When SUV, Compact Meet, It’s No Contest
In one corner, weighing in at 4,680 pounds, is the muscular, red 1997 Ford Explorer. In the other, tipping the scales at a mere 3,418 pounds, is a black four-door Honda Accord.
The two vehicles--among the most popular on the nation’s highways--were pitted against each other Monday in a side-impact crash test by federal auto safety officials to analyze so-called “vehicle compatibility.”
The government didn’t declare a “winner,” pending study of the wreckage. But when the hulking sport-utility vehicle slammed into the mid-sized Honda sedan at the equivalent of 30 mph, there was little question who was left standing.
The SUV hit the sedan in the side with a loud bang. The horns of both vehicles blared eerily as broken glass went flying and dust from exploded air bags hung in the air.
On impact, the two vehicles became one, sliding at a right angle for about 20 feet from the impact point. The Explorer pushed both the car’s driver door and passenger door nearly a foot into the Honda’s interior space.
The test dummies in the Honda appeared to suffer significant injuries. Red and blue chalk showed where the dummies’ heads and legs hit the sides and other parts of the car.
The Explorer suffered some, but not as much, damage. Its bumper extended above the door sill of the smaller car and its hood was bent. The two front-seat dummies were protected by air bags, but the driver’s legs hit the dash.
Although the striking vehicle can be expected to do better in a side-impact collision, studies have shown that when a truck-type vehicle hits a sedan in the side, the odds are overwhelmingly against the car: The ratio of deaths among car occupants versus truck occupants is 27 to 1.
The dramatic crash test, conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, is the second of six planned.
The agency is exploring how differences in vehicle weight, rigidity and riding height among vehicles affects safety. The issue has attracted increased attention with the growing popularity of light trucks, a category comprising SUV, minivans and pickup trucks.
The safety agency last week issued a study that found light trucks make up just a third of the nation’s fleet but account for more than 50% of fatalities in vehicle-versus-vehicle collisions. Light trucks are also involved in 60% of side-impact deaths.
Of 5,249 people killed in crashes involving light trucks and cars last year, 81% of the fatalities were suffered by the occupants of cars.
The test, which cost an estimated $70,000, will provide safety researchers with data on 118 different measurements. It used 11 high-speed cameras capable of taking 1,000 pictures a second.
The test simulated a side-impact crash in which the Explorer travels at 30 mph into an Accord moving at 15 mph. In the actual test, the car is stationary and the truck is propelled at 33 mph with its wheels slightly turned.
