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Car windows are pretty difficult to break. The front window is made out of laminate glass so that it won't shatter on a heavy impact (or simply a stone chip) a
by bartread 6y ago
Car windows are pretty difficult to break.
The front window is made out of laminate glass so that it won't shatter on a heavy impact (or simply a stone chip) and spray the occupants in the face with glass fragments or shards. Even if you crack it, or manage to make a hole in it, it's pretty difficult to get through it, and certainly difficult to make a hole big enough for a person to fit through.
The side windows are made out of tempered glass, also known as safety glass, which when broken shatters into tiny pieces rather than large shards. However, it's really difficult to break. Blunt force often won't do it: you need quite a lot of force concentrated on a very small area. This is why glass breakers have quite sharp points and are often made of tungsten: it allows the to focus the force so that the glass will break on impact.
It's possible the officers involved simply didn't have anything suitable for breaking the glass, and very likely that the occupants didn't.
(Which reminds me: I've been meaning to put glass breakers in the door pockets of my car for ages. Must do that.)
- wesleywt 6y agoSpark plugs. People break into cars through windows pretty easily to steal stuff in my country. They use spark plugs.
- conk 6y agoSpark plug ceramic is used to break tempered windows. The ceramic is so hard that when it contacts glass all the force is concentrated on a small point causing the tempered window to fail.
- sangnoir 6y agoI doubt they would use the spark-plugs sideways (which is how you'd get the ceramic part of the spark plug to contact the glass). Unless they are throwing the plugs, it makes more sense to use the sharp, metallic ends which can apply the same force, but over a much smaller surface area.
- Corrado 6y agoI think the idea is that you break the spark-plug ceramic and use that to break the window. At least that's what I've seen done.
- pests 6y agoLook up ninja rocks. In some states having them or even a sole spark plug in your possession is considered burglary tools.
- sangnoir 6y agoI just did - wow.
- sn_master 6y agoIs this real?! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LyHPZFtk3o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LyHPZFtk3o
- bartread 6y agoI'm not doubting you for a minute in terms of whether it would work, but the occupants of a car (and especially not a Tesla!) are unlikely to be carrying sparkplugs. Ditto police officers.
- sn_master 6y agoThere are 12V adapters on Amazon that have a glass breaker built in, makes it easier to find in an accident when everything not bolted or tied gets thrown around during the impact.
- protomyth 6y agoBuy two. One for the passenger is helpful. Back seat is kind of an iffy proposition.
- ReptileMan 6y agoThe front window is trivial to be kicked out though.
- sn_master 6y agoIs it, always? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB0AlomPlAY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB0AlomPlAY Even when fighting for your life inside the car, the window can still hold strong (only the first person survived to tell his 14-hour tale). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDFJbk7BOgM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDFJbk7BOgM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSo_Kf4eT8A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSo_Kf4eT8A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9N7ex509-E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9N7ex509-E
- moistbar 6y agoSupposedly, the front seat headrests of most cars in the US can be pulled off and used as glass breakers. I haven't personally tried it, but the prongs on the bottom definitely seem like they could do the job from the inside, at least.
- curryst 6y agoI'm a little dubious about that, given the limited space to maneuver your body for a swing inside a car. Still, better than nothing.
- neurostimulant 6y agoYou can easily break side windows using headrest's metal part. The trick is to not swing it like a hammer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZTa8Nh0VlE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZTa8Nh0VlE
- sn_master 6y agoThe way she did it is not obvious. I hope this becomes mandatory in drivers education. This is how most people think its done (if they know about it at all) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ltheqCQnMQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ltheqCQnMQ Which is not easy at all, specially with a bruised shoulder from the seat belt.
- NoOneNew 6y agoCan confirm that side windows are no where near as easy to break as hollywood portrays. I went to a pick and pull junkyard with a friend a decade ago to help him find some parts for his car. Well, it was slow that day and a huge back field and we happen to have a crowbar. We wanted to shatter a window for early 20s guy mentality reasons. I swung at it one handed and the crowbar bounced right off. Both of us were confused as hell. It takes a good effort, two handed batter swing to break those windows or put in a lot of effort one handed and make sure the hook end makes contact, not the backside. That scene from 2 fast 2 furious where he uses his elbow to break a window... I have to call bullshit unless certain cars truly have really weak windows. We broke 4 different windows in cheap USA consumer vehicles, all of which put up a good fight against crowbar.
- itsthefnlacctdn 6y agoStick a screwdriver at a wedge of the window and twist, it shatters in 2 seconds, glass comes off with a swipe once shattered. Source: 'Hongry' friends.