| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| ...road spikes or tacks. | Busted | While the road spikes managed to puncture the pursuit car's tires, they did not instantly deflate and the pursuit car managed to catch Adam. The reason the spikes failed was attributed to the fact that the spikes stuck in the tires, partially plugging up the holes and causing the tires to deflate more slowly.
In episode 234 of the 2015 season, this myth was revisited with, which performed so well that the myth was declared confirmed. |
| ...a smokescreen. | Confirmed | During the first run, Jamie attached several smoke grenades to the rear of his car to create a makeshift smokescreen. While the test was initially successful, the smokescreen quickly backfired when the smoke was sucked into Jamie's car as well, blinding and choking him and forcing him to stop the chase. They modified the rig to keep the smoke grenades outside the car, and Adam drove while wearing an oxygen mask. The second test was more successful, with Adam being able to use the smokescreen to elude the pursuit car. |
| ...an oil slick. | Plausible | The pursuit car was slowed down significantly by the oil slick, allowing Jamie to elude it. However, the pursuit car did not instantly spin out as is popularly shown in movies. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| Women have a higher pain tolerance than men. | Confirmed | Twenty-five members of each gender took part. The women lasted an average of 100.4 seconds in the ice, while the average for the men was 84.3 seconds. |
| Women who have undergone childbirth without using pain medication have a higher pain tolerance than women who have not. | Confirmed | In the SBS One version of the episode, it was shown that the women who had given birth without pain medication lasted an average of 124 seconds in the above test, while the rest lasted an average of 73.8 seconds. Notably, the latter average was lower than that for the men. |
| Natural redheads have a lower pain tolerance than people of other hair colors. | Busted | Two dozen people of each group took part. The average time for the redheads was 132.2 seconds, while that for the non-redheads was 79.1 seconds. |
| Cursing aloud will allow a person to tolerate more pain than using mild language. | Confirmed | Adam, Jamie, Grant, Tory, and Kari subjected themselves to the ice bath while saying a list of innocuous words to cope with the pain. Jamie and Tory had to disqualify themselves because they lasted the full 3 minutes; Tory also began cursing during this attempt. They were replaced by two staff members. In the second trial, the five subjects were allowed to say a list of curse words, resulting in an average 30% increase in the time that they could keep their hands in the ice. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| ...build a usable bridge across a chasm. | Confirmed | Adam and Jamie began by applying force to the middle of a strip of duct tape in order to determine its breaking strength. Finding a result of, they built up strands from layers of tape, and Adam experimented with weaving them together to strengthen the design. They settled on a rope bridge with a 10-layer walkway, two handrails, and two stabilizing rails.
Adam and Jamie took the bridge to Mare Island Naval Shipyard, where they could set it up across a gap with a drop. During test runs to pre-stretch the parts and remove the tape's elasticity, they decided to connect the walkway and handrails with struts in hopes of reducing the wobble. A total of 196 rolls of tape was used to build the finished bridge, which was connected to steel frames on opposite ends of the gap. Adam and Jamie both made the crossing successfully, though Jamie had a much harder time keeping his balance due to his fear of heights and/or the stress of Adam's previous crossing. Jamie commented that the elastic nature of the tape made it a poor choice for building bridges. |
| ...hold a completely dismantled car together so that it can be safely driven at high speed. | Confirmed | Kari tore apart a car's body and frame with the help of a squad of San Francisco firefighters. Grant and Tory then reassembled it with tape, and the Build Team took it to Naval Air Station Alameda, where they set up an obstacle course on the runway to put as much stress on the car as possible. With Kari driving, the car held together through 10 laps. Next, the team did some off-road driving in the rain; the engine stalled after several minutes, but the tape did not fail. |
| ...hold a car in place. | Confirmed | The Build Team hooked a force meter between a car's rear bumper and a telephone pole and found that the car could pull with a force of. Based on the breaking strength data from the bridge testing, they wrapped five rolls of tape around the car and pole to bind the two together. When Grant stepped on the gas, the car stayed in place even as the tires began to smoke, with only one strip of tape breaking. |
| ...stop a car going. | Busted | The Build Team placed two concrete barricades on the Alameda runway and used one roll of tape to make a single thick strand strung between them. Driving at, Tory was able to break through easily. For further tests, the team used 100 rolls of tape to make a -thick wall, which they hung between the barricades, and towed the car into it while Grant steered remotely.
On the first test, a problem with the tow cable caused the car to hit one of the barricades; the tape took a glancing blow but did not break. The second test ended with one of the wall's anchor points breaking loose, while the wall itself remained intact. In the third and final test, the car hit the wall dead center and broke through, but not before the tape had stretched nearly. Based on the amount of time and material that would be needed to construct a workable car stopper, the team declared the myth busted. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| A person can slide down a waterslide, launch off a ramp at the end, fly, and accurately land in a small, distant pool. | Busted | The MythBusters first built a scale model of the slide, and they discovered that the concept was plausible. They then built the full-size ramp with dimensions based on thorough analysis of the video. For safety reasons, the MythBusters built the slide next to a manmade lake so that they could avoid injury if they missed the target. After several runs, the MythBusters concluded that the flight distance was impossible, as they could travel only at a maximum distance of with a peak speed of. In order to achieve the distance, they would need to be traveling at least. They then tested the accuracy of the slide, and they found that the accuracy was fairly consistent. However, because they could not achieve the distance portion of the myth, they were forced to rate the myth busted. Just to make absolutely sure, the MythBusters contacted the people responsible for making the video, and they confirmed that the video was made using computer-generated imagery. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| Per the policy of an unnamed package delivery company, driving a delivery truck route that takes mostly right turns is more fuel efficient than driving normally, because the vehicle uses up more gas idling while waiting for traffic to clear on a left turn than taking a right turn. The Build Team generally assumed that the only alternative to a left turn was to replace each one with three right turns in the same area. | Confirmed | For their first test, the Build Team drove a regular-size car on a controlled course. On the first run, they drove the car around a block using a left hand turn, but they had to wait for a turn signal. In the second run, they instead took three right turns to bypass the signal, but the route was longer. The results showed that the car managed to cover more distance in less time taking right turns compared to left turns while consuming only less than one percent more fuel. For a real-world result, the Build Team obtained a full-size delivery truck, with the objective of delivering packages to several locations scattered throughout San Francisco. For their second run, they drove exactly the same route, but they replaced each left turn with three right turns. Both runs included the treacherous Lombard Street hill. After reviewing their results, the Build Team discovered that the right turn route was more fuel efficient with a 3% difference, despite having to drive a longer distance. Kari then pointed out that this would be an ideal strategy for delivery trucks in urban environments but would not work as well with regular cars. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| A sneeze can leave a person's nose/mouth at, roughly the same as a Category 2 hurricane. | Busted | Adam and Jamie used snuff to irritate their mucous membranes and force themselves to sneeze. Droplets from Adam's and Jamie's sneezes traveled at and, respectively. |
| Droplets from a sneeze can travel up to. | Busted | To get a visual indication of distance, Adam mixed cherry drink powder into the snuff and sneezed over a -long strip of white paper. When this method failed to show any marks, he and Jamie tried taking a mouthful of a small amount of food coloring just before sneezing. This idea worked, giving a maximum distance of for Adam and for Jamie. |
| Nasal secretions from a person with a cold can spread so far and so quickly that anyone in the vicinity can become contaminated. | Confirmed | Adam and Jamie consulted with an otolaryngologist and learned that a person with a cold may secrete up to 60 milliliters of mucus per hour. Jamie built a rig from a syringe and tubing to match that drip rate with fluorescent dye, and Adam wore it by his nose as he did model-building work. After one hour, he and everything he had touched were stained with the dye.
Adam and Jamie then set up a party for Adam to host, with three "germaphobe" guests and three unsuspecting ones. Thirty minutes later, Adam, the whole table, and every guest except Kari—who admitted that she actually was a germaphobe—were heavily contaminated. In a second experiment in which Adam consciously did his best to avoid physical contact, all six guests came up clean.
Adam and Jamie declared the myth confirmed at this point, commenting that a healthy person would find it very difficult to avoid being contaminated by a sick one who did not attempt to keep from spreading his/her germs. |
| # | Name | Myth featured | Comments |
| 25 | JATO Rocket Car | Jet Assisted Chevy | First myth tested |
| 24 | Guns & Ammo | Tree Machine Gun | Frequent use of various firearms on the show |
| 23 | Science Is Golden | Bullets Fired Up | Scientific analysis used in exploring myths |
| 22 | Failure Is Always an Option | Supersize Rocket Car | Experiments going wrong in unexpected ways |
| 21 | World Firsts | Breaking Glass | First "World First" – First time a person had been filmed breaking a glass with their voice |
| 20 | Mean Machines | Steam Powered Machine Gun | Massive and intricate builds for testing myths |
| 19 | MythBusters Dress Code | Various | Safety gear and ridiculous costumes used by the cast |
| 18 | Underwater Car | Underwater Car | Demonstrating survival skills some viewers were able to actually use in a real-life situation |
| 17 | Not So Steely Stomachs | Various | Cast members vomiting on camera |
| 16 | Surprise! Surprise! | Bull in a China Shop | Unexpected results from an experiment |
| 15 | Buster: Honorary MythBuster | Exploding Pants | The trials and tribulations of Buster |
| 14 | Duct Tapetastic | Duct Tape Sailboat | The cast finds new uses for duct tape |
| 13 | Weird & Wonderful | Vacuum Toilet | Most bizarre "what the hell are we doing?" moments |
| 12 | Lunar Lunacy | NASA Moon Landing | A story intended to promote critical thinking among viewers |
| 11 | Shark Tales | Playing Dead | Shark-related myths |
| 10 | Flatus Burning | Lighting the Emission | A segment that had not previously aired on the show |
| 9 | Human Guinea Pigs | Various | Cast members taking part in stunts and physical testing |
| 8 | Bring Out the Blimp | Hindenburg Mystery | An experiment whose dramatic outcome matched closely with the real-world event on which it was based |
| 7 | One Line Wonders | Various | Cast members' memorable lines and recurring themes |
| 6 | Alcatraz Escape | Escape from Alcatraz | A classic story that left several questions unanswered even after it was finished |
| 5 | Car Drop | Racing Gravity | The Build Team's favorite myth |
| 4 | Accidents Do Happen | Various | Montage of Adam and Tory's frequent mishaps on camera |
| 3 | Rocketry in Motion | Compact Compact Supersized, Snowplow Rocket Replication | The use of rocket engines in revisiting a pair of myths |
| 2 | Lead Balloon | Lead Balloon | Adam and Jamie's favorite myth |
| 1 | Explosive Fan Favorites | Several, with the main, final representation being the exploding cement truck from Cement Mix-Up | A collection of favorite explosions, as chosen by fans and cast members set to the finale of the 1812 Overture |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| ...a literal red herring. | Busted | Jamie spread canned herring across his path in an attempt to throw Morgan off the scent. Morgan stopped to eat the fish and passed the point where Jamie turned off the main trail, but Morgan later doubled back and found him. |
| ...a suit treated with cleaning products intended to neutralize odors. | Busted | Despite Jamie's suit and choice of hiding places to shelter himself from the breeze, Morgan found him without difficulty. |
| ...an escape route that crosses a river. | Busted | Morgan was able to pick up Jamie's scent in the water and find him. Adam and Jamie concluded that the size of the body of water had no effect on a bloodhound's ability to track fugitives. |
| ...a complete full-body cleaning and equipment to mask his scent. | Busted | Jamie scrubbed himself down and rinsed with wipes meant for use by hunters to disguise their scent, then put on a protective suit with a gas mask and air filter to remove odors from his breath. He sprayed a false scent trail using his own wash water, threw the sprayer into the tall grass, and hid. The trail distracted Morgan for a short time, but he soon found the sprayer and tracked Jamie to his hiding place. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| ...masking the scent of the contraband with a much stronger one. | Busted | The contraband was packed into a plastic container with one of five strong scent materials and hidden in a large warehouse filled with props. Rex was able to find the package every time, with only the citronella slowing him down to any degree. |
| ...using an ultrasonic dog repellent device. | Busted | Kari tested out such a device on her own two puppies to verify its effectiveness. The Build Team then set up a typical outdoor-concert scenario, with over 200 people gathered in a parking lot and possible distractions for the dog: a car with stereo blaring and a fast food truck. One person was given the contraband and the repellent device to trigger whenever Gypsy came too close, but she was able to ignore it and find her target. |
| ...distracting the dog with another scent. | Busted | The concert scenario was reset, and a female dog in heat was placed near the person with the contraband, in an attempt to distract the male sniffing dog with pheromones. Max did become confused, whereupon his handler removed both him and the female from the area; after a few minutes, Max was brought back in and successfully found the contraband. The handler noted that it is standard procedure to remove all other dogs from the area being searched to prevent this sort of situation. |
| ...packing the contraband with materials intended to cause a false positive and/or repel the handler. | Busted | Tory fitted a false bottom into a suitcase, loaded the contraband into that, and then packed that suitcase and several others with the chosen material. The cases were hidden in a large warehouse full of luggage. Tests with strongly aromatic cheese and sausage, and with dirty diapers from Kari's baby, failed to deter Buck from picking the correct bag or his handler from searching it to find the contraband. The handler noted that both dogs and their handlers are thoroughly trained in seeing through attempts to deceive them. |
| Myth statement | Status | Notes |
| The Storm Chasers' specially reinforced vehicles can withstand an EF5 tornado with winds up to. | Confirmed | At a Michigan airfield used by Kalitta Air, the group used the engines of a Boeing 747 to generate the needed wind forces and speeds, with a vehicle positioned directly behind one engine's exhaust. The first test was carried out at a distance corresponding to winds ; a passenger car had its hood torn off and was pushed back. The Storm Chasers' vehicles, TIV2 and Dominator, suffered no damage in this trial except for TIV2's door flying open because Sean had forgotten to lock it. Each vehicle's anchor spikes allowed it to keep its position on the ground.
In the second test, the vehicles were placed so as to feel the entire wind. Within seconds, the car lost its hood and was thrown backward. TIV2 held its position, while Dominator slid across the ground but did not tumble due to its low profile that kept the wind from blowing beneath it. The only signs of damage were a bent anchor spike and a twisted license plate holder, respectively. Noting that an occupant in either vehicle would easily have survived, Adam and Jamie declared the myth confirmed and stenciled their seal of approval on each one. |
| It is possible to build a personal tornado protection device. | Confirmed | Three criteria were chosen for testing: portability, degree of protection against flying debris, and ability to withstand up to 135-mph winds. Adam and Jamie worked on separate prototypes: an inverted bowl topped by an airfoil to push it into the ground, and a low-profile tent with an anchored base that could pivot to face changing winds. Jamie's design performed considerably better than Adam's and was chosen for full-scale testing.
A prototype built from polyethylene, aluminum, ballistic nylon, and duct tape was taken to the Kalitta airfield; it could be folded up and carried in a backpack. For the debris test, Jamie fired wooden cylinders at the shield, using his soda-can launcher from the myth Cup vs Car. Buster and Adam each took a turn inside the shield, with no ill effects. Adam then stood in the 747's exhaust until he lost his footing, which occurred at. This wind speed was used as a minimum that the shield would have to endure without any injury to Jamie inside. It tore apart at due to failure of the attachment points between the panels. After these were redesigned and bolted, Jamie was able to hold his ground in winds—the equivalent of an EF4 tornado. |
| Myth statement | Status/Result | Notes |
| A scuba diver can wear a tuxedo underneath his drysuit, go underwater, resurface, strip off his scuba gear, and be able to present the tuxedo perfectly. | Confirmed | Adam and Jamie donned tuxedos after meeting with an image consultant to learn about the particulars of black-tie formal dress. Adam boarded a boat to serve as a comparison standard, while Jamie put on a drysuit and took a 40-minute scuba dive to rendezvous with him. Once Jamie climbed aboard, removed the suit, and brushed himself down, both his tuxedo and Adam's were found to be in presentable condition for a party. |
| A car's tire pressure can significantly affect its fuel efficiency. | Confirmed | The Build Team ran a car through a test course with regular tire pressure, extremely overinflated and deflated tires, and slightly overinflated and deflated tires, and measured the resulting fuel efficiency for each. The data showed that lower than normal tire pressure resulted in significantly more fuel being consumed, due to a larger amount of surface area in contact with the road to increase friction. Higher than normal pressure did improve fuel efficiency; however, the Build Team discouraged the idea of overinflating tires due to the hazards involved and negligible cost savings. |
| A laptop can stop a point-blank blast from a shotgun. | Plausible | Using a 12-gauge shotgun, the Build Team fired a load of birdshot at a 4-year-old laptop in a leather bag from point-blank range, with a block of ballistic gelatin behind it to stand for the owner's body. The birdshot easily punctured every area of the laptop that was hit and damaged the gelatin severely. In a second test, the team targeted the battery—the component with the highest density—and found that none of the pellets would go through it. The team classified the myth as plausible since only a very lucky shot would be stopped. |
| A hair weave can stop a.40 caliber bullet. | Busted | The Build Team replicated the conditions of the news story on which the myth was based, firing at a ballistic-gelatin head through a car's rear windshield from behind it. The bullet easily penetrated the head's hair weave and exited through the front, pulling some of the hair with it. The team hypothesized that in the actual shooting, the bullet may have ricocheted off a metal part before coming to rest near the victim's head, giving the illusion that the weave stopped the bullet. |
| A refrigerator door can stop a spray of 9mm bullets. | Busted | The Build Team fired numerous 9mm bullets at a modern refrigerator door stocked with items commonly found in refrigerators. Every shot easily penetrated both the door and a block of ballistic gelatin placed behind it, indicating lethal impacts. The team achieved the same result with a double-walled steel refrigerator door from the 1950s. |
| One of these ways is the best way to limit the spread of germs created by sneezes. | Use your elbow | Adam and Jamie tested three different techniques of containing sneezes—a hand, an elbow, and a handkerchief—with the help of snuff and food coloring as in the myth Fever Pitch. Adam's sneezes into his hand spread droplets up to away, while Jamie's elbow stopped nearly all of the droplets from his sneezes. The few that were not stopped traveled only. When Adam sneezed into the handkerchief, those droplets also traveled but soaked his hand as well. They noted that the germs would quickly spread to both the user's hand and other items that touched the cloth, defeating the purpose of using it. The elbow was judged the most effective device for containing germs from a sneeze. |
| It is easy to take candy from a baby. | Busted | Adam and Jamie measured the amounts of force required to simply pick up a lollipop versus taking one from a baby. They tried snatching the lollipop from babies of various ages and found that the babies would actively fight to keep the candy. Younger ones tended to use brute force to hold on to the lollipop, while older ones used different tactics such as crying and moving the candy out of reach. Picking up the candy required, while taking it from the babies took an average of, indicating that the latter is actually harder to do than the former. |
| If a bottle of beer is put in the freezer for long enough, removed while it is still liquid, and given a sudden shock, the beer will instantly freeze solid. | Confirmed | The Build Team left bottles of beer inside a freezer for various times, ranging from 120 minutes to 180 minutes, before removing and striking them. The team found that 180 minutes of cooling time was necessary to allow the instant freezing to occur. The most likely explanation is supercooling, in which a liquid, beer or otherwise, in a very clean container can be cooled below its freezing point, but it will rapidly form crystals and freeze if it is disturbed in any way. |