“This M1 Abrams was probably built for warfare in Europe not a sandy desert.”
Yes the Abrams was designed to go toe to toe with the Soviets in Europe, BUT it has handled itself quite well in the deserts of Iraq and Saudi Arabia. In fact besides Iraq and Saudi Arabia buying the Abrams, the Australians, Egyptians, and Moroccans have also bought the Abrams.
Wmileo, the initial problems with the M-1 prototypes was their air cleaners not being able to handle the fine sand/grit when they were tested at Ft. Bliss and White Sands. Folks used that as an argument not to buy the M-1. The air cleaners were redesigned to solve that problem.
And I don’t recall hearing from buddies in the 3d Armored Division that their M-1s shipped directly from Germany to Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm had any problem with the air cleaners handling the Saudi and Kuwaiti sand.