Tornado Intercept Vehicle - TIV 1

TIV 1

The Tornado Intercept Vehicle 1 (TIV 1) is a heavily modified 1997 Ford F-450 truck used as a storm chasing platform and built by IMAX director Sean Casey. This heavily armored vehicle can drive into a relatively weak tornado (EF0 to EF3) to film it and take measurements. Work began on the TIV in 2003 and took around eight months to finish, at a total cost of around US$81,000. TIV's armored shell consists of 1/8–1/4 inch steel plate welded to a two inch square steel tubing frame. The windows are bullet resistant polycarbonate, measuring 1 1/2 inches thick on the windshield and 1/2 inch thick on the sides. The TIV weighs approximately 16,500 pounds fully loaded and is powered by a 7.3-liter Ford Power Stroke turbocharged Diesel engine manufactured by Navistar-International, giving it a top speed of 80 mph (130 km/h). The TIV has a fuel capacity of 60 US gallons (230 L), giving it a range of around 500 miles (800 km). The TIV is featured in a series called Storm Chasers which began airing on the Discovery Channel in October 2007. TIV was succeeded in 2008 by TIV 2, but returned to service to finish out the 2008 storm chasing season after TIV 2 suffered mechanical problems. In a June 2011 interview with NPR's All Things Considered, Casey said that TIV is still in service and is designated as the backup vehicle in the event TIV 2 breaks down during a shoot.