Automobile Crashes

For reasons of continuity or economy it is sometimes necessary to record automobile crashes without damaging the vehicles involved. Like the fake punch swung by an actor at the face of another, there need be no actual contact.

The ramp

The front wheel of an automobile driven over a ramp can press down a lever which in turn will flip over some nearby object such as a lamp-post or a pile of crates.

Demolition

A similar technique enables an automobile to ‘crash’ into a building, apparently demolishing it. The trick is to have, say, a shed or a store front specially rigged in separate sections and a number of powerful elastic springs to pull it apart. If the entire assembly is held in place by lines terminating at the ramp these can be released by special catches as the wheel runs over them. Lightweight rubbish scattered by the car improves the illusion.

Turn-over trucks

Large or heavy vehicles which have to topple over as they speed round tight bends are invariably fitted with a special ram or mortar. This takes the form of a heavy steel tube welded to the chassis with its open end a few centimetres from the ground. It contains a wooden plunger which, on cue, is fired from the tube by gunpowder or compressed nitrogen. The plunger having nowhere to go pushes the vehicle upwards on that side.

The fitting of this type of equipment and the driving of the truck is best left to expert stunters.

Vehicle repairs

It is not unknown for vehicle crash sequences to go wrong. A mistimed cue or late braking might damage a vehicle which is needed for the retake.

Providing it can be driven, an automobile with superficial damage can be ‘repaired’ cosmetically by special-effects experts. Using such materials as card, plastic and expanded polystyrene it is usually feasible to build up the damaged areas to resemble the original bodywork.

AUTOMOBILE CRASHES

1. False angles
By placing bushes at an angle and setting the camera so that they appear to be upright the vehicle plunging through them will appear to be crashing on its side.

2. A jolting ramp
A specially constructed ramp containing a lever can be made to fling heavy objects away from the moving vehicle. The sudden jolt at the front of the automobile enhances the effect of a collision.