The Brazilian army received the first prototype of the EE-9M, an upgrade of the EE–9 Cascavel 6x6 reconnaissance armored vehicle, which has been mass-produced at the facilities of the local company Engensa since 1974.
In the basic configuration, the EE-9 is equipped with a double turret with a 90-mm EC-90 cannon with 44 rounds of ammunition, and is also armed with one 7.62mm and one 12.7mm machine gun. As indicated in the publication Pucara Defensa, it is planned to install an ATGM on the upgraded version, apparently the Israeli Spike LR, a new SLA, a ballistic computer, an electric turret rotation system. Reinforcement of the armor is not provided.
As can be assumed, at the current stage, the EE-9M has received a new gunner's sight, a thermal imager for the commander and a camera for the driver and is not yet equipped with an ATGM.
Currently, two prototypes and 7 machines should be delivered as part of an experimental batch. In total, it is planned to upgrade from 98 to 201 units of equipment out of the current 409 available in the Brazilian army. At the same time, the command set a condition: the final cost of the work should not exceed 30% of the cost of the Centauro II – a new Italian cannon armored vehicle, often classified as a tank destroyer or wheeled tank.
Thus, in fact, the Brazilian army creates a similar class of equipment by upgrading Cascavel.