A a low-speed collision between a car and a truck or SUV ends up worse for the former, not just because of the latter’s higher ride height and added mass, but because of the bumper design and requirements. In an attempt to change this, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety will petition the U.S. government today to change the federal bumper rules for light trucks.
Currently, car bumpers are mandated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to protect an area 16 to 20 inches above the ground, taking a 2.5mph impact into a flat barrier with no significant damage. Truck and SUV bumpers are significantly higher than that, and with the exception of the Ford Explorer, few SUVs are designed with car/truck collisions in mind.
The Institute claims a better alignment of truck and car bumpers would potentially save drivers thousands of dollars in damages, and that government claims that such legislation would decrease the utility of light trucks are out of date and wrong.
Approving the IIHS plans is not likely to happen, as the NHTSA has rejected such revisions before in 1984 and 1991, says an Automotive News report.
07/01, 10:40 AM
posted by:
howsmydriving
If the Insurance Institute had more lobbying clout than the auto manufacturers, we wouldn’t have the modern **** bumpers that crumple like a paper bag.
07/01, 10:51 AM
posted by:
global_lightning
This is ironic given many people buy SUVs thinking they’re safer. They errouneously equate mass with protection. From a physics perspective, adding mass only increases the forces which must be dissapated in a collision. Much more imporant is a structure which can redirect and control the forces of impact.
07/01, 11:10 AM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
I don’t know why they’re bothering. There is far more expensive technology out there that they can mandate in the form of electronic camera aided warning systems to help those unfortunate souls who simply have no idea where the front or back of their car is. Either that or just attach a half dozen or so Nerf balls at either end of your vehicle.
07/01, 12:02 PM
posted by:
olds307
My car was built when they still had 5MPH standards
07/01, 12:05 PM
posted by:
SickofGarbageMotors
Honda, Volvo and the Germans have already been working on this for years, making thier trucks and SUV’s “crash compatable” with cars.
07/01, 12:20 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
How do you make a SUV crash compatible with a small car? Simple! Get it off the road!
07/01, 2:28 PM
posted by:
beatusmongous
So, basically, they would lower the front and rear clearance of trucks? Doesn’t that kind of defeat the purpose of a truck? My trucks go off the road and over rocks and stuff, because that’s what they are meant to do. Making the bumpers meet the car bumpers means that I no longer can go over the rocks and tree stumps without getting stuck.
07/01, 4:19 PM
posted by:
DialM4Speed
Here’s another idiot load. How do they propose manufacturers do this? Lower trucks/suvs?? Raise cars?? Stupid!
07/01, 11:56 PM
posted by:
Jazz
The interesting part of this piece is that the change is not for safety but to decrease damages. In laymans terms money.
The Insurance companies are trying to decrease the amount that they have to pay out for damage to a car from a truck or SUV. They don’t give a damn if the person is hurt or not.
07/02, 7:35 PM
posted by:
1c3d0g
There’s only so much you can do until your truck is nothing but a sissy truck. This petition is ridiculous. No matter how “compatible” you make these bumpers, if there’s a drunk driver behind the wheel no amount of “compatibility” will save you. If you gotta die, so be it.