Rubber padded tracks make sure it does not deafen the neighbours or rip up tarmac and with pedal to the metal it can be coaxed up to 30-odd mph.
The Abbot runs on diesel or a mixture of petrol and diesel, and carries a 105mm howitzer gun.
Unlike old-style self-propelled artillery, its gun is mounted on a fully-rotating turret and it does look more like a tank than a gun on tracks.
In its day it was a feared piece of kit because the rotation and elevation capabilities of the gun ensured it could also engage enemy armoured vehicles if required as well as pound stationary targets.
Usually operated by the Royal Artillery as a part of a multi-gun battery, of the 170 built, nearly all were stationed in Germany.
The gun has a range of around 12 miles. They were phased out of use in the early 90s replaced by the AS 90 self propelled gun and the 105mm light field gun.
The Abbot is powered by a six-litre Rolls-Royce K60 engine and in its military days it could swim across water, having a flotation screen fixed around the hull.
Since decommissioning from British Army service, Abbots have become popular for tank-driving adventure centres, proving much more economical to buy and run than a main battle tank. Although it is possible to use an Abbot on the road, it is more a vehicle for a collector with some land and wants a moderate sized tracked vehicle to put through its paces.
The Abbott can get just about anywhere. I tried one on a tough cross country course a few years ago. It is such a sweetie to drive that I managed to reverse park it between two other vehicles with just six inches to spare either side. How did I get out? Easy - the driving seat is accessed through a hatch on top of the hull.
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