The Caracal Assault Rifle 816, or CAR 816, is a piston-operated M-4 type carbine that was introduced earlier this year. Â The gun uses a two-position gas port for normal operation and suppressed shooting. Â Rate of fire is listed as 850 rpm. (Ed. note: Â See the September 2013 update at the bottom of the article regarding the gas port and rate of fire.)
![Caracal CAR 816](https://www.gunsholstersandgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Caracal-CAR-816.jpg)
The CAR 816 is chambered in 5.56 NATO and comes in three barrel lengths:  10″, 14.5″ and 16″.  The barrels are chrome lined and cold hammer forged from chromolybdenum steel.  The barrel uses a 1:7″ twist.
The barrels are threaded, and come with a “standard muzzle break [sic].” Â From the photos, it appears the muzzle device is a standard A2 type birdcage flash hider. Â Of course, with so many different muzzle devices on the market today, it is hard to say for certain from the photos alone.
According to Caracal, the rifle comes with a magazine release on the right side of the receiver, but an ambidextrous option is available.  The gun uses STANAG-compliant magazines, and ships with a 30 round mag.  The rifle is shown with a PMAG, but it is not known if Magpul magazines ship with the gun, or more pedestrian USGI mags.