Does shooting a car’s fuel tank make it explode?

Petrol_cap_explosion

Essentially this is nothing more than a movie myth. An explosion requires three things: fuel and oxygen mixed in the correct proportions, and a heat source. A petrol tank, unless it is very nearly empty, doesn’t have enough air in it for an explosive mixture and bullets don’t always create sparks when they strike metal.

Answered by Luis Villazon.