[RERomine]

My best suggestion is to dedicate some sort of mounted recon and support to your flanking elements. The AI will always have some sort of AT or AA guns in the rear and infantry if it's a delay or defend. Odds are, you won't spot those units until they fire so lead out with mounted recon and support. Better to lose an inexpensive half-track or armored car than a tank with an experienced crew. If you send in unsupported tanks, expect to lose some.