Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - SUVs: A Rugged Right or Real Life Carmageddon?

Cynthetiq · 05-10-2004, 06:14 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by shakran
there was a documentary I saw about a year ago that was very enlightening as to the popularity of SUV's. It wasn't even a car documentary - it was about how corporations can, with enough money, get the government to do damn near anything. Turns out when compact cars threatened to take over the market, and therefore reduce profits since no one's gonna pay as much for a Civic as they would for a DeVille, the American auto industry got the government to endorse some bullshit studies that said small cars are horribly unsafe. There were even PSA's run that encouraged people to be careful about buying a small car due to the supposed danger.

People took that idea to its logical conclusion that the bigger the car, the safer it is. That's one reason this idiotic myth that SUV's are so much safer than cars is around today.

`

I think you are talking about the FrontLine episode... I forgot about that...thanks for the reminder... and here's a link to the show http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/rollover/

some interesting points:

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There will be an estimated 70,000 SUV rollovers in 2002, in which it's estimated 2000 people will die.

In the 10-year period during which Ford-Firestone related rollovers caused some 300 deaths, more than 12,000 people -- 40 times as many -- died in SUV rollover crashes unrelated to tire failure.

A Ford Explorer is 16 times as likely as the typical family car to kill occupants of another vehicle in a crash.

1 out of 4 new vehicles sold in the U.S. is an SUV, making it the most popular type of vehicle in America. The Ford Explorer is the most popular SUV in the world.

Quote:

What is CAFE?
As part of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) requires automakers to comply with gas mileage or fuel economy standards set by the Department of Energy. The current CAFE standard for cars is 27.5 miles per gallon (mpg), and has not changed since 1986. The current CAFE standard for light trucks -- including SUVs -- is 20.7 mpg. This standard has been in place since 1996.

But don't some SUVs get significantly less than 20.7 miles per gallon?
Yes. CAFE is an average standard applied on a fleet-wide basis for each manufacturer. So, for example, the fuel economy ratings for a manufacturer's entire line of light trucks must average at least 20.7 mpg for the manufacturer to comply with the standard.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the most fuel efficient SUV is the Toyota RAV4, which gets 25 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway. There is a three-way tie for least efficient SUV: the Land Rover Range Rover, Cadillac Escalade, and GMC K1500 Yukon Denali all get 12 mpg in the city and 15 mpg on the highway.

and

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How serious is the motor vehicle rollover problem in the U.S. today?
Single-vehicle rollovers (for all vehicles, not just SUVs) cause more fatalities than any other kind of motor-vehicle accident -- one-quarter of all deaths yearly. In 1999, 63 percent of all SUV deaths were in rollovers.

Do SUVs have higher rollover rates than other types of vehicles?
Yes. In 2000, SUVs had the highest rollover involvement rate of any vehicle type in fatal crashes -- 36 percent, as compared with 24 percent for pickups, 19 percent for vans and 15 percent for traffic cars. SUVs also had the highest rollover rate for passenger vehicles in injury crashes -- 12 percent, as compared to 7 percent for pickups, 4 percent for vans and 3 percent for passenger cars.

What can be done to improve the stability of SUVs and make them less likely to roll over?
Engineers and safety experts have long agreed that the best way for manufacturers to make SUVs more stable (less likely to roll over) is to lower the center of gravity and widen the wheel track. However, such fundamental changes to an SUV's design are costly, and automakers have often chosen less expensive (and less effective) design modifications.

What can the driver do to reduce rollover risk?
Here are five things NHTSA says a driver can do to reduce the risk of rollover:

Avoid conditions that could lead to loss of vehicle control. These conditions include driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs; driving when excessively drowsy; and speeding.
Be careful on rural roads.
Avoid extreme panic-like steering. NHTSA advises, "If your vehicle should go off the roadway, gradually reduce the vehicle speed and then ease the vehicle back on to the roadway when it is safe to do so."
Maintain tires properly and replace them when necessary.
Load vehicles properly. When loaded down with additional weight -- such as passengers, luggage, and equipment -- SUVs become less stable. Compared to most sedans and station wagons, SUVs have a higher center of gravity. Therefore the extra weight, which typically rides above an SUV's center of gravity, makes the vehicle tip more easily.

Are SUVs safer or more dangerous than other vehicles in non-rollover crashes, such as front- and side-impact collisions?
It depends. SUVs offer better protection to their own occupants in multi-vehicle crashes, such as front- and side-impact collisions. However, SUVs are more likely to injure or kill the occupants of other vehicles in a crash. The increasing size of SUVs, and thus their increasing incompatibility with smaller passenger cars, is a growing problem and is likely to result in increasing fatalities.

Is the Ford Explorer more rollover-prone than the dozens of other SUVs?
No. According to federal data and safety ratings, the four-door Explorer's rollover record is pretty typical of midsize SUVs.

Has Ford changed the design of the Explorer?
Yes. The 2002 four-door Explorer model is lower and its wheelbase has been widened by two inches. Former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser tells FRONTLINE that the changes were not made for safety reasons.

Has the Ford-Firestone scandal had an impact on sales of the Ford Explorer?
The Explorer lost market share but remains the best-selling SUV in the world.