I don't know if anyone else caught this on TV the other night but it was interesting. They tried to roll a bus and had a very hard time doing it until they installed a radio control. I wish this link showed the whole episode but it only shows the actual roll. The first attempts were what was really interesting showing just how much it took without rolling.
http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/mythbusters-bus-flip-high-speed.html (http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/mythbusters-bus-flip-high-speed.html)
did they do any thing else to help the bus flip over?
This episode actually aired some months ago. I seem to recall they had to weld like 4,000 pounds of steel plates to the roof to make the center of gravity higher. (I could be thinking of another myth, but I doubt it.)
Mythbusters: Bus Flip High Speed
I do remember this . There was alot of added weight to the top of the bus. It was tried several times with some weight but the bus just wouldn't roll. Still very cool at just how hard it was to roll the bus
Lonnie
Too bad the video doesn't show how much weight had to be added.
Cool how the bus just rolled over & didn't disintegrate like a S&S built on a truck frame would have.
They had to add a couple tons to the top AND load the bus seats (on the outside of the turn) with drums of water. Then, they had to run the bus at a pretty high speed (they were testing the scenarios from the movie "Speed") into a pretty sharp turn.
I was also impressed with how well the bus survived the roll once they finally got it to roll over. Just broke some windows...
Interesting how just as it rolls it is completely airborne. Anybody have a S&S to roll to see how it compares? ::)
Fishbowls are very hard to roll. They have a low center of gravity and are very stable. Just as an FYI, the bus was originally ordeerd by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as an airport bus and eventually ended up in the hands of a private collector in California.
OK now here is the answer to all your stick and staple crash worthiness questions boys and girls.
Warning do not drink anything you don't want shooting out your nose while your watching this.
Nick I know you've always wondered what it is like running over a penguin well here it is wonder no more. ;D
Extreme motorhome racing - Top Gear - BBC (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohkAxbeMxVo&NR=1&feature=fvwp#ws-lq-lq2-hq)