Magach (, "battering-ram") is the designation of a series of tanks in Israeli service. The tanks are based on the American M48 and M60 Patton tanks. The name continued to be used for all Patton tanks, including the M60. Magach 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 are based on M48 series tanks, and Magach 6 and 7 are based on M60 series tanks. Service history The first M48 Patton tanks acquired by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were purchased from West Germany in the early 1960s (M48A2 variant) in a secret arms deal, followed by deliveries from the United States after 1965 (M48A1 and M48A2C vehicles) when Germany cancelled further deliveries after the deal was exposed. During the 1967 war, the Israeli tanks served in their original (American) configuration. Following the 1967 war, several dozen Jordanian M48 tanks, captured intact during the 1967 Six-Day War, were also commissioned into the IDF, adding to the 150 already in service at that time. Israel also modified the tank to M48A3 automotive standard by replacing the 650 hp gasoline engine with a 750 hp diesel one, more powerful and less vulnerable to fuel fires, resulting in the Magach 3. These modifications also included replacing the original 90 mm gun with the British 105 mm L7 (US M68 equivalent), replacing the commander's machine gun cupola with a lower-profile Urdan Cupola, and upgrading the communication suite. When the Yom Kippur War broke out, Israel had 540 M48-series (with 105 mm gun) and M60/M60A1 tanks. During the war, the tanks suffered heavy losses. The location of flammable hydraulic fluid at the front of the turret was discovered to be a severe vulnerability. Egypt had destroyed a large number of Israeli tanks, and only 200 M48 and M60A1 tanks remained. Israel entrenched most of these tanks in the Sinai front against opposite entrenched Egyptian infantry armed with 9M14 Malyutka anti tank missiles. Israel replaced their war losses with new M48A5 (Magach 4 and 5), M60 (Magach 7) and M60A1 (Magach 6) during the 1970s. The older M60's (which still used the smaller M48-style turret) were supplied to make up for a shortage of sufficient M60A1s, explaining why the older model has the higher designation. Prior to the 1982 invasion of Lebanon (1982 Lebanon War), Magach 6 and 7 tanks were fitted with explosive reactive armor (ERA). Further work has been done on the upgraded Magach 6 models,