The BA-10 was the last armored car built by the USSR before the start of World War II, and was a development of the earlier BA-3/6 medium armored car family. Like its predecessor, it was designed around the chassis of the GAZ-AAA truck (itself based on the Ford AA) and was notable for having thicker and better-sloped armor which allowed for better protection relative to weight. It also featured a more powerful GAZ-MM engine, which would later go on to power the BA-64 as well. One of the unique features of the BA-10 was the the ability of being converted into a half-track, which was particularly useful on snow and soft ground. Armament consisted of a 45-mm 20-K gun on a large turret. By early war standards, this was powerful enough to knock out most enemy armor although the thin armor would have been a liability in these types of encounters. The BA-10 first saw action during the Khalkhin Gol incident in 1939, and later in the Winter War and during the early stages of the German invasion. Although small numbers remained in service throughout the remainder of the war, the scouting role of Soviet heavy armored cars was taken over by light tanks which had similar armament but better protection.

The initialBA-10 prototype was developed in the summer of 1937 and entered production as the BA-10A. THis was succeeded in production by the improved BA-10M with a new radio, improved turret traverse mechanism, and additional fuel tanks. Additionally, a variant for use on railways was developed as the BA-10ZhD for use by both the Red Army and the NKVD. Captured German vehicles were redesignated Panzerspähwagen BA-203(r)