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Another thing to consider is could the accident have been avoided... How well does the car handle in an emergency evasive manuever, how quickly does the vehicle stop? What other safety features does the car have to avoid accidents to begin with? Sometimes the car with the biggest mass.. weight may seem like a good idea for a crash but it is not always. I would rather be in a car with properly engineered crumble zones and safety features to avoid the accident if possible (or lessen the severity.)
Are large cars safer than small cars?
In frontal impacts between cars, the occupants of the heavier car or the one with higher structures tend to fare better than those travelling in lighter lower cars. It should be noted though that higher vehicles tend to be less stable and consequently more likely to be involved in accidents, particularly those involving loss of control, where overturning or an impact with a roadside obstacle may occur. These effects are currently impossible to overcome. As most people decide on the size of the car to buy for other reasons, Euro NCAP only makes comparisons within size categories. The rating of a car within its size category is a function of the quality of its safety design.
Another thing to consider is could the accident have been avoided... How well does the car handle in an emergency evasive manuever, how quickly does the vehicle stop? What other safety features does the car have to avoid accidents to begin with? Sometimes the car with the biggest mass.. weight may seem like a good idea for a crash but it is not always. I would rather be in a car with properly engineered crumble zones and safety features to avoid the accident if possible (or lessen the severity.)
Can you please respond to my car buyng questions galore post in Coffee Break with specific info/advice for testdriving pretty please (esp. Is there any way I can do a good test of visability; I have one bad eye)The ratings at www.informedforlife.org only take into account objective factors that can be combined into a single risk rating using published studies. The rankings are not done arbitrarily, as is often the case in other "safest vehicle" ratings. On the other hand, no rating like this can include those subjective factors like comfort, handling or visibility. Informedforlife is only a starting place. It might help you eliminate some models from consideration but only an extended test drive and other research will help you with the accident avoidance comparisons among models.
Accident avoidance is much harder to judge objectively compared to factors like crash test results, weight and safety features. Visibility, handling, braking, emergency passing power and other factors will vary a lot from one driver to another. Sure you can find some information on handling limits in magazine reviews, but even these often vary somewhat from one test to another. Ultimately, only a good test drive is going to help you make a rough judgement on many of these factors.
While accident avoidance is important, crashworthiness is at least equally important. If you're an expert driver and always drive undistracted by kids, food, cell phones, alcohol or other factors, then perhaps you might reach those magazine limits. Then there are the other 99.5% of us who think we are great drivers and can avoid all the other bad drivers right up until the time we do get into a serious crash. That's when you need a vehicle that also has great crash test results and a good set of advanced safety features.
Weight, length and height can be helpful. If you crash into another vehicle head-on, weight and length may indeed give you an advantage. Seating height can be an advantage if you are hit from the side. On the other hand, weight and height can be a disdvantage in rollovers as many of the larger trucks and SUVs tradeoff the advantage in frontal head-on crashes with a disadvantage in single-vehicle and rollover crashes.
All that considered, every buyer has to consider where the best tradeoff is for their family. For some, it could be a car-based minivan that retains reasonable handling but still has a reasonable size, weight and can carry a large family. For others, a sports sedan or other type of car/suv might be the best compromise. Fortunately, models in almost every class can be found that have top crash test results and many advanced safety features like side curtain airbags and stability control.
The ratings at www.informedforlife.org only take into account objective factors that can be combined into a single risk rating using published studies. The rankings are not done arbitrarily, as is often the case in other "safest vehicle" ratings. On the other hand, no rating like this can include those subjective factors like comfort, handling or visibility. Informedforlife is only a starting place. It might help you eliminate some models from consideration but only an extended test drive and other research will help you with the accident avoidance comparisons among models.
I agree that accident avoidance is much harder to quantify though I think it should still be considered when making a car purchase. I think it is important to consider cars that are somewhat nimble. For example, my grandfather pruchased my last car from me and was driving a few days later and slammed on the brakes. Luckily my car came standard with Brake Assist (which fully applies the brakes once you push them a certain amount in a panic stop), Brembo racing brakes, and higher performance tires. He narrowly missed hitting the car ahead of him by just a few feet. If he had been in his previous car I'm certain he would have slammed into the car ahead of him (he was 87 years old at the time.)
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My family has always purchaesd Mercedes Benz vehicles as they have shown through their history that crashworthiness was important to them. They were on the forefront of impact crumble zones and were the first to install airbags in cars (though I believe Oldsmobile tried this about 20 years earlier but stopped quickly.) They also were the first with seat belt pre-tensioners and many of the accident avoidance systems such as stability control. I strongly feel that their cars are tops in crash protection and as a whole they score well consistently.
The one aspect where I believe Mercedes is lacking in crash safety is in their Tether and LATCH ratings. I am currently discussing this with them but feel as though I wouln't have to worry about it for now as my DS is only 9.5 months. We will not likely have this car when he reaches 40 lbs.
Of course, I loaded my post by using those two models. It would have been a bit different had I selected a BMW 3-series vs. a Chevrolet Uplander ;-)
The one thing to remember about LATCH is that it was never intended to be safer or more secure than using the 3pt seatbelt for installing carseats. It was supposed to make it easier to install and create a universal connection between various manufacturers.
The only item you really should worry you on a safety issue is the weight limit for the top tether connection. If Mercedes is limiting it to 40lbs, they might be erring more on a conservative decision than actual test results. IMO, that would be the area of discussion for you to have with Merc. as your child ages. Just remember, top tether is a US thing. So the German establishment just might be balking at this because of a lack of experience. They shouldn't. But It is a VERY traditional company and Yanks telling them what to do could be causing cultural clashes.
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