Driver Seat Collapse during Accident

U

Unregistered

Guest
During a recent accident in which our car was totaled the driver seat significantly reclined / collapsed. Is this normal (our car was stopped, waiting to turn when rear ended at 50mph)?

We have power seats -- would manual seats have been safer / more likely to stay in place rather than recline from the force of the impact?
 
ADS

SusanMae

Senior Community Member
The back of the seat falling away is normal. I was rear ended in 1996 in a Geo Prism(same body as the toyota corolla). The back of the drivers seat fell away from me as well. I did ask my brother about it and he said that's what cars are designed to do. My brother is an ASE certified Master Mechanic---he went to school in Nashville. So I hope that eases your mind.

Susan
 
U

Unregistered

Guest
SusanMae said:
The back of the seat falling away is normal. I was rear ended in 1996 in a Geo Prism(same body as the toyota corolla). The back of the drivers seat fell away from me as well. I did ask my brother about it and he said that's what cars are designed to do. My brother is an ASE certified Master Mechanic---he went to school in Nashville. So I hope that eases your mind.

Susan

So I think there is a small misunderstanding here. The seat of a car should NEVER "fall away" in a accident. The seat is there to support your body and keep you in place. If the seat was designed to move, the other saftey systems on the vehicle would not be able to protect you. Infact a "falling away" seat is a leading factor is submarining out from under a seat belt in a multiple impact collision. In this case the "falling away" seat could lead to a decapitation (less than plesent).

More modern vehicles have stronger seats but older less expensive cars are known to have weak seats that could buckle in a crash.

Safe vehicles have seats capable of withstanding impacts up to 60+ mph without seat deformation.

I would never want my child to be in a "falling away" seat.

ASE tech school is for vehicle repair and maintance not for automotive engineering and vehicle colision dynamics.

PS. Saab does have a seat designed to reduce impact forces in a rear impact and it does alow the seat back to move upon impact. This seat however has a hinge that moves and then allows the seat to move both down and back. But this system has designed the other safety systems to allow for such seat movement. No other automakers offer such features.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
For the seatback to disengage and fully recline in a rear end crash is definitely not normal. That indicates a major failure of the mechanism. Sadly, this has been a problem with a variety of vehicles from many manufacturers over the years. I've never heard that manual or power seats are more at risk. I'm sure either one is likely to fail if it has a bad design.

Since there is no government testing for this, we are pretty much relaint on the manufacturers to produce seats that perform well in a crash. While fatal rear-enders are relatively uncommon, many serious injuries can occur with poor head restraint and seat design. The new IIHS rear crash tests do address this for a relatively low speed impact, but it's probably not high enough to assess the failure point. Saab and Volvo have been leaders in seat and head restraint design and their models have done well in the IIHS testing. Hopefully, other manufacturers will follow their efforts.
 

Car-Seat.Org Facebook Group

Forum statistics

Threads
219,656
Messages
2,196,898
Members
13,530
Latest member
onehitko860

You must read your carseat and vehicle owner’s manual and understand any relevant state laws. These are the rules you must follow to restrain your children safely. All opinions at Car-Seat.Org are those of the individual author for informational purposes only, and do not necessarily reflect any policy or position of Carseat Media LLC. Car-Seat.Org makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis. If you are unsure about information provided to you, please visit a local certified technician. Before posting or using our website you must read and agree to our TERMS.

Graco is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org! Britax is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org! Nuna Baby is a Proud Sponsor of Car-Seat.Org!

Please  Support Car-Seat.Org  with your purchases of infant, convertible, combination and boosters seats from our premier sponsors above.
Shop travel systems, strollers and baby gear from Britax, Chicco, Clek, Combi, Evenflo, First Years, Graco, Maxi-Cosi, Nuna, Safety 1st, Diono & more! ©2001-2022 Carseat Media LLC

Top