View From The Porch: Something there is in nature that does not love a car...

Friday, October 18, 2013

Something there is in nature that does not love a car...

Remember: Most of a car is concealment and not cover. The other side of this thing has nearly as many outgoing bullet holes as this side has incoming ones.

19 comments:

Paul said...: Except for down range of the motor. Blocks can stop about anything.

Or am I wrong yet again?; 12:35 PM, October 18, 2013
Bram said...: Paul,
I think you are right until you get into .50 cal territory.; 12:42 PM, October 18, 2013
Anonymous said...: Vehicle draw fire. Even when they are minding their own business out on the prairie.

Gerry; 1:18 PM, October 18, 2013
Frank W. James said...: Someone needs to point this out to the writers of the CineMax series "STRIKE-BACK".

They've always got people taking cover behind vehicles that stop AK-47 projectiles in copious quantities and it drives me nuts, but still...it's great GUN theater...

All The Best,
Frank W. James; 1:27 PM, October 18, 2013
rocinatne2 said...: Hey, I think that was my dad's "company" car (in the late 70's).

And did someone actually go to the trouble of altering the plate (to protect the innocent) or did this car really have the CO vanity plate "8888888"?; 2:17 PM, October 18, 2013
Mike_C said...: Are you implying that the thing on TV where an open car door protects the cops from anything short of a crew-served weapon doesn't work? Damnit!

Hunh. I guess the movie where the good guy was using a sofa to soak up near point-blank AK-47 rounds from the terrorists wasn't realistic either. Yet a single 9-mm round can not only kill instantaneously but also blow the corpse through a plate glass window. I don't understand, but that probably means my physics is rustier than I thought.; 2:49 PM, October 18, 2013
Tom the Impaler said...: The New Ford Police cruisers have level 3 panels in the doors. So sometimes the door is both cover and concealment. Of course if I were the driver I'd want to know Just how big and where these panels are in the door so I'd know just where to cower.; 2:58 PM, October 18, 2013
Ed said...: Haven't you ever seen a two year old cover her eyes and think that she was invisible?

When your only experience with firearms is people firing blanks, then automobiles make excellent concealment and cover. Remember, those actors on TV and the movies never have to reload, deal with muzzle climb or get back splattered when firing at extremely close range. No actors hurling their breakfasts after killing another human being for the first time.; 4:04 PM, October 18, 2013
Anonymous said...: Wait, wait, I thought cars exploded when hit with a .22 round, like they do in the movies! Did I miss a change in physics again?

LittleRed1; 4:46 PM, October 18, 2013
Goober said...: Only when bad guys are in or near them. Good guy cars have armor comparable to an m1 Abrams; 6:38 PM, October 18, 2013
Goober said...: Not really wrong, no, but I did manage to send a round from my 300 win magazine through a small block v8 one time. Just one of those freak things where it hit just right.

But unless you got in a gunfight with a guy shooting a magnum moose rifle (and if you did, epic fail on your part) then you're okay behind the block.; 6:43 PM, October 18, 2013
Will said...: Goober:

Unless it's an aluminum block engine, which is becoming common, now.
I'm thinking someone (Box of Truth?) should run some testing of handgun and rifle rounds on typical I4 and V6 alum engines. I suspect many no longer even use iron liners for the cylinders, so unless you tag the crank assembly, there won't be much inside to even slow a bullet down much.; 7:05 PM, October 18, 2013
Gewehr98 said...: I'll wager the Fast & Loud boys at Gas Monkey Garage could get that fixed up and running in no time flat!; 7:10 PM, October 18, 2013
og said...: The most fun I ever had with a firearm AND a car, was fairly recently, when I had the opportunity to put a 500 nitro into a running 350 Chebby. Not that I have an issue with the chebby, this was an ancient squad that was headed to the yard- but to see it go all splodey was so damned much fun I wish I had been able to film it in slow motion.; 8:17 PM, October 18, 2013
Anonymous said...: Remember when talking engine blocks your are talking about an area about 2'x2' (i.e. the block itself). air cleaners, valve covers, etc don't stop much.; 9:59 PM, October 18, 2013
Greg Tag said...: Hmmm... most fun I ever had with a car involved a very lovely, uninhibited and accomodating blonde....

...returning to the Gun world, however, the website "Box 'o Truth" has a whole series entitled " The Buick 'o Truth".

BOT's conclusion after a lot of shooting was that if you are in a car which is under fire , drive away, or get out. You can hide behind actual cover sheltering behind the engine block or wheels; nothing else will stop a 7.62 NATO.
Modern US autos are not particularly bullet resistant to pistol rounds either.

Regards

GKT; 11:08 PM, October 18, 2013
Anonymous said...: Maybe my old eyes are failing, but that looks like an old Fairmont, at that angle anyway. If it is one, my old 760 Powermaster from my pre-misspent youth could probably blow through both sides of that rolling beer can.
Engine blocks & wheels, folks, & only if the wheels are backed up by brakes. Don't hide behind a bare rim.
--Tennessee Budd; 11:56 PM, October 18, 2013
Tam said...: Tennessee Budd,

Yup, the Cougar badge was lost in the wilderness for a while there in the late '70s/early '80s. IIRC, you could even get a Cougar wagon for a couple years.

I don't know that the brand ever really recovered from that.; 8:57 AM, October 19, 2013
Matt G said...: On that particular vehicle, the best cover was behind the off-side wheels. Those are steel rims. Just be sure and levitate a couple of inches so's not to catch the skippers.; 1:49 AM, October 20, 2013