[jblackburn]

I thought this was a pretty interesting article, and definitely a good test to make automakers build cars to stand up to. Nearly all cars that I've seen are demolished when only half of it is hit since ALL of the weight beyond the car is being distributed through half of the car.

Here's the article:
Luxury cars fare poorly in new crash tests - Bottom Line

 

[jblackburn]

In some relevance, my sister was hit in a similar accident to this scenario years ago by a drunk driver going the wrong way down the road and she swerved to avoid him at the same time he swerved back. This was the result of that (she was going ~ 25 mph).

The 2001 Accord did pretty well. We were definitely glad she wasn't in the Civic or New Beetle she originally wanted.

 

[70AARCUDA]

...yeah, but you can "die" in style (wink,wink)!

 

[The Wolf Wagon]

Kind of makes me happy that I'm too poor to afford any of the cars listed!

 

[jblackburn]

Kind of makes me happy that I'm too poor to afford any of the cars listed!

Well, if you think about it, those are all of the cars that are supposed to do WELL in crashes (Mercedes C-class, BMW 3-series, etc). Safety/crashworthiness is one of the major things manufacturers like to brag about with their expensive cars.

If they run the test on "normal people" cars like you and I have - in the small car/midsize car category, I'm curious as to what the results will be. I saw crash test videos of the Cruze in a side impact and frontal collision, and I was pretty impressed with how the car took the impact for being so little.

 

[obermd]

I think this is more of a case of the IIHS has hit all the low hanging fruit with regards to crash safety, lets go find another apple to bite. Like all organizations, the IIHS needs to do something to justify their existance.

On the other hand, I'm kind of surprised this testing hasn't been done before. This type of crash is the most common "head on" you'll see on a two lane road. I know cars are tested for "offset" frontal collisions, but the current test is a 50% overlap. The IIHS tested a 25% overlap, which will trigger far more lateral forces than a 50% overlap.

 

[zr1000a1]

They did small cars including the Cruze in this round of tests.

latest car crash tests - Bing News


[url]http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013/08/08/six-12-small-cars-do-well-in-front-crash-tests/
[/URL]

 

[ErikBEggs]

Marginal... high praise indeed -_-.

Just more bullshit to d**kride Honda and Toyota about. I just find it hard to believe.

The Luxury thing is a mixed bag.. my dad's infiniti took a collision with a Suburban quite well. The car was demolished but I walked out with no injuries at all. Not even a bruise...

 

[David1]

I am a firm believer that if it's you time to die, it's your time to die no matter what you drive.

 

[steveg241]

Honestly, this is a new type of test and car manufacturers weren't specifically looking to prevent this type of impact. In the future, they will all get better. If you look at all the small cars on the IIHS website, every single one is Good for the four tests that have been around for years. Give it until 2015, then you will see all Good's again as no one wants to have their car rated anything less.

 

[jblackburn]

Good to see they did something with the new Civic besides just slightly redesigning the exterior. Good job, Honda.

To be fair, the Cruze was originally designed in 2007, long before this test was conceived. Same problem with the current-gen Camry and Prius failing the test horribly - the bodies/designs are old.

That said, I feel that it is an important safety test and the new Cruze, I'm sure, will be designed to pass this test with flying colors.

 

[iKermit]

Well guys. If i crash in me 3er you know i also passed away in style and listening to my rock playlist.

 

[Jim Frye]

Honestly, this is a new type of test and car manufacturers weren't specifically looking to prevent this type of impact. In the future, they will all get better. If you look at all the small cars on the IIHS website, every single one is Good for the four tests that have been around for years. Give it until 2015, then you will see all Good's again as no one wants to have their car rated anything less.

The Civic body was engineered for 2013 (ACEII) specifically to address the small offset crash test. It also addressed some ride and handling improvements, but the small offset test was the target.

I'm speculating that this test may be one of the reasons for the delay in releasing the second generation Cruze until the '16 MY.

Also, I read that NHTSA is also planning to implement this test.

 

[jblackburn]

I'm speculating that this test may be one of the reasons for the delay in releasing the second generation Cruze until the '16 MY.

I reckon you're right.