I just heard Michael Savage talking about EMP "Bombs" and the new terror threats against the US and other countries. Does anyone know if the HEI module can withstand an Electromagnetic Pulse? Is there anything that can be done to shield a spare module if the one in the car gets fried from an EMP?

 

Yes, well I think if it comes to that, the vette will be the last thing to worry about.

 

Simply opinion ... HEI won't survive ... but a good ol' points setup will.

But points won't do you any good; virtually all vehicles around you will be stalled ... you'll be stuck anyway ... and everyone around you will be crazy ... ranging from dumbfounded to violent.

If you're really serious, best bet would be to keep in your car: a good pair of sneakers, cash, bag of trail mix, can of water/beer, a good pistol and plenty of guts & self-determination.

In the unlikely event of repeated EMP attacks, I would expect a spike in demand for old points distributors & coils & parts, carbs and intakes.

BTW, several years ago ... US police departments & defense contractors tested a rocket-powered wheeled skateboard affair ... is launched toward underside of offender's vehicle ... emits EMP ... kills most offender's engine. I haven't heard of it in routine use ... hope I never do.

 

If you listen to the savage nation, you probably have heard of Art Bell. Give him a call on air!

You should wrap both your HEI and your head with heavy aluminum foil. That way your car will keep running and you won't suffer from memory loss during an EMP attack.

 

You will likely need to reset the clock too

 

Apparently the clock doesn't run on HEI... it's powered by points!

 

If your car shuts off as a result of getting hit by an EMP chances are you could probably just start it again and continue to drive without problems.

 

The HEI will continue to run if there is an EMP explosion near by. The HEI chip is already protected from EMP because when the rotor spins and touches the base that conducts the 40,000+ volts of electricity an EMP is created, this EMP originates 2 inches or less from the electronics that control the HEI. The shielding around the C3’s HEI was for EMP, but not to protect the HEI, it was to protect the other electronics from the EMP of the HEI.

 

I have heard of a directed EM pulse gun that's being developed for police use - a car tries to speed away, they fry the computer. Since I'm going with EFI, maybe I should build a Faraday cage for the computer...

 

I don't know how far this thread will go, but the lethality to electric circuits caused by an EMP pulse, is associated with an H field. The high voltage used to operate the spark plugs will be generating E fields.

EMP proof buildings, built by the US military, utilize Mu metal shielding. The entire building; ceiling, walls, floor, consists of an unbroken series of metal shielding welded together. Doors have copper "fingers" to prevent breaking continuity of the shielding. The metal prevents penetration by H fields (and E fields also).

Put a spare HEI module in a metal can that has a screw on metal lid. You'll be protected.

If your room or building need only be protected against E fields, just continually covering walls, ceilings, floors with soldered together copper screen wire will be OK.

Radio waves are all E fields at distances far from the transmitter. An electro magnet works by the H fields that the electric currents flowing through the windings create.

 

Thanks for the great info! Others have obviously thought about this subject. I think I'll take a spare module and put it in a 2' DIA pipe with screw on caps, THEN BURY IT IN THE BACK YARD!

 

ok i can see it now.....the man says.....Honey grab the kids and belongings and lets get into the vette to escape......the wife says....dear we can't even put grocercies in the car, get in the minivan and stop being silly....

 

It's all e-field related in the end. EMP (electro-magnetic pulse) fries electronics because the e-field causes the circuits node voltage to rise extremely fast and then is discharged to ground through whatever is the easiest path to ground. When it is discharged it blows the circuits in it's way up completely rendering them useless. Basic computer electronics are most susceptible to this issue. That includes car computer, radio, cell phone, your TV, microwave, dishwasher (unless one of the old style **** ones), etc. Everything now days has some kind of micro-controller in it.

High voltage electronics like that in an HEI module may be susceptible but I put it less likely and especially if you still have the chromed shielding over your HEI and wires. That chrome shielding is there because a fiberglass body doesn't form any kind of e-field shielding from what the HEI creates all on it's own and messes with the radio and other electronics near by.

And here you thought EMP was a terrorist weapon. You've been driving around with a mini EMP generator in your car for years......it's called HEI!

 

Dunno how good that's going to be, because the coil will be dead.

 

The electromagnetic pulse consists of E-fields (hence the word Electro) and H-Fields (hence the word magnetic).

How can magnetic fields generate large voltages, currents? Consider a a high voltage transformer (like for a CRT tube power supply) the output winding can have extremely high voltages and related electrical currents. However, the output winding's high voltage/currents are induced by the magnetic fields between the transformer input (primary winding) and output (secondary winding). I believe this is why the EMP pulse produces damaging voltages and currents in electronic circuits; the EMP pulse magnetic field induces these currents and voltages in electronic circuits similar to the process that is taking place between the primary to secondary windings of a transformer. This is my understanding of the process.

Anyhow the EMP pulse does, cause damaging currents and voltages in electronic circuits. Everyone agrees about this. During cold war days, the largest nuclear weapons, I believe, were the 50 Megaton bombs made by the Russians. These bombs were intended to be exploded in the upper atmosphere over the United States (two or three bombs would be required). The resulting EMP pulse would destroy power line grids, televisions, radios, computers, etc, just about everything electronic that was not hardened against EMP. Todays microprocessor circuits are expecially vulnerable.

The 50 Megatoners were not indended to be used against cities. Several smaller nuclear bombs, exploded in the atmosphere, would do much more damage that one single 50 megatoner exploded in the atmosphere. At least that's what I uderstand about the purpose of the 50 Megatoners.

 

Mental note: build Faraday cage into desktop computer housing, too.

 

Apparently you could do just like Tom Cruise in War of the Worlds and change your starter solenoid and you'll be fine!

 

After reading this thread I had to pinch my self to make sure that I wasn't on the forum late at night with Art Bell on the AM radio in the back ground.

 

Join the NRA, buy more guns, & tell the b**tards to just 'Bring it on'!

 

Of course and not withstanding, the piece of electrical equipment has to be energized for it to sustain damage. so if you vette is not running you'll be ok.