New for the Uneasy Driver: a Personal Security Vehicle

They have built armored limousines for every president since Harry S. Truman.

Queen Elizabeth II has one, as do 30 heads of state, 37 foreign ministers, 87 ambassadors, 300 diplomats and 63 top corporate executives throughout the world.

And now, the world’s largest security vehicle manufacturer wants everyone to be king of the road, so they are building them for common folk.

Perhaps not too common, though. It will cost up to $15,000, in addition to the price of the car, to turn one’s Buick into a veritable civilian tank.

Can Cost $1 Million

Not bad, considering the bullet-proof protection afforded kings and queens can run as much as $1 million.

But Hess & Eisenhardt Armoring Co. of Cincinnati, which makes 90% of the armored cars on the road today, maintains that some people will pay any price or meet any burden for security, particularly if the are, for instance, a jewelry salesman or an international banker fearful of terrorist attacks.

Hence, the recent creation of the Personal Security Vehicle.

It’s not armored, and will not offer the kind of protection presidents take for granted, but it will stave off even the most mischievous neighborhood horror.

‘Virtually Intrusion-Proof’

“It’s virtually intrusion-proof,” boasted Thomas Burke, vice president of domestic sales for Hess & Eisenhardt, who, at a recent Los Angeles exhibition, unveiled one of the 250 PSV’s they plan to construct this year.

“I’ve hit the windows 85 times with a 20-ounce ball peen hammer, followed by another 16 times with a sledge hammer and then numerable times with a baseball bat. Then I was tired.

“Eventually, the outside layer breaks or is dented. But it is literally intrusion proof,” Burke repeated.

The OmniGard windows, or “transparent armor” as Hess & Eisenhardt likes to call them, can also withstand shots from small-caliber handguns or shotguns at point-blank range, Burke said.

Further, those windows will easily weather winter in Alaska or summer in the Mojave Desert with built-in resistance to temperatures ranging from 25 below zero to 135 above.

Remote-Control Alarm

The PSV also features a remote-control alarm system that can be tripped by merely tapping the glass.

Once engaged, the alarm mechanism disables the starter and automatically locks all the doors. If the would-be thief tries to enter, the alarm goes off, flashing emergency lights come on and the car horn begins to blow.

Then there are door handles that require both hands to open--one for the handle and the other to press a small, concealed button.

That way, Burke explained, someone unfamiliar with the system or someone holding a gun in one hand would not be able to open the door.

An intercom device enables a person to ask directions without having to roll down the window.

Flat tire or dead battery? No problem, Burke said. The PSV can hobble along up to 10 miles on four flat tires, and the car comes with two batteries. If the battery dies, one need only push a button under the dash and it summons the backup battery.

‘Cannot Have Dead Battery’

“You see, let’s say your wife gets a flat tire outside of a factory in East Los Angeles. Well, she can just drive away from there,” Burke said. “Same thing with having a second battery. You literally cannot have a dead battery.”