ARMORED VEHICLES
The problems in the Decision Making Process

Tony Scotti

The decision to purchase an armored vehicle is a difficult one at best, and when tasked with that responsibility nobody sets out to make a bad decision. It’s usually the lack of good information, or worse yet bad information that creates the problem in the decision making process. It has to be said that in all fields there are products designed to work well in one scenario but fail in another and products that simply don’t work. Armored vehicles are no different - except with armored vehicles “not a good product or a product that does not fit the scenario” can get people killed.

The purpose of this outline, and the ones that follow, is to help in the decision making process.

The starting point is the basic philosophy of armored vehicles which is pretty simple; protect the occupants from the threat, maintain some level of performance and be able to function and maintained in the environment they will be used in.

Within the boundaries of that philosophy it is fair to say that armored vehicles are a balance – you have to give up one characteristic to get another. It is virtually impossible to build an armored vehicle that has a high defeat capability (AP rounds), keep its performance characteristics intact, and have any reasonable longevity.

In the decision making process, these are some things to consider (not in any order of importance)

• Vehicle Selection
• Load Capacity
• Seams and Gaps
• Armored Level - Certified Ballistic and Explosive Resistance
• Determine the threat
• Manufacturing process
• Vehicle Performance - Dynamics, maneuverability
• In day-to-day operation and in an emergency situation
• Vehicle Dynamics
• Acceleration
• Braking
• Handling
• Maintenance
• Price
• Spare Parts
• Performance over an Extended Period of Time

These issues cannot be covered in one newsletter; but over the next few months they will all be addressed. If a reader has issues others than the ones mentioned above, email me.

Also if a reader wants to comment on, or make a statement about armored vehicles, driving them, or even tactics surrounding them, email me. As an example, an article on purchasing armored vehicles written by Tom Herlihy that appears on www.securitydriver.com first appeared in a newsgroup as an answer to an article written by Shawn Hughes. You can agree or disagree with the articles but at least Tom and Shawn are sharing their experience and knowledge with others –and that’s a good thing.

Vehicle Selection and Load Capacity
In the following discussion the threat is assumed to require B6 NIJ Three protection. Below is a ballistic chart defining the weapon, caliber of the round, ammunition and the test range that represent this level of armor.

CLASS	WEAPON	CALIBER	AMMUNITION	TEST RANGE
B6	rifle	7.62mm x 51	FJ2/PB/SC	10m
NIJ 3	7.62 or .308 Rifle	7.62mm x 51	.308 FMJ 150 gr	15m

These are the two best web sites for getting information about ballistics levels. Nevertheless, the next newsletter will cover this subject.

• http://www.closefocusresearch.com/
• http://www.xtremedefencesecurity.com/us.htm

Vehicle selection; when selecting a vehicle to armor the base car must be chosen with caution. Most armor (B6 NIJ 3) will add 1,500 to 2,500 pounds to the vehicle. There is no way around this additional weight, and therefore some vehicles simply cannot be armored to this level.

To determine if a vehicle can accept the additional weight of armoring look at the vehicles payload capability.

Payload is defined as the combined, maximum allowable weight of cargo, occupants and optional equipment that the vehicle is designed to carry, therefore payload is an indication of how much armor the vehicle can accept. Taken one step further it is an indication of what vehicles can be armored to what level.

As an example the payload of a Suburban is 2827 pounds, and the payload of a BMW X5 is 1290 pounds. If you armored a Suburban to B6 NIJ 3, the armor would weight approximately 2000 Lbs. With the Suburban you have some room; with the BMW you have exceed the payload by a bunch. It doesn’t make the BMW X5 a bad vehicle it makes it a vehicle you should not armor to the B6 level.

If the decision is to purchase a fully armored vehicle armored to level B6 or NIJ Three that will withstand a harsh environment, the type of base vehicle to purchase is limited. You are stretching the payload limit armoring most vehicles to B6 NIJ Three.

Know the payload of the vehicle you are armoring, ask the armored vehicle builder if he is going to exceed it and if he is, what he is going to do about it. The payload capacity can be exceeded by a small percentage; however, as shown in the scenario outlined above with the BMW X5, there is nothing that can be done about that. You can make some modifications to the brakes and suspension to compensate for exceeding the payload (by a little) – but it takes a lot of experience and know how to do so.

To find the vehicles payload do a search on the internet. As an example go to Google and type in the vehicles brand name in parentheses +payload. For example, a search for “Toyota Land Cruiser” + payload you will get more info than you need.

A vehicle that grossly exceeds its payload capacity will be hard to maneuver, stop, and accelerate. The exceeded payload with also decrease the life expectancy of the car and make it more susceptible to blowouts.

These are the payloads of some popular vehicle

• Denali 1460 Pounds
• Yukon ¾ ton 2737 Pounds
• H2 Hummer 2200 Pounds
• Expedition 1485 Pounds
• Excursion 1810 Pounds
• Navigator 1455 Pounds

The problem many times is appearances. One would assume that if a SUV was huge and had a large cargo area then you should be able to add armor without worrying about overloading the vehicle. But that’s not always the case. Some SUV’s are huge, have a large cargo area but a relatively low load carrying capacity--the maximum combined weight of people and cargo that the vehicle is designed to safely handle. In fact, some vehicles can be overloaded with just five adults.

Seams and Gaps
Seams and Gaps are product of the manufacturing process. They are also one of the most critical aspects of the manufacturing process.

A seam is created when two pieces or armor are placed end to end to cover a section of the vehicle. This seam is vulnerable from the kinetic energy of the bullet; a round that finds a seam will displace the armor and penetrate. The seam must be overlapped by 1"-2" to prevent penetration.

A gap is a "ballistic hole" not covered by armor due to the difficulty of placement as in a roof rail, a windshield, or even a door pillar post.

This is what a US Government RFQ mentioned about seams and gaps:

No gaps shall be permitted between opaque armor mating surfaces; opaque to transparent armor transition at front side; rear of passenger or cargo compartment; along all passenger compartment door lines. All opaque armor materials joining on the same plane shall be overlapped. Seems, joints, gaps, or holes occurring at door openings, with armor panels, between opaque and transparent armor boundaries, shall be constructed such that a projectile following a linear or angled path shall not enter the vehicle’s interior without contacting the armor material. Construction shall also minimize a projectile entering the interior due to a ricochet from the armor. Specific areas of the engine compartment (i.e. firewall-dashboard area), hood, and wheel wells must be ‘covered’ to ensure no penetration of the passenger compartment.

Secondary projectiles are caused by improper attachment of the armor with rivets and sheet metal screws. If a bullet impacts the armor with a sheet metal screw holding it in place, the bullet may stop but the screw may fly into the passenger compartment with enough force to sever an artery or displace an eye.

This is what a US Government RFQ mentioned about mounting:

Armor materials may be secured by welding, bolting or bonding. Method of shall ensure structural integrity and protection of the passenger compartment. Method of armor materials fixation shall preclude dislodgment by ballistic/explosives device or vehicle accident and withstand vibration and/or shifting under normal operating conditions.

Write clear specs on how you want the vehicle to be constructed. The only way you can assure there are seams and gap issues is to inspect the vehicle before it’s delivered.

If you have any questions email me at tonyscotti@securitydriver.com.