In crash tests released Tuesday, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that drivers of 2009 versions of the Smart "fortwo," Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris could face significant leg and head injuries in severe front-end crashes with larger, mid-size vehicles.
The institute has raised questions about whether stricter gas mileage rules, which are being developed by the government, might lead to smaller, lighter vehicles that could be less safe.
Well, of course they’re less “safe” -- higher mileage implies smaller and lighter, and smaller and lighter don’t do well against bigger and heavier. Why do you think there are weight classes in almost every one-on-one sport? Why are women’s sports separate from men’s sports? Where is common sense? Oh, never mind ....
The real question is when (if) the Nanny-State Liberals will realize that there is always a trade-off between benefit and risk. To put it bluntly, to get the benefit of increased mileage, one is going to have to accept the additional risk of getting creamed in a crash.
Face it, folks – semi-trailers, box trucks, buses, delivery vans, concrete barriers, and trees aren’t going to vanish in the forseeable future, and to misuse an analogy, it really doesn’t matter if the hammer hits the light bulb or the light bulb hits the hammer, it’s the light bulb that’s going to take the beating every time.
Frankly, the best way to solve the safety “issue” is to immediately disable all the safety equipment on every car in America – no seat belts, no air bags, nothing – and issue a stern warning to every driver that his/her survival is wholly dependent on two things: (a) driving skill, and (b) undivided attention to the road.
What has happened to basic journalism and research? There is a difference between a safety test in a lab and what actually happens on the road due to drivers and road conditions. If you were to go to the web sites for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (please look at source information) or the US Dept of Transportation, you’d see that the actual highway data demonstrates pickup trucks are the most dangerous vehicles on the road. With a death rate of 93 points, 12 points above a mini passenger car and 31 points above a midsize car.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.iihs.org/research/fatality_facts_2007/occupants.html
Are SUV’s safer? - Current “on the ground” data supports that but not by much. However, data from 1978 to 2004 shows that occupant deaths per million registered passenger vehicles 1-3 years old were either worse or equivalent between SUV’s and passenger cars. Yes, that means that in 2002-2003 a passanger was just as likely to die in a new SUV as in a new passenger car. Now that stat goes beyond the lab test.
If you would like to hire me as a reporter, fact checker, or data analyst don’t hesitate to e-mail me before you post a meaningless report that encourages irrational consumer behavior.