Newsgroups: rec.autos
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 10:34:00 -0500 
From: Truman Fenton <tf26+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Air bag tests
	<1992Nov9.203518.20097@newsgate.sps.mot.com>

In article <1dm08oINNc3s@armory.centerline.com>, jimf@centerline.com (Jim Frost
) writes:
|> lmcstst@noah.ericsson.se (Stamos Stamos) writes:
|> >From a local paper: Air Bags offer best protection, test show
|> 
|> The newest Motor Trend has a "Top Ten" article which includes the top
|> ten cars with the lowest driver head injuries (I was impressed to find
|> that mine was one of them).  There are a number of other
|> safety-related top-ten lists too.
|> 
|> Cars with air-bags had a remarkable number (nearly all) of the top-ten
|> safety spots for driver head injuries and driver chest injuries.
|> Passenger injury statistics showed no such obvious trend (perhaps
|> because few cars have two air bags, although my feeling is that the
|> driver needs it more because of the steering wheel).

I would have to disagree.  My father is a Radiologist in West Texas and
has seen a great number of car accident victoms.  He says that while the
steering wheel is more likely to cause facial injuries, the passenger in
the front seat is in the most dangerous position without an airbag. 
According to my father, the steering column absorbs the impact earlier
and collapsable steerig columns allow a longer distance for
deceleration.  As for the passenger, s/he travels at a great velocity
and stops instantly upon impacting the dash board.  Since the distance
over which the passenger's body accererates is much greater, the
passenger impacts at a much greater velocity.  Furthermore the impact
causes a sudden deceleration -- dashboards only give about a 1/4 inch or
so.  This sudden impact is more traumatic and can cause muck more
serious internal injuries.

The best solution for everyone is a helmet, a four point harness, AND
and airbag!  More realistically two airbags in the front of the car.

Another point of interest:  Passengers in the rear seat(s) who are not
wearing restraints are the most dangerous threat to those in the front
seats.  In a head-on collision the front seat passengers experience
traumatic accelerations, but if a passenger in the rear of the vehicle 
is not wearing a seatbelt, then their body will hit the back of the
front seat with a tremendous amount of momentum thus collapsing the seat
-- unless it is a Mercedes or a Volvo -- and inflict tremendous injury
upon the person in the front seat.  NOTE:  this goes for large pets as
well!!!

Just some thoughts,
Truman
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Truman Fenton                         ||   Home/Work Phone:  (412) 268-4936
INTERNET:  tf26@andrew.cmu.edu        || 
                                      ||   1060 Morewood Ave 
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What I believe:  (A comprehensive list.)
  a)  An examined life is worth living.
  b)  True love DOES exist, you just have to find it.  (Or let it find you.)
  c)  Our environment MUST be preserved, restored, conserved.
  d)  There is a piece of wilderness in all of us.
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