From: jimf@centerline.com (Jim Frost)
Newsgroups: rec.autos
Subject: Re: Air bag tests
Date: 18 Nov 1992 15:09:00 GMT
Organization: CenterLine Software, Inc.
NNTP-Posting-Host: 140.239.3.202

tf26+@andrew.cmu.edu (Truman Fenton) writes:
>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.

A few points:

1. I mentioned safety statistics that originally came from the NHTSA
   that showed just one car of the top ten as having a passenger-side
   airbag.  In contrast the driver-side statistics had eight of ten
   with airbags if I remember right.  That formed the basis of my
   statement.  I mentioned that the passenger-side statistics might be
   skewed because few cars currently have passenger-side air bags.

2. The passenger does not accellerate over that distance, he continues
   going the same speed he was before the car stopped/slowed, and
   *that's* only true if he wasn't wearing his seat-belt.  If he *was*
   wearing his seat belt the longer the distance the better the
   decelleration since it gives the belt stretching distance.

3. NHTSA statistics show that airbags have relatively little impact on
   whether or not injuries occur, but major impact on the extent of
   head injuries.

>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.

One more: passengers in the rear seat(s) who have only lap belts have
a higher incidence of back and neck injury than those wearing no
restraint at all.  It seems that hitting the front seat with your head
while scissoring forward is not particularly healthy.  A shoulder belt
in the back seat is a necessity IMHO, and I'm very glad to see that
most new cars have them.

jim frost
jimf@centerline.com
Newsgroups: rec.autos