Armor

What IS an Armored Vehicle?

A civilian armored car is a security vehicle which made by replacing the windows of a standard vehicle with bulletproof glass and inserting layers of armor plate into the body panels. Unlike a military armored car, which has armor plate mounted on the outside of the vehicle, a civilian armored car looks no different from a standard vehicle.

Design

Civilian armored cars are either (in only a few cases) factory produced, such as the Audi A6 and A8, Lincoln Town Car BPS, the Hyundai Equus, the BMW High Security series, or (in the majority of cases) retrofitted versions of series cars. A security vehicle is made by replacing the windows with bulletproof glass and inserting layers of armor plate under the outer skin of the car, a labor-intensive process that takes a few weeks and costs over $50,000 USD. The makers usually leave the external appearance of the car unchanged, in order to not look conspicuous. In most cases materials like Aramid (e.g. Twaron), HMPE (e.g. Dyneema), composites or ballistic stainless steel plates are used, and the increased mass is offset by a more powerful engine and brakes and stronger shock absorbers. Besides the armor itself, many other protective modifications are available: automatic fire extinguishers, run-flat tires, an explosion-resistant fuel tank, remote starting of the car, pressure and temperature control of the tires, a siren or alarm, and an intercom between the exterior and interior of the car, and a PA system, so that the bodyguards inside the car can communicate via a megaphone to individuals outside the car. Sometimes the inside can be sealed or over-pressured, using its own air supply, to protect against poison gas or tear gas attacks. Civilian armored cars may have obvious armor protection, or they may be totally indistinguishable from an unarmored model. There are also armored variants of smaller cars, such as the VW Golf, to further conceal their function and capabilities. Large SUVs such...