Consumer Reports, generally, doesn't like SUVs either, not because of what happens to them in a wreck, but what happens to the passengers in the other car. One of the most important factors in a wreck is the relative weight of the vehicles involved. If two vehicles, each going 30 MPH, crash head on, that's a combined speed of impact of 60 MPH. However, suppose one weighs 5000 lbs, and the other weighs 2500 lbs. The heavier vehicle will continue forward (at reduced speed) while the lighter vehicle will be pushed backward. The result is that for the people in the heavier vehicle, they experience a sudden 20 MPH or so change in speed, while the people in the lighter vehicle experience a sudden 40 MPH or so change in speed. A lot of damage to passengers results when the car changes speed, but they don't, so they collide with the interior. In the above case, the people in the smaller vehicle have it a lot worse. In general, the people in the heavier vehicle will fare better than those in the lighter vehicle. Vanagons are heavy. At 09:56 PM 4/27/98 -0600, you wrote: >It made me wonder how safe are these boxes of delight?? Consumers >reports had rather nasty things to say about our beloved Vanagons. Bill (SE Arizona) (Bill@freeholder.com) HTTP://www.freeholder.com ---------------------------------------------------------- You can't do everything, but you can do something. You can't help everyone, but you can help someone. Even one candle helps to push back the darkness. |
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