Terminator (Police Station) or Heat (Shootout scene) - Which is the better scene?

[Peteyandjia]

First, why did Val even start shooting? He sees the cops, did he really think that he would be able to kill a couple and that would be that?

It's a military tactic. Assault the ambush.

I thought these guys were all seasoned pros?

The professionalism is in how quickly he switched gears, immediately to worst case scenario. He goes from thinking they were home-free millionaires -- & lets out perhaps the biggest smile of the film -- to realizing they've been made, smile gone, rifle up, & assaulting the ambush within a heartbeat. (Well under Neil's 30 second rule, ha. No hesitation)