Re: IML: Safety- Old cars vs New cars

["Frederick Joslin" <fljoslin@xxxxxxxx>]

I had a 1995 Suburban which weighed in at just over 6000 lbs and was built like the proverbial brick out house. I certainly did feel safe in this vehicle with my family.

Time move on and I wanted to get something with better fuel efficiency. After much research I purchased a 2006 Honda Odyssey. This vehicle has front and rear crumple zones and is designed for the engine to submarine the passenger compartment in a head on crash. It also has a hardened steel frame around the passengers with front air bags, front side air bags, complete side curtain airbags, a roll over sensor, three point seat belts at all 8 positions and weights in at over 4500 lbs. The vehicle has traction control, vehicle stability control tremendous acceleration, tremendous braking and is supposed to handle similar to a 7 series BMW.   The best "survivability" comes in vehicles which handle, accelerate and stop well, have the  best safety features and also have the most heft.  

 

I agree that in general you are safer in a heavier vehicle, assuming that you are strapped in, than in a lighter vehicle. I certainly am aware that when I drive my 69 LeBaron that there is a lot of steel in front of me and behind me. I have a friend in Canada who was rear ended at a stop light at high speed in an early 60s 4 door Chrysler Windsor. He said that the car was crumpled all the way to the front seat, but he and the passenger walked away.

 

However, the future is in lighter vehicles so let us hope that they continue to be designed safer and everyone preach safe driving. The best accident is the one you were not in.   

----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Gilleland"
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: IML: Safety- Old cars vs New cars
Date: Sun, 14 Jan 2007 22:00:18 -0600


I would be very upset if my 74 Imperial was
involved in a crash, I love that car. But if my
life depended on it, I would rather be in that
car than any other vehicle I own. I undestand
the newer vehicles absorb the impact, but they
will have to absorb a lot of impact if they run
into my two and a half ton Imperial. I may have
seat belt marks on my body, but I think I will
fare better than the person in the newer car. I
don't see a Kia or Honda having a chance
against my Imperial, especially if it's high
speed, better call the Morgue, because you just
hit a Sherman Tank. Now for the big SUV's they
may inflict damage, but I think I would still
be better off in my Imperial than any other
vehicles I own. Tom





----- Original Message ----- From: <50scars@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To:
Sent: Sunday, January 14, 2007 6:02 PM
Subject: Re: IML: Safety- Old cars vs New cars


> If you want to play mass against mass, how do you think an Old Imperial
> would fare against a new 4 wheel drive 1 ton Suburban? We hear the
> complainers whining about what an unfair advantage a large SUV has over an
> econobox all the time.
>
>
>
>>> From: "DR CHALLENGER"
>>> Subject: Re: IML: Safety- Old cars vs New cars
>>>
>>> problem is that old cars dont absorbe the energy of an impact and the
>>> passengers get the impact.
>>
>> Old cars don't absorb *as much* energy in a crash.
>> If you hit (or get hit by) a modern car in an old car, the modern car
>> will
>> do much of the crushing for you. In a collision, the heavier vehicle
>> transfers most of the energy to the lighter vehicle (which, in this
>> case, crushes). Hitting a tree is undoubtedly safer in a new car.
>> Hitting a car, is often safer (wearing belts, of course) in an old car.
>> Old car above is generally meant to mean _big_ old car. Big cars put
>> more
>> distance between you and the impact, so that helps a lot. A '63 Falcon
>> is a lot less safe than a '63 Imperial in a crash, and the Falcon
>> probably performs very poorly safety-wise compared to a modern car. A
>> collision with something bigger and heavier than you is also probably
>> much safer in a new car.
>>
>> If I was in a crash between an (old) Imperial and a Honda Civic,
>> though -
>> I'd want to be in the Imperial.
>> -Kle.
>> '69 Crown 4DHT
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ----------------- http://www.imperialclub.com -----------------
>> This message was sent to you by the Imperial Mailing List. Please reply
>> to mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response will be
>> shared with everyone. Private messages (and attachments) for the
>> Administrators should be sent to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> To UN-SUBSCRIBE, go to http://imperialclub.com/unsubscribe.htm
>
>
>
>
>
> ----------------- http://www.imperialclub.com -----------------
> This message was sent to you by the Imperial Mailing List. Please
> reply to mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response will be
> shared with everyone. Private messages (and attachments) for the
> Administrators should be sent to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> To UN-SUBSCRIBE, go to http://imperialclub.com/unsubscribe.htm
>



----------------- http://www.imperialclub.com -----------------
This message was sent to you by the Imperial
Mailing List. Please reply to
mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response
will be shared with everyone. Private messages
(and attachments) for the
Administrators should be sent to webmaster@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To UN-SUBSCRIBE, go to http://imperialclub.com/unsubscribe.htm

Fred Joslin