Just yesterday BMW took us by surprise by unveiling yet another armored car to their portfolio. The new BMW X5 Protection VR6 is obviously aimed at high-ranking dignitaries in hot spots around the world, people who need the added layers of protection this new X5 is offering. The new car is fitted with some really interesting tech, which you can check out in the video below.
The pictures just don’t do this car justice. It may look like a regular BMW X5 on the outside, to the untrained eye, but once you take a closer look you discover, there’s more to it. For example, the side profile lacks some of the X5’s curves and that’s due to the added materials used to make the cockpit safe from various assaults. The VR6 comes with molded armor-plating components and security glazing which are supposed to offer protection against firearms and explosives.
Molded components made from high-strength steel adapt to the doors, side frame, roof and front wall. Furthermore, there’s also an aluminum under-body splinter shield, an armored luggage compartment partition and security glazing included in the mix. The glass has a thickness of approx. 33 mm for the windscreen, doors and luggage compartment partition wall and can withstand attacks by impact weapons. It is fitted with an internal poly-carbonate layer as additional splinter protection.
Penetration by bullets or fragments is prevented by tightly sealed protection and overlapping amour-plating, e.g. within the sensitive areas of door gaps and bodywork joints as well as the transitions between body panels and glazing. While withstanding an AK-47 might seem normal today, the new X5 security vehicle can also take explosions caused by 15 kg of TNT from a distance of four meters. Should I also mention the car’s underbody is designed to withstand hand grenades? This is definitely a car that means business, as you’re going to see in the video below.
