Can Tesla Cybertruck Actually Stop Bullets? Technical Analysis by a Firearms Instructor [** NO POLITICAL DISCUSSIONS **]

[Crissa]

I have mentioned it before (probably in another thread that got locked) but my father was shot and killed in our station wagon when I was a child. And I grew up in logging country; getting a rock or log through a window is not that unusual out in the forest.

The idea of a steel vehicle actually designed to protect passengers from these things really sounds great.

Sure, there may be jerks who have to show off or be threatened by progress, but... We don't get progress if we don't try. And I am intent on trying.

-Crissa

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[LoPro]

I have mentioned it before (probably in another thread that got locked) but my father was shot and killed in our station wagon when I was a child. And I grew up in logging country; getting a rock or log through a window is not that unusual out in the forest.

The idea of a steel vehicle actually designed to protect passengers from these things really sounds great.

Sure, there may be jerks who have to show off or be threatened by progress, but... We don't get progress if we don't try. And I am intent on trying.

-Crissa

I’m sorry you have a closer relationship with that specific metric.

When it comes to driving around in such an alien beast, it was pretty annoying how people stood watching in the windows of my Model 3 when I first got it too. Some people even followed me into parking lots for a closer look. Got tired of talking about and defending it too. Now it‘s been the most and second most sold car for over a year and you see it everywhere. I’m hoping people get used to the CT quickly too, because I’m buying it just for me and my family. Sentry mode should have a terminator voice for people looking in.

EDIT: for example on this little hill/my road there are 6 black Model 3s and 3 white Model Xs of about 40-45-ish houses. In a black model 3 you have to wave up the entire road because all people think you are one they know of the 6 owners. We really should start to flag the star spangled instead around here. My nearest neighbour is an Audi man through and through though, and we don’t want to see German flags again around here so best not to give some ideas. ?

 

[firsttruck]

There are orders of magnitude more deaths and injuries from rollover accidents of truck and SUVs.
Rollover are not just a highway and rural area thing. The are many in town and city especially at intersection collisions.
The Cybertruck, Tesla cars and most electric cars with batteries under the floor are very rollover resistant.


Accident 2019-09-05_12-54-30-front
Sep 5, 2019
Terrence Kunstek


SUV CRASH | TESLACAM STORIES #6
Jul 27, 2020
Wham Baam Teslacam

 

[firsttruck]

And I grew up in logging country; getting a rock or log through a window is not that unusual out in the forest.

The idea of a steel vehicle actually designed to protect passengers from these things really sounds great.

Sure, there may be jerks who have to show off or be threatened by progress, but... We don't get progress if we don't try. And I am intent on trying.

-Crissa

And that is not counting hitting a deer, cow or moose.

 

[LoPro]

And that is not counting hitting a deer, cow or moose.

Thats a good point. Not getting a moose/elk crushing the hood or in the front window is a big plus. A very common road warning sign here.

And instant death by shifting it 5-10 meters into the air before it hitting the asphalt behind is maybe more humane ... ??

 

[firsttruck]

Thats a good point. Not getting a moose/elk crushing the hood or in the front window is a big plus. A very common road warning sign here.

And instant death by shifting it 5-10 meters into the air before it hitting the asphalt behind is maybe more humane ... ??

Sorry, what I wrote was not specific enough. Not just the hood.

Drivers and front passengers have been kicked to death by deer after hitting a deer and the whole deer coming through the windshield or even just the deer's legs.

----------

'This buck came flying': deer crashes through SUV windshield, sunroof
“All I felt was the deer's hooves kick me in the chest and then the leg and then it was gone,” passenger Kevin Gillespie said. “It was just a blur.”.
by Hannah Cumler
October 22nd 2020
https://upnorthlive.com/newsletter-...g-deer-crashes-through-suv-windshield-sunroof

-----------

Man killed when deer goes through dump truck windshield
man, who was the middle passenger in the truck, was killed Tuesday morning when a deer that had been hit by a car going in the opposite direction, went flying through the truck's windshield.
By ERIKA BUTLER and [email protected]
Nov 08, 2012
https://www.baltimoresun.com/ph-ag-deer-fatal-1109-20121108-story.html

-----------------

Deer slams through windshield hitting South Carolina woman in the passenger seat
they were passing a semi going the other way when the semi kicked up a deer, throwing it right into the Brown's windshield as they passed.
"Once I was passing the semi-truck, the deer was coming at us," Chip said.
Their car is now totaled. Jeanie was left bloodied with wounds all over her body.
The deer landed right on her.
SPRINGFIELD, South Carolina
Author: Hunter Sáenz (WCNC)
Published: November 11, 2019
https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/r...nger/275-60a14eac-8c3b-4765-b0de-c0c270132415

----------

Deer struck by car thrown through another car's windshield, killing passenger
ELDERSBURG, Md.
WBAL Updated: Sep 24, 2020
A passenger of a car was struck and killed by a deer that was propelled through the windshield after it was struck by another car in Carroll County early Thursday morning, Maryland State Police said.
https://www.wbaltv.com/article/jaso...ck-by-car-thrown-through-windshield/34144897#

----------

Police say a deer struck by the first vehicle went airborne and through the windshield of the 2nd vehicle (an SUV), killing the 2nd driver.
CONNOQUENESSING, Pa.
Author: Associated Press
Published: July 29, 2019
https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/l...hield/95-d33c3caf-82d3-4c0e-b87c-17d9910d0447

----------

Eastern Iowa Man Killed When Deer Goes Through Windshield
The westbound car struck a deer that had come out of the north ditch and onto the roadway. After making contact with the westbound Camry, the deer went into the air and hit the windshield of an eastbound Nissan, entering the vehicle.
By Bob James
Published: February 20, 2020
https://khak.com/eastern-iowa-man-killed-when-deer-goes-through-windshield/

-----------

Deer Jumps in The Passenger Seat of Speeding Car, Smashing The Windshield
25 October 2018
By Elena Gorgan
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...eding-car-smashing-the-windshield-129643.html

-----------

 

[Jhodgesatmb]

I personally feel that people are worrying about a problem that does not exist. Will there be some a-hole doing that? Guaranteed. Drunk, drug or just plain antisocial in nature; there may be 1, 2, or maybe a handful. Despite what so many falsely believe, the US isn’t the Wild, Wild, West.

It’s the Tesla haters I would worry about, and I’ll tell you that I’d feel better behind 3mm stainless than an MS, MY, M3, or MX. not getting a Tesla simply isn’t in the cards for me. Maybe I can decorate my CT so that Tesla haters think I am one of them (in some ways).

 

[LoPro]

Sorry, what I wrote was not specific enough. Not just the hood.

Drivers and front passengers have been kicked to death by deer after hitting a deer and the whole deer coming through the windshield or even just the deer's legs.

----------

'This buck came flying': deer crashes through SUV windshield, sunroof
“All I felt was the deer's hooves kick me in the chest and then the leg and then it was gone,” passenger Kevin Gillespie said. “It was just a blur.”.
by Hannah Cumler
October 22nd 2020
https://upnorthlive.com/newsletter-...g-deer-crashes-through-suv-windshield-sunroof

-----------

Man killed when deer goes through dump truck windshield
man, who was the middle passenger in the truck, was killed Tuesday morning when a deer that had been hit by a car going in the opposite direction, went flying through the truck's windshield.
By ERIKA BUTLER and [email protected]
Nov 08, 2012
https://www.baltimoresun.com/ph-ag-deer-fatal-1109-20121108-story.html

-----------------

Deer slams through windshield hitting South Carolina woman in the passenger seat
they were passing a semi going the other way when the semi kicked up a deer, throwing it right into the Brown's windshield as they passed.
"Once I was passing the semi-truck, the deer was coming at us," Chip said.
Their car is now totaled. Jeanie was left bloodied with wounds all over her body.
The deer landed right on her.
SPRINGFIELD, South Carolina
Author: Hunter Sáenz (WCNC)
Published: November 11, 2019
https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/r...nger/275-60a14eac-8c3b-4765-b0de-c0c270132415

----------

Deer struck by car thrown through another car's windshield, killing passenger
ELDERSBURG, Md.
WBAL Updated: Sep 24, 2020
A passenger of a car was struck and killed by a deer that was propelled through the windshield after it was struck by another car in Carroll County early Thursday morning, Maryland State Police said.
https://www.wbaltv.com/article/jaso...ck-by-car-thrown-through-windshield/34144897#

----------

Police say a deer struck by the first vehicle went airborne and through the windshield of the 2nd vehicle (an SUV), killing the 2nd driver.
CONNOQUENESSING, Pa.
Author: Associated Press
Published: July 29, 2019
https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/l...hield/95-d33c3caf-82d3-4c0e-b87c-17d9910d0447

----------

Eastern Iowa Man Killed When Deer Goes Through Windshield
The westbound car struck a deer that had come out of the north ditch and onto the roadway. After making contact with the westbound Camry, the deer went into the air and hit the windshield of an eastbound Nissan, entering the vehicle.
By Bob James
Published: February 20, 2020
https://khak.com/eastern-iowa-man-killed-when-deer-goes-through-windshield/

-----------

Deer Jumps in The Passenger Seat of Speeding Car, Smashing The Windshield
25 October 2018
By Elena Gorgan
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/...eding-car-smashing-the-windshield-129643.html

-----------

I said “hood or in front window” where for the latter I should have used windshield. Totally agree with the road wildlife dangers.

 

[LoPro]

It’s the Tesla haters I would worry about, and I’ll tell you that I’d feel better behind 3mm stainless than an MS, MY, M3, or MX. not getting a Tesla simply isn’t in the cards for me. Maybe I can decorate my CT so that Tesla haters think I am one of them (in some ways).

I wish urban camouflage wrap actually worked ?

 

[Cymerax]

You chose to delete a post I made that you deemed too political. While I agree that politics should normally be left out of most online posts, usually because they're completely off-topic, how do you address a very real problem when the cause is political???

IT IS A FACT that there are those on the far right who are behind most of the anti-Tesla crowd, which is an extension of the anti-environmentalism and anti-science bullshit being pushed by certain conservative groups, most of whom have some connection or funding from the fossil-fuel industry. This is FACT and has been proven through investigations using the Freedom Of Information Act.

These anti-Tesla groups contain members of subgroups that include white nationalists, right-wing militias (aka DOMESTIC TERRORISTS) science deniers who are militantly against global climate change. If you were to look at a Venn diagram of these groups, you'll see a definite link to Tesla-haters.

The worst of these are those pickup driving assholes who go around ICE-blocking superchargers, vandalizing, coal-rolling and often intimidating Tesla drivers (sometimes leading to life-threatening accidents), and we've ALL SEEN THE VIDEOS THAT PROVE IT!!! And if you think the cause of this isn't largely political, then you're not the sharpest tool in the shed.

THE UGLY FACT IS THAT THIS KIND OF POLITICS IS THE ROOT CAUSE AND AS SUCH POSES A VERY REAL THREAT TO TESLA OWNERS, and your choosing to ignore it or censor any such conversation simply avoids addressing the problem and leaves the uninitiated exposed to a real, albeit uncommon threat. But forewarned is forearmed, so some discussion of the topic should be allowed in some forum with the only censorship being that to maintain the "temperature" of the discussion to an acceptable level.

Simply to act as if it doesn't exist out of a misguided desire to remain apolitical is a mistake, because if you own a Tesla, IT IS QUITE PROBABLE THAT IT WILL AFFECT YOU TO SOME DEGREE OR ANOTHER, until our political climate changes. And you can rest ABSOLUTELY ASSURED that when the Cybertruck rolls out, it will be the most polarizing vehicle on the road and as such will likely receive far more unwanted attention from these hateful idiots, some of whom are armed and dangerous.

Well that's my rant, and I will simply add that being someone who values freedom of speech and abhors censorship, I'll be leaving this site.

 

[Sirfun]

You chose to delete a post I made that you deemed too political. While I agree that politics should normally be left out of most online posts, usually because they're completely off-topic, how do you address a very real problem when the cause is political???

IT IS A FACT that there are those on the far right who are behind most of the anti-Tesla crowd, which is an extension of the anti-environmentalism and anti-science bullshit being pushed by certain conservative groups, most of whom have some connection or funding from the fossil-fuel industry. This is FACT and has been proven through investigations using the Freedom Of Information Act.

These anti-Tesla groups contain members of subgroups that include white nationalists, right-wing militias (aka DOMESTIC TERRORISTS) science deniers who are militantly against global climate change. If you were to look at a Venn diagram of these groups, you'll see a definite link to Tesla-haters.

The worst of these are those pickup driving assholes who go around ICE-blocking superchargers, vandalizing, coal-rolling and often intimidating Tesla drivers (sometimes leading to life-threatening accidents), and we've ALL SEEN THE VIDEOS THAT PROVE IT!!! And if you think the cause of this isn't largely political, then you're not the sharpest tool in the shed.

THE UGLY FACT IS THAT THIS KIND OF POLITICS IS THE ROOT CAUSE AND AS SUCH POSES A VERY REAL THREAT TO TESLA OWNERS, and your choosing to ignore it or censor any such conversation simply avoids addressing the problem and leaves the uninitiated exposed to a real, albeit uncommon threat. But forewarned is forearmed, so some discussion of the topic should be allowed in some forum with the only censorship being that to maintain the "temperature" of the discussion to an acceptable level.

Simply to act as if it doesn't exist out of a misguided desire to remain apolitical is a mistake, because if you own a Tesla, IT IS QUITE PROBABLE THAT IT WILL AFFECT YOU TO SOME DEGREE OR ANOTHER, until our political climate changes. And you can rest ABSOLUTELY ASSURED that when the Cybertruck rolls out, it will be the most polarizing vehicle on the road and as such will likely receive far more unwanted attention from these hateful idiots, some of whom are armed and dangerous.

Well that's my rant, and I will simply add that being someone who values freedom of speech and abhors censorship, I'll be leaving this site.

I'm positive that almost everyone on this forum knows/has friends, relatives and neighbors who are against EV's. They are by and large very normal people who just resist CHANGE.
It's human nature to resist change. It doesn't help if WE go around preaching about how bad their way of doing things their whole life is.
It doesn't help that EV's get what they feel is preferential treatment. Better parking spaces, rebates and incentives that their cars of choice don't get. Or executive orders from politicians banning their way of life.
Just realize they may need some time, and a ride in your Tesla, to get some understanding that EV's aren't the enemy.
Most of these people are our friends, relatives and neighbors. Comprise is a good thing.

 

[Crissa]

Feelings aren't always logical, and we might not win them all over to the EV side.

But we should try. Even then, though, forum moderation isn't an exact science. You win some, you lose some poss, you try not to make people too upset because, in the end, they're usually people with real feelings and we need to remember that.

Politics are in everything, but it's up to us to keep things friendly no matter what others do. Sometimes that's not easy, or even feel right. But it's part of being in a society.

-Crissa

 

[OneLapper]

Getting shot at is certainly rare, but it happened to me.

I posted this here elsewhere, but it's relevant to this thread as well.

In the mid 2000's in CT on Rt 84, several people were shot by a young man who was just literally shooting at cars on the highway. I don't think anyone was killed but IIRC someone was shot in the face.

I was driving home and thought the truck or car in front of me kicked up a rock. It wasn't till later did I see the bullet hole in the driver side rear door. The bullet missed my body by 18".

I don't know what rifle he was using, or any of the ballistics, but I can say that most cars would be breached by a screwdriver to the door panel.

 

[AlexD]

Can The Tesla Cybertruck Repel Stray Bullets?

Via https://cleantechnica.com/2021/02/18/can-the-tesla-cybertruck-repel-stray-bullets/

February 18, 2021

Inside EVs recently interviewed Sandy Munro, a well known automotive industry expert. He said one of the reasons he’ll be buying a Cybertruck is so that stray rounds from other hunters wouldn’t “put a hole in” it.

“I used to go hunting a lot (before the pandemic), and all hunters are worried about stray bullets,” Mr. Munro said to Inside EVs. “I heard through the grapevine that the stainless steel that they got will deflect the bullet. If something like that happened, I wouldn’t want to find a hole in my car.”

But would it really protect itself from a highly unlikely stray rifle shot? As a firearms instructor, I know a few things about guns. Let’s find out.



As we can see in the video (many of us already saw this in 2019), the truck can stop a 9mm pistol round, as long as it hits the metal and not the windows. Tesla obviously doesn’t think people will buy a Cybertruck to protect themselves from getting shot, but they did think that taking rounds would show how tough the truck’s body is. They also hit it with a hammer.

But, as a friend on Twitter pointed out, a handgun is a lot weaker than a rifle.



For both CleanTechnica and The Truth About Guns, I decided to have some fun and run some numbers on this.

First off, muzzle velocity isn’t relevant here. Nobody is going to shoot the Cybertruck from an inch away. The further the bullet flies through the air, the more speed and energy it loses to drag, eventually losing all of its energy. The 9mm handgun Tesla used to hit the Cybertruck metal was at a distance of 10 meters (around 33 feet).

Feeding this into an online ballistics calculator (assuming a pretty average 9mm full metal jacket training round), at 10 yards the energy is about 379 ft-lb, and we know that the Cybertruck’s skin can withstand that.

If a hunter shoots your truck from only 30–33 feet away, that’s not a “stray round.” That’s either done intentionally or through pretty severe negligence. One of the gun rules owners should memorize is “never point a gun at anything you don’t want to destroy.” Hunting rifles are pretty accurate, and they often use magnified optics (a “scope”) to aim precisely at targets up to hundreds of yards/meters away.

Stray rounds happen when the target is missed, and usually end up in a tree or in the ground behind the animal that’s being hunted. There’s usually some terrain in the woods that would keep a round from going directly from the gun to your truck that’s parked at the road. To hit your truck, the bullet would fly high, and go over the earth, rocks, and trees, often going well over 1,000 yards before striking something.

So, the real question here is, when does a .308 Winchester (aka 7.62mm NATO) run out of steam and have less energy than a 9mm? To test this, I assumed a 168 grain Hornady A-MAX bullet (common in hunting) was fired from a typical powder load and average barrel.

According to the calculations, this bullet would drop to below 9mm energy at just before 1300 yards, and would have dropped 896 inches (almost 75 feet or 23 meters) from the point of aim (assuming a 100-yard zero) by this point.

If someone shot high, the bullet flew through the air, and it fell into your truck after more than 1300 yards, this stray round likely wouldn’t punch a hole in the Cybertruck.

Thus, Sandy Munro is correct. The Cybertruck indeed would be a good truck to not get messed up if something like this happened out hunting.

This Isn’t Terribly Likely, Though
The chances of this actually happening are very low, though.

Let’s look at El Paso, Texas, for example. During the worst years of the cartel wars just over the river in Ciudad Juarez, it was statistically the most dangerous city on the planet to live in, even beating Baghdad, and this was during the height of the Iraq War. El Paso, on the other hand, was still one of the safest cities in America.

With all of the shooting going on in Juarez, you’d think a lot of people would be hit by stray bullets in El Paso, but that only happened once.

I’m not saying that stray bullets from a hunter’s gun never hurt anyone (you can find lots of stories of this happening on Google), but when you consider just how many people hunt every year and how rarely this happens, you’d have to be one of the most unlucky hunters on the planet for someone to hit you or your Cybertruck. You’re more likely to die in a car wreck on the way to or from the woods.

One of the reasons this is so rare is another gun safety rule people learn in Hunter’s Ed: “Know your target and what’s beyond it.” Almost everyone hunting knows that you can’t take a shot if you don’t know where the bullet will go if you miss or it passes through.

Where The Cybertruck’s Protection Will More Likely Be Tested
Your car is more likely to be shot by a criminal or a police officer with a pistol than a hunter with a rifle, and you’ll find many more criminals and cops in the city. That’s also where most Cybertrucks will roam.

Teslas have already been shot, and every story I can find of this happening was in the city. For example, some lunatic shot at a Model S in Nashville last month. Nobody knows who they were or why they did it, but it was caught on the car’s camera.

Before readers jump into the comments telling us that this is why they don’t live in the States, keep in mind that incidents like this are still extremely rare, even here. You’re more likely to be struck by lightning or die from choking, no matter what country you live in. However, stray bullets in the city are far more likely to hit a Cybertruck than those from a hunter. It’s just numbers.

Nobody buying a Cybertruck is going to buy one because they think it’s going to save them from a bullet. They’re going to buy it because they think it will be tough and durable, and that’s where the conversation actually gets serious.

Thank you for an excellent well researched article.
I'm no hunter or much of a gun slinger so I ask this question more out of ignorance and real curiosity. Surely, even if a high velocity bullet pernitrates a Cybertruck's skin it will have lost a considerable amount of its energy and suppose it still hits me, it will cause me less grief than if the same bullet were to hit me sitting in an F150?

 

[Cyber_Dav]

Thank you for an excellent well researched article.
I'm no hunter or much of a gun slinger so I ask this question more out of ignorance and real curiosity. Surely, even if a high velocity bullet pernitrates a Cybertruck's skin it will have lost a considerable amount of its energy and suppose it still hits me, it will cause me less grief than if the same bullet were to hit me sitting in an F150?

I don't want to come across as snide, but "less than in an F150" might be a matter of "less dead".

High velocity rifle bullets can penetrate an engine block. Just hope any assailants stick to 9mm FMJ.