MSNBC: Mid-size car bumper tests **UPDATE** Same cars, now high-speed crash testing

[NFS4]

http://www.msnbc.com/news/755983.asp

We start with the luxury cars ? priced at $34,000 or more. First up is the Lexus ES 300. The damage is over $500 each in three of the four different tests.
That?s too much to get the Institute?s highest rating. But the ES 300 does get the next best thing, an acceptable.
They tested another Lexus ? the IS 300. In test number one, it received almost a $1000($977) in damage. Test number two ? $1,341. And in the pole test? Nearly $1,190.
?Expensive cars typically have got more expensive parts, so you may get the same kind of damage, but the repair bills will be higher because the parts on luxury cars tend to be more expensive,? says O?Neill.
The IS 300 gets the Institute?s lowest rating, a poor.
Next is the Volvo S60. ?It doesn?t look like a lot of damage when you take a quick look at it, but underneath this cover there?s a lot of damage,? says O?Neill. ?Damage to the frame rails, damage to the bumper bar all of which adds up to over $800 in repair bills.?
The S60?s repair costs in just the pole test at five miles an hour is almost $1700. ($1,681)
It too gets a poor rating.

 

[BCYL]

Looks like Toyota wins it all

 

[Atrail]

My Grandma backed into a tree which busted her rear tail light, you know the red cover part.
$189.64
The guy said he did not charge for the labor either.
2002 Mercury Grand Marquis
alittle irrelevant considering this is a Full-Size but she got it fixed yesterday and it made me mad.

 

[Nefrodite]

yup, many cars, from small to suv suffer expensive damage at low mph. but i suppose the priority should be to keep the passenger safe

 

[NFS4]

It's on Dateline NBC right now

 

[SuperTool]

That is only important if you are stupid enough to back into a pole
If you are aware of your surroundings and your car's dimensions, you don't have much to worry about.

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: SuperTool
That is only important if you are stupid enough to back into a pole
If you are aware of your surroundings and your car's dimensions, you don't have much to worry about.

Remember, SH!T happens. While you may be a perfect driver, it sucks to be on the receiving end of a jackass that hits your car in the parking lot and leaves.

Don't laugh, this actually happened to me in High School.

 

[zippy]

That Volvo S60 is probably going to keep the passengers safer at higher speed crashes (as per Volvo's history and reputation) even though the car might cost more to get fixed at low speed accidents. I don't see this test as an indication of the quality of build for Volvos. There are trade offs.

If you aren't stupid, you shouldn't get into those kind of accidents anyway...and if it is caused by someone else, who cares how much it costs? Insurance pays...sure you pay the deductable, but that would be even across the board for all cars if you had the same insurance plan on all cars.

 

[vi edit]

In fact only two mid-size cars have gotten good ratings ? the moderately priced Volkswagen Passat and the inexpensive Saturn L-series.

Woohoo! Go passat!

 

[Cyberian]

MSNBC: Mid-size car bumper tests

Maybe auto manufacturers should actually make 'bumpers' do what they were originally designed to do!

 

[Evadman]

I got backed into @ school as well. aIt seems to ahve been a truck with a hitch, because there was a square dent in my hood. That was back when I had my Prelude. I actually miss that car.

 

[Spoooon]

"If you own a Camry and are about to back up into something, try and hit it dead center."

 

[NFS4]

http://www.msnbc.com/news/758247.asp

High-speed crashes up next on Dateline

 

[ElFenix]

its really hard to design a part to collapse and still make it strong enough to hold up under an impact, and it gets worse the heavier the car is.

 

[NFS4]

ALL of the cars tested got a GOOD rating. I was impressed.

All of the Toyota's (Camry, IS300, ES300) got Top Picks

 

[prontospyder]

Nissan's Altima did well too....I'm glad that Nissan is emphasizing safety now (along with style, performance, quality too)

 

[Ultima]

why only 40mph into a non-moving barrier? That's just like a 20mph head on. ooohhh 20mph! I want to see 110mph crashes into a non-moving barrier (55mph head-on), which is what would happen if you drift across the line on a rural highway.

 

[Nefrodite]

Originally posted by: Ultima
why only 40mph into a non-moving barrier? That's just like a 20mph head on. ooohhh 20mph! I want to see 110mph crashes into a non-moving barrier (55mph head-on), which is what would happen if you drift across the line on a rural highway.

cuz u die? those rural highways without barriers are deathzones.

 

[Adul]

55?hell try head on at 65, 75, 85... I doubt a car will look like a car after that.

 

[rufruf44]

As long as the cage holds up and protect the passenger, I couldnt care less what the car looks like

 

[Doggiedog]

Now if Toyota can make a bumper that doesn't scratch up so easily I'd be really happy.

My rear bumper looks like a chalk board with scratches and nicks and cuts everywhere. Every car I see that is my model has the same kinds of scratches regardless. I didn't cause one of those scratches either. Makes my car look really cheap.

Toyota should do what BMW did and get a rubber molding on their bumpers so it would take a bit of the force away.

My 7 YO BMW's bumpers are in much better shape than my 3 YO Lexus'.

 

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Now if Toyota can make a bumper that doesn't scratch up so easily I'd be really happy.

My rear bumper looks like a chalk board with scratches and nicks and cuts everywhere. Every car I see that is my model has the same kinds of scratches regardless. I didn't cause one of those scratches either. Makes my car look really cheap.

Toyota should do what BMW did and get a rubber molding on their bumpers so it would take a bit of the force away.

My 7 YO BMW's bumpers are in much better shape than my 3 YO Lexus'.

I have painted bumpers on my '95 Camry...no scratches here, just bug splats on the front (which I will clean off when I go to the car wash tomorrow) and clean as a whistle at the back.