“Interesting photo with the four spare tires.”
Look at the wheel hubs. It would take an air wrench and a weekend to change them out.
Those wheels on MRAPs are split rims with run-flat inserts like the original HUMMV. They’re difficult to change out even in a well equipped maintenance shop. The extra four tires indicate that size isn’t in the supply system or the vehicle will be operating well outside the maintenance support network. Come to think of it, Homeland Security will have to rely on Army Reserve or National Guard maintenance sites if MRAPs are to be used for domestic civil suppresion & control.
Here in the continental U.S. the MRAP would operate as an armored personnel carrier. The simple fact that it is not a tracked vehicle limits its off-road capability, so its owners are counting on its menacing appearance to cow the populace. However, a military eye will sense its weaknesses rather than its strengths, and there are plenty of us veterans who as yet possess that tactical instinct.
If I were to see Homeland Security armored vehicles in my town, I would take it as a sign of worry, not arrogance, on the part of government authorities. As a former tanker, I learned long ago to evaluate any military vehicle for its target potential.