How much thought have you put into your bug out vehicle? I ask because, in my experience, most preppers don’t give it near as much thought as they should. They think that as long as they have a four-wheel drive vehicle and plenty of gas, they’ll be about to escape to their bug out location.
The truth is, that might not be enough. You want to make sure your vehicle has great tires, that it doesn’t draw too much attention, that it has enough room for your family and supplies, etc. That’s just three tips. Reality Survival & Prepping came up with 18 bug out vehicle tips you should learn.
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Here they are:
1. Your daily driver can be your bug out vehicle.
2. Bug out vehicles could be a variety of different types of vehicles.
3. Look for a vehicle that is 7 to 15 years old.
4. Pick a subdued color if possible.
5. Keep the vehicle free from stickers or decals.
6. Have a minimum of 8 inches of ground clearance.
7. At a minimum have all-terrain tires – Mud terrain is best.
8. Add a toolbox or camper shell.
9. Choose a 4 wheel drive vehicle.
10. Choose an engine that uses gasoline.
11. Choose a vehicle with an automatic transmission.
12. Choose a vehicle with front and rear passenger seats.
13. Choose a vehicle with at least 300 Hp/Ft Lbs of torque.
14. Be sure to carry a variety of extrication equipment and tools.
15. Ensure the vehicle has a receiver hitch for towing.
16. Have a small trailer to bring with you so you can haul more gear and supplies.
17. Travel in a 2 vehicle convoy in case one vehicle breaks down & to better negotiate checkpoints.
18. Consider layering vehicles. A truck carries an ATV, or a mini bike, or bicycles, etc.
Watch the video below to hear his commentary on these tips.
There is one other tip he didn’t mention. In case of an EMP, you should look for a vehicle without an electronic ignition. You’ll have to do your research, but most vehicles before 1990 should work.
Fun ideas. Vehicles manufactured AFTER 1990 are more likely to work after an EMP event (CMEs do not affect electronics at all) because the US government pressured manufacturers to begin hardening critical ignition components and ICUs in 1989. The EMP Commission tested a good number of randomly chosen light vehicles. The conclusion of the Commission was that only 6% of the light vehicle fleet would be disabled. Take a look at your ICUs….they’re all in a metal box. There’s a reason for that. While there are unshielded wire bundles, they are short, and will not harvest a great deal of RF energy from the pulse……and, they’re usually protected by a lot of body metal. Vehicles that stall might be re-started by disconnecting the battery cables for a few minutes and re-connecting and attempting a re-start. The vehicles that did fail, and were re-booted, failed to operate after several insults on the simulator. Hint: Ford has its own EMP simulator.
I ran my 1999 Ford 7.3L diesel on 14 year old diesel for a year without a single problem. Try that with gas. My pickup has a 600 mile range with the OEM tank. Throw a drum in the bed, and that soars to 1500 miles. It’s easy to stockpile diesel safely. Gasoline, in quantity, scares the snot out of me. OH…I have 437,000 miles on my 7.3L and it still runs like the day I bought it 19 years ago. Replaced the OEM trans at 434,000. A 2,000 mile trip burns a half cup of oil. I’ll think about selling at a million miles.
Why is gasoline preferred over diesel? Is it because there are potentially more fuel sources at gas stations and elsewhere? It would seem that diesel fuel would be preferred because the fuel is more stable and that diesel engines would be better because they can burn fuel oil if need be and with some minor tweaking.
You make a good point about diesel, but I think he recommends gasoline because it would be easier to find.
Remember that not all marauders are not people in the south we have large feral hogs coyotes and packs of wild dogs and they all will come to the scent of food and garbage including soiled diapers. Thank you