Ultimate Bug out vehicle?

Looking at the ongoing Rita evacuation, it appears that some very, very important characteristics of any bug-out vehicle are:

(1) doesn't overheat when idling or moving very slowly for long periods

(2) doesn't leak coolant

(3) has enough window area to make it livable while sitting stationary in the sun with the engine turned off, OR has enough fuel capacity to idle for hours with the a/c on and still give you hundreds of miles of range

(4) can go at least 400 miles on a tank of gas



A lot of the prior suggestions have focused on off-road capability, which is certainly important in some scenarios, but the ability to tolerate very long periods of stop-and-go traffic on a 100-degree day without either overheating or running out of fuel are at least as important, and possibly more likely to be needed.

Buggin' out

TexAg wrote:

LandRover= expensive parts and hard to maintain!

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We're talking *real* Land Rovers here. As you can tell from my screen name, I drive a 30+ year old vehicle. Owned it since new. I rebuilt the *entire* brake hydraulic system not too long ago for $22 total in parts, not including the $28 spent on silicone brake fluid. Did a fuel pump rebuild on the way to a wedding and wasn't late.

XD Dude - I also own a '96 Disco with winch, snorkel and SG brush guard/skid plate. A/C and coil springs are nice, but if the excrement really does hit the rotary ventilation device and I can only take *one* Rover, no question about which one that'll be. The one designed to work in a third-world environment where a completely-equipped service establishment is one with *two* rocks. Don't want to wait until some durned fool on-board computer boots up to virtual reality.... 1950's technology I can deal with....

Just bought a British army 'Sankey' trailer for possible SHTF evacuation. Plug the drain and it will float....

Cheers

Best bug out vehicle?

AIR FORCE ONE..........! Thank ya very much....

Yanus

In terms of not overheating and being able to idle for long periods of time a diesel is hard to beat. You have to set it at a fast idle to avoid wet stacking, but a diesel is a lean burn engine and will only use as much fuel as it needs to turn over for a given load as opposed to a gasser which is burning at 14.7 parts air to 1 part fuel (roughly) at all times. A diesel will go into something around 80 parts air to 1 part fuel when idling with no significant load. They also usually have much better cooling systems because they're designed to be worked hard all day every day. (at least the truck systems are)

Regards,
Dave

Pft. You guys are thinking two dimensionally - here is a real bug-out vehicle:

If it doesn't say "Unimog" on it, then it isn't the ultimate bug out vehicle.

Another thread convinced me of the perfect bug out vehicle.

Something that won't cost a lot and only be useful if the crap hits the fan. Something that will get you, your family, pets if applicable, and supplies out of the danger zone. Something that takes into consideration the possible long-term homeless situation you may face, and also even if only short term you may not find hotel rooms widely available.

A camper set up to tow your car is one possibility. A van, minivan, SUV or pickup truck (depending upon your people hauling needs) with a trailer is even better (far less money if you already have the truck, or need to buy new daily transportation anyway). They are great summer fun the rest of the time, will allow a lot of food and other supplies to be carried, and will provide shelter (long term if needed) after a disaster.

chaim:

Another thread convinced me of the perfect bug out vehicle.

Something that won't cost a lot and only be useful if the crap hits the fan. Something that will get you, your family, pets if applicable, and supplies out of the danger zone. Something that takes into consideration the possible long-term homeless situation you may face, and also even if only short term you may not find hotel rooms widely available.

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Cost? How much is your life worth?

I've a bug out vehicle I can live in full time if needed. It carries 230 gallons of diesel 160 gallons of fresh water and has a big generator. I pull a garage with wheels behind it which can hold a car or jeep and a couple of motorcycles plus tools and supplies. Yes it's expensive. It's kinda limited to improved roads, though.

What we've learned from Katrina and now Rita is that the most important thing to buggin out is to start before the herd. IOW, having something stocked, ready to go and family ready too.

All the preparatins in the world won't save you if you are stuck in traffic. The best backup plan for this is to learn to fly. Airplanes are amazingly easy to steal.

I'll take one of these, please. May as well ride in style, right?

Or if we're talking something a bit less exotic...

James

Anyone with a trailer add a supplemental tranny cooler?

It seems like the simplest first step is to buy 4 cheap 5 gal. plastic gas cans and stash them in the basement. If the need arises the first task after seccuring your family's safety is stocking up on gas before everyone else has the same idea. An extra 20 gallons of gas or diesel should get you far enough to find gas or to outlast the interstate parking lot effect.

Trans coolers

rwc:
Anyone with a trailer add a supplemental tranny cooler?

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I've been meaning to put something like this on my jeep (see attatchment). I've already got a cooler on it but it doesn't have a fan.

The coolers are part # BMM-70297 and BMM-70298 from Summit Racing

The jeep doesn't bug out though. It rides in the trailer to bug out. Which reminds me I should have a gas tank installed in the trailer, too, to refuel vehicles from.

I think it would be a 4WD diesel kingcab dually, campertop, towing a small trailer. Trailer holding two dual-sport motos, prefereably the big BMWs if I'm rich, one of the Honda or KTMs if I'm not. Only liability of a trailer is it will slow me down when I drive the truck right up the railroad tracks which is the way out of town.

Nowthen, I know of a B-model Mack, outfitted with generators, inverter, living quarters, onboard tools, welder, space for bikes/cargo etc. I would consider that Mad Max with style.

a Ford F250 diesel w/ the ext cab is hard as hell to beat...

with that added fuel tank your talking 740 miles at 13mpg... (estimating here)

now someone mentioned adding extra fuel tank in the bed itself...how hard is this to hook up to the exisiting fuel tank...as in when that one runs dry the other one tanks over...or both empty at the same time...or do you have to manually pump fuel from the aux. tank to the actual truck fuel tank when you run dry?

800miles is a damn nice ability to have without refueling...

+ i've been looking into a truck...

Chad

Look here:http://www.transferflow.com/
for add-on diesel or gas tanks

Anybody have any experience with the Rokon motorcycles?
http://www.rokon.com/products/trailbrkr.htm

They seem like a great Bug Out Bike, lightweight, sidecar options etc. decent price.

My brother put a transferflow tank in his truck (80 gallon) in a Saturday morning. He said the hardest part was the electronics and that was pretty easy. If I remember right it automatically "balances" and updates your fuel gauge so it shows the "total". I think it just hooks into the filler neck (replaces the rubber hose) and pumps in diesel (or gas) as the main tank drops. He's tickled pink with it and if I had a truck I'd have one too.

My Excursion has a 44 gallon tank and at 17mpg you can drive an awful long way. If I drive carefully I can get 20mpg, but my lifetime average is right at 17.

Have a good one,
Dave

Depends on the scenario

For me it depends on the scenario. I live close to Oak Ridge and a problem there could require leaving in a hurry with little notice. We are also on a major fault line which could require the same if it was so bad we could not stay.

If the entire country is in anarchy, I want to head for the mountains and hide. For that I have a 68 Wagoneer and a small trailer. The trailer gets a four-wheeler tossed on and plenty of gas and camping/survival gear. Dogs in the back, valuables (in the context of an emergency) in the back seat - everything we would not want to abandon as an absolute essential in or on the roof rack of the main vehicle. We have already scouted out locations that are accessible and know how to find them without GPS by finding them now with GPS. Places with the necessities. The Jeep gets parked and concealed at an outer location and the four-wheeler comes off the trailer and then pulls it with the cargo to a more interior and better isolated location.

For bugging out in situations such as the hurricane we take the "undercover" Crown Vic. It goes far on gas, looks official, is rarely questioned even by law enforcement, is equiped with radois and scanners, computer and internet, has plenty of room for a moderate length evacuation, and is last to be preyed upon when there is more than one target.

If it is just me and the wife, it is time to get out of town, and things are falling towards anarchy: I want a motorcycle packed to the gills. Just drive around (shoulder) all of that traffic and head to a different populated area. Fuel up and "stay ahead of the pack". In an immediate emergency, off-road is doable with a bike.

I'm not thinking survivalist here, I'm thinking escape...

double post

Something like this:

HSO,

I'm in Louisville by the Knoxville Airport. My kids are in Scott County.

Pigue