Car Jump Distance Calculator
Use the car jump distance calculator to simulate car jumping with air drag force and car rotation included.
The formula
range = v cos θ × t, apex = h + v²sin²θ ÷ 2g
Two independent motions
The whole subject reduces to one observation: horizontal and vertical motion do not interact. With no air resistance nothing pushes or pulls horizontally, so the horizontal velocity never changes; vertically, gravity acts exactly as it would on a dropped object. A bullet fired horizontally and a bullet dropped from the same height hit the ground at the same moment.
From level ground 45° gives the greatest range, and complementary angles — 30° and 60°, say — give identical ranges by different routes, one high and slow, one flat and fast. Launching from a height breaks that symmetry: the extra fall time rewards horizontal speed, so the optimal angle drops below 45°, which is why the page solves for it rather than assuming.
Air resistance is neglected throughout, and for anything small, fast or light that is a serious omission — a real projectile's range can be a fraction of the vacuum figure, and its trajectory is not symmetric, falling more steeply than it rose.