Despite the emphasis on high mobility, most cruisers were plagued by mechanical unreliability, notably in the hot and gritty desert of the North Africa Campaign. This problem was usually caused by rushed development and introduction into service. Most of the early cruiser tank designs were ordered "off the drawing board", particularly given the urgent need for tanks following the fall of France. The Liberty engine which also powered early Cruiser tanks was beginning to show its age and was being pushed to its limit in tanks such as the Crusader. This problem was not fully solved until the débût of the Cromwell tank in 1944, with its powerful, reliable Rolls-Royce Meteor engine.