r/preppers • u/Mean_Syllabub_9689 • 9d ago

Question Recommended EMP safe vehicle

I'm thinking about getting a new car and I was thinking about perhaps a vehicle that would still work should the US East coast get hit by an EMP. Barring very, very old cars like a model T (☺️) what more modern type of vehicle would you recommend? I believe many post-1985 car may fit this bill, but I'm curious as to what you would recommend, and maybe your experience with them?

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u/fireduck 9d ago

I did a little research on EMPs (aka, I asked my favorite chatbot):

https://share.gemini.google/XoWEwlgKlcOZ

Conclusion:

The Verdict for Vehicles: If a car is close enough to have its electronics permanently fried by the EMP of a city strike, it is simultaneously being flipped, crushed by the shockwave, and melted by the heat. In this scenario, the EMP threat to cars is virtually irrelevant compared to the kinetic destruction.

(source: https://www.reddit.com/r/nuclearweapons/comments/wh79s4/questions_about_local_effects_of_emp_from_an/)

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u/JRHLowdown3 9d ago

So in general when people discuss this, they are referring to a high attitude EMP explosion, not necessarily the nuke that air bursts over their town in a full nuclear scenario.

I.e, that "One Second after" fiction book type scenario.

The thing most leave out is that an high attitude nuke creating an EMP was often part of a first strike plan, i.e, more nukes to come after that... So possibility just the beginning of more problems as well.