How bullet-proof vehicles work


Via Andrea James I came across this video about how armored vehicles are made to stop bullets. The key point is that the energy of the bullet has to be dissipated laterally as much as possible so that it cannot penetrate the glass or the metal.

Comments

  1. says

    And, interestingly, a bullet-resistant car is an extra lethal place to be if you get hit with something that penetrates it, like a shaped charge or explosively formed penetrator. Because, then, you’re in a steel box, the windows won’t blow out, and you’re in the middle of an explosion that has noplace to go except to eat you.

  2. Dunc says

    Marcus, @ #1: To be honest, I’m not convinced that it makes much difference… If you’re in a car that gets hit with something capable of penetrating a bullet-resistant car, you’re almost certainly dead anyway. “Extra lethal”? Things are either lethal or not -- it’s not like you can be even more dead.

  3. Reginald Selkirk says

    A bullet-resistant car would also be extra-lethal if you got hit with something that didn’t penetrate, because it was already on the inside. Like a bomb hidden inside a briefcase or a pet.

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