Experimental Stambecco LAPV | Armored Truck 6.011

Overview
This mod adds a wide range of armored parts and some configurations to the Autobello Stambecco, turning it into a full-blown LAPV (light armored patrol vehicle). The goal of this mod is to be the most comprehensive and realistic armored vehicle available for the game.

I've always believed that the Stambecco looked somewhat armored to an extent, and I in fact initially thought it might have been during its first release.

It wasn't.

So, over a year later, I decided to change that, creating this utter monstrosity.


By "armored", I don't just mean a slight buff of some parts - I mean a comprehensive and heavy modification of all major components. It will not only withstand, but outright tank most impacts, including extreme impacts from other vehicles which would have otherwise totaled it. The standard version weighs in at around 7.5 tons, congruent with many real-world LAPVs.

It will also deform relatively accurately to a real armored vehicle under exceptionally heavy collisions or severe abuse as well.


Attached below, you will find the aftermath of a head-on collision between this LAPV and and the initial version it was based on, both traveling at ~60 MPH

With the help of its heavily reinforced front bumper plow and weight, the regular version absorbed most of the impact

List of additions, in no particular order:
- Seven styles of an armored body (currently this mod only supports the 6x6 van body and its parts)
- Armored Chassis
- Armored suspension and suspension-related components (springs, shocks and steering)
- Armored glass (with shatter-proof speckle effect)
- Frontal ram plow
- Armored roll cage
- Armored and tuned internals (fuel tank, turbo, etc.)
- High-pressure brakes (with a very good parking brake to help it remain planted if rammed)
- Armored tires (burst and deformation resistant)
- An I8 engine
- Automatic 8-speed transmission
- Miscellaneous armored parts (i.e. siren, fuel tank and blinding lights)

Configurations:


Lore
Soon after the initial release of the successful Stambecco, the sales and marketing team at Autobello noticed that a significant portion of their fleet-sold vehicles were being adapted to law enforcement applications, particularly for personnel transportation and patrol. Due to such high demand and great profits in this segment, Autobello invested in and began offering armored versions of the Stambecco based on the 6x6 frame, calling it simply the LAPV. Fitted with a dense and sturdy body shell that is made of fully reinforced metals, a heavily reinforced external roll cage to preserve the vehicle's structure and shape in the event of a major collision, and many other high-durability parts, the LAPV became an efficient and reliable option for organizations that required such vehicles. It was a huge hit due to the truck's commendable strength and versatility, with militaries, police forces, and security companies purchasing them in bulk, primarily serving in European and Asian countries. A few examples were imported to the Americas under private ownership, however. It is often assigned to a wide range of duties, from the formation of road blocks to immobilizing fleeing suspect vehicles.

Gallery:






Media:





Known Bugs & Notes (I implore you to read before complaining about something)

Spoiler: PLEASE READ THOROUGHLY BEFORE MAKING A COMPLAINT - YOUR ISSUE WILL LIKELY BE ADRESSED HERE

- May occasionally glitch out and make the game reset the vehicle due to "detected instability". This typically occurs in special cases (i.e. you nodegrab it and slam it through the floor at 200 MPH). In other words, it is not likely to happen in most normal situations, and you would generally have to be deliberately tossing it around aggressively. This seems to be an issue within the game engine itself, as a result of trying to handle the extreme structure of the LAPV under severe stress

- Suspension can make sustained shaking noises after a particularly hard impact. I've done my best to minimize this, nor have I recently experienced it in finalization testing, but it might still happen in some circumstances.

- XL wheels deform subtly under the truck's weight

- The plow's JBeam becomes floppy if it breaks off of the front. However, it's perfectly rigid as it it intended to be when attached to the truck, which it generally will always be due to its insane attachment strength. The only real way to detach it is by using the "break" command, so this bug is not present in normal situations.

- For some reason, the game does not always view the police configurations as a "police car" when put in AI traffic, despite being labeled as one. Also, it might stop working in AI traffic randomly - I wish I could tell you why.

- The configurations do not have accurate specs (i.e. the stated 0-60 is different from what it is actually capable of.) This may change eventually.

- Many parts are designed to compliment each other, and using only one could make it look weird (i.e equipping just the rollcage without the ram plow won't look right, because the rollcage is modeled to appear to attach to the plow). Just keep this in mind when building your own configurations.

- The rear wheel plating is not "low poly", it is deliberately intended to have sharp edges, I just wanted to put this out there before someone mentions it in a three-star review.

- It is not indestructible, nor is it intended to be by any means. Crashes which are hard enough will realistically damage the body and chassis - if you still find it too durable, please refer to the segment below for an explanation.

Postscript to those who mentioned it being too strong:

Spoiler

It will actually give quite a lot in under heavy stress. This is a head-on collision between it and an empty-trailered T-Series:

The T-Series was traveling at about 25 MPH while the LAPV was heading around 60 MPH - as visible in the image, the front portion of the body was well damaged, and the windshield cracked.

The problem with nerfing it further is playability - while being a commendably strong truck as-is, the Stambecco is equipped with weaker components such as its steering mechanism. If the body is bent more easily, it would virtually immobilize it as a result under even small accidents due to its density - basically defeating the point of its armor. It took a significant amount of testing to find the sweet spot where it is currently at between usability and realism.

6.011 Changelog:
- Added a bespoke I8 engine
- New body style featuring wide wheel arches with low headlights
- New body style featuring covered wide wheel arches
- New body style featuring covered wide wheel arches with low headlights
- Rollcage variant with spare tire cosmetics
- 2 new configurations
- Small patches

Credits:
Me: JBeaming, modeling and optimizing
BeamNG: All initial assets

Please keep in mind that this is an experimental mod in the end, meaning it could be prone to some bugs and oddities. While I have spent countless tedious hours and done my best to optimize it, this vehicle is still pushing BeamNG's capabilities and may still act up on occasion.

Have fun mowing down Pigeons!