India’s first Bulletproof Toyota Fortuner Legender is here [Video]

We all have read much about the highly confidential and prominent leaders, politicians and businessmen travelling in bullet-proof vehicles from one place to another within a city. Such bullet-proof cars are based on regular vehicles but come with a host of customizations, which make them much safer against unpredictable gunshots and blasts and keep the occupants safe. While these bullet-proof vehicles are usually based on high-end luxury vehicles like Range Rover and Mercedes-Benz S-Class, here is a Toyota Fortuner Legender which has received the same treatment.

A video from the YouTube channel of ‘Turbo Extreme’ gives a walk-around of this bullet-proof Toyota Fortuner Legender, which looks almost the same as the regular version of the SUV from the outside. However, a closer inspection of the vehicle reveals the changes which make this SUV a fully bullet-proof vehicle, which is even capable of escaping small blasts.

Bulletproof Toyota Legender

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This bullet-proof Toyota Fortuner features heavier door panels that require more force to open and close. The door panels come with high-grade fibre sheets within their construction, which are capable of withstanding gun or rifle shots fired on their door panels.

The window panels of the SUV, including those of the front row, second row and rear quarter glass panels, are replaced with much thicker glass panels of a higher grade. These glass panels are of fixed type, which is supported by blacked-out fibre and rubber surrounds, which get fixed to the foam and rubber bases affixed to the upper edges of the frame when closed. This same kind of thickened glass is also used for the front windshield.

At the rear, this bullet-proof Toyota Fortuner has received a heavy modification. On opening the electric tailgate of this Fortuner Legender, one can see that the cabin of the SUV is completely covered from the back. There is a thick metal sheet covering the rear seats from the back and comes integrated with a thickened glass panel for rearward visibility. It also has an openable sheet, which can be locked and opened to access the cabin from the back.

No mechanical changes

It is not clear whether this modified Toyota Fortuner Legender gets changes to its powertrain and suspension or not. However, in the video, the presenter has said that the changes included in this modified Fortuner Legender have increased the weight of the SUV by around 1,500 kg. With this massive increase in its kerb weight, the Fortuner Legender feels very different and heavier to drive and steer.

The Toyota Fortuner Legender is available as a diesel-only SUV, which gets a 2.8-litre four-cylinder 204 PS diesel engine paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. Such modifications to make an SUV a bullet-proof vehicle need changes to the structure and mechanicals and drastically affect the performance and fuel efficiency.

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