Your Pro Citizen Newsletter 31 - Vehicle Loadout Part 2, Weekly Discount Code

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Vehicle Loadouts (Part Two of Two)

By Jack Morris

It is easy to become complacent about this; we are incredibly busy going to work, school, and just trying to do our best for ourselves and our families. It takes time and money to keep a vehicle ready for a crisis, fortunately the basics start with maintenance and fuel which are things we have to do anyway. Last week we discussed the first two basic vehicle requirements of reliability (including preventative maintenance) and some of the items you should keep in your ride. This week I want to talk about fuel range and volume challenges during load planning.

 Have enough fuel to support your plan. You should keep a minimum of a half tank of fuel. There are no metrics or requirements-based data to support a “half tank” but it is a good practice that our Dads probably taught us. What is the homework or critical thinking to dig a bit deeper on the fuel issue and build some useful metrics? A couple of things to consider: Know how far that half tank will get you and know how many miles you will be able to drive under normal conditions (vehicle range). Research some online vehicle specific forums for your car, I guarantee there will be several accounts of how much range you may have left after the fuel warning light comes on or you get the “0 miles” to empty. The actual number for how many gallons left after showing “0” are widely available from manufacturers. I know on one of our vehicles I can get up to 50 more miles after “zero to empty” based on a couple of amateur tests I watched and the manufacturer data. I do not recommend physically testing this on your own vehicle, fuel pumps are cooled by the fuel in the tank, running that low will risk damage to the pump. It can also dredge up additional sediment that may be in your tank. With all the info at hand know your true DTE (Distance To Empty) for a full tank, reserve left at zero, and your actual mileage and write it in your vehicle log or notebook. Mark it on your maps. Know what your optimal speed is to squeeze every drop of fuel out of the tank in an emergency; it will most likely be slower than traditional highway speeds.

Range planning. Use a highway map or atlas and template the max range you calculated for each of your vehicles. Now draw a second circle with the half tank range as well. If your planned or potential travel range in a probable crisis is inside that half tank circle you are in good shape. If you think you will have to stretch to the max range line, you had better have a plan for fueling on the move. A good rule of thumb is your on-board fuel (including fuel cans) should be out and back plus 20 percent (your reserve). As self-suppliers a 50 percent reserve is a bit more comfortable, but 20 is still good ground to be on.

ROM (Refuel on the Move). The greatest challenge we have as readiness/preppers is logistics. Everything from water for a reconnaissance patrol to enough food to get through a 72 hour power outage. It all falls on you, there is no “they” that will come resupply fuel. No magical First Sergeant is going to appear from the mist and throw you a case of MREs or bring a fueler truck to you. If you have an extended trip during a widespread crisis, you must bring additional fuel. Counting on service stations having fuel or electricity to run the pumps is a gamble. Plus, they are society magnets during a crisis, best to avoid those kinds of crowds.

Carrying fuel is another challenge, it should not be carried inside the passenger compartment. Figure out a way to get it stowed safely for your particular vehicle. This discussion is only for crisis events, this is not a recommendation to roll with fuel cans strapped on the roof each time you go to the grocery store. External racks, mounts, inside truck bed mounts (one of the better solutions) should be considered. Security is a concern as well, having your war wagon kitted out with visible fuel cans may bring a lot of attention you don’t want. This is especially a risk if the fuel supply has been disrupted by a regional event.

Passenger and Cargo Capacity. Consider this in practical terms and ensure you have enough room in your ride. This really comes in to play when we are considering evacuation scenarios. I’m with you, I am in the not gonna’ leave home group - but train derailments, epic disasters and the like may force use to do otherwise. As we always say when it comes to mission planning “the enemy always gets a vote.” If you have a family, you know the enemy of cargo space are those beautiful human beings living under your roof. Remember the last time you packed the family truckster for an extended road trip vacation? Visualize doing that under extreme time pressure with a family who wants to take “enough” to get them through not coming back home for a while. The best way to get through this is have a plan and rehearse it. Packing lists, load plans, individual responsibilities. It isn’t fun, but not doing so will result in an overloaded passenger space with sixteen pairs of shoes, a PS5, and a bag of hot Cheetos. If you have a pet (or two) account for them and their food taking up passenger room as well.

Other Requirements. The last category is where things open up for your mission requirements. On board power, radio systems (UHF, VHF, GMRS specific), weapons storage, IR lighting. The list is endless. The trick is balancing all of these after you have the first four vehicle requirements accounted for. We can’t consider leaving the dog behind to add 6,000 rounds of linked 7.62 as part of our bump plan. I recommend keeping this in context and playing the odds'; optimize for probable scenarios vs the remotely possible ones.
 
With all these requirements it is easy to get ahead of ourselves. Buying ditch lights and multiple radio mounts for a vehicle that hasn’t had an oil change since 2017 is not where we want to be. The basics are boring. They always have been and always will be. Have a system for managing the preventative maintenance and reinforce the habit with your other drivers in your family or team, those “boring” actions will keep your vehicle ready when you need it most. A well maintained, topped off vehicle will be more useful than some ragged out 4×4 with IR floods and custom rifle storage. I have to remind myself of this every time I go buy truck parts because it is a heck of a lot more fun installing a new radio system than laying under the truck to change the oil. Fortunately, there is room for both, I just have to remind myself “first things first”. As always please let us know your thoughts about the subject on our socials!

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