Following the mixed success of earlier self-propelled gun designs, the Wespe ('Wasp') would become one of the most widely used vehicles of their type. The Wespe did away with the earlier sIG 33 gun and instead was built around the popular 10.5cm leFH 18 howitzer. Trials for using the chassis of the Panzer III and IV were eventually discarded in favor of the smaller Panzer II with a slightly lengthened hull, extended glacis, and the engine moved forward which was more appropriate for a gun mount. Some modifications to the suspension compared to the base vehicle were also undertaken. The fighting compartment was built around sloped armor plates which unlike some earlier SPGs, provided protection from the rear although it remained open-topped. An ammunition carrier version was also built and which could even be modified in the field to carry the leFH 18 gun. The Wespe proved immediately successful following its introduction during the Battle of Kursk, so much that Hitler ordered all Panzer II chassis production to convert to Wespes. They were issues to the Panzerartillerie Abteilungen (armored artillery) in Panzer divisions alongside the heavier Hummell. Production was interrupted in mid-1944 due to Soviet forces approaching Warsaw where the FAMO factory in charge of building the vehicles was located.

The Leichte Feldhaubitze 18/2 auf Fahrgestell Panzerkampfwagen II (Sf), or Wespe entered production in February 1943 following earlier attempts to mate the leFH 18 gun on a Panzer III and IV chassis. The was an ammunition carrier that could be converted to a standard SPG was the only other variant produced.