equipped West German reserve units from the 1970's on. It added a 105 mm gun and a new cupola and mantlet, as well as internal upgrades. One item that was not upgraded was the engine--it retained the gasoline powered AVL-1790 rather than switching to the diesel version as the US did on the M48A3 and A5.