Date: Mon, 14 Jun 2004 20:01:58 -0400 From: DustyRhoadesnospamcity.com Subject: Re: Which one of these cars are the safest, and which one should I get?
That $12,000 you want to spend will probably cover the cost of getting those things you mentioned added to any car, AFTER you buy the car of course. ;) mike hunt The Diesel wrote: > > I wish car manufacturers put roll bars in cars(made to protect from > roof collapse in a rollover and made in such a way as to not hurt the > driver or passengers in a side impact). > I wish car manufacturers would also use 4 point seat belts, and have > fire retardant fire shields around the fuel tank, as well as internal > fuel cell bladders like they have in professional race cars. > > Back to the subject, my budget is at the most $12,000. > These are the cars I'm considering based on the Crash Test Ratings. > > 2001/2002 Honda Civic Coupe with Side Air Bags > > 1999/2000 Volvo S80 > > 2003 Toyota Matrix with Side Air Bags > > 2003 Pontiac Vibe with Side Air Bags > > These are cars that are really a little out of my range, but I'm still > looking out to see if maybe I'll get lucky and there will be a high > milage car in my price range. > > 2002 Lexus ES300 with Side Air Bags > > 2003 Honda Accord Coupe with Side Air Bags > > 2003 Saab 9-5 with Side Air Bags > > 2002 Acura MDX with Side Air Bags > > There's one more car I wish I had more data about. > It's a high milage 1998 Lexus LS400, I know it does excellent in the > IIHS front offset crash test, and it does have side air bags, but > since there's no data about the side impact crash test or the rollover > resistance, unfortunately I don't think I could get it even if a high > milage one was in my price range. > > I have provied links to the crash test results to many of these cars > throughout the post. > > For me to even CONSIDER a car, it would have at least meet these > standards. > It would need at least 14 out of 15 stars in these 3 parts of the > crash tests. > 1(Front Offset Crash Test Rating for the driver), 2(Side Impact Star > Rating for the Front Seats), and 3(Rollover Resistance). > Also, VERY IMPORTANTLY a car has to have a CENTER fuel tank, and NOT a > rear fuel tank like a Town Car or Mustang or Pinto or Crown Victoria. > > Which car do you think is the safest car for that money? > I know that the obvious choice would be a 1999/2000 Volvo S80, but > when you do a lot of research, you realize that the 1999/2000 Volvo > S80 may not be as safe as you think. > First of all the Volvo S80 is a pretty unreliable car from what I've > read, but to me safety is SO important that even reliability and fuel > economy have to take a back seat to safety. > What I'm MOST concerned about ever being in a serious car accident > even more than death, is getting paralyzed or getting burned so badly > that you look like an alien and you look much worse than a Klingon or > a Reptilian Xindi. > I've seen burn victims on tv, that only wish they looked like a > Klingon or Reptilian Xindi instead of what they look like. > I'm really quite concerned about the rollover ratings, because the > other day I saw a show called something like "The Science of Crash > Tests" on The Discovery Science Channel, and they showed how a guy got > paralyzed with his Ford F-150 rolled over in an accident. > Then they actually did a rollover test of a Ford F-150 and also of a > Volvo SUV. > The F-150s roof COMPLETELY collapsed and if there was a person inside, > he/she would have been paralyzed if not dead. > The Volvo SUVs roof pretty much held its shape even after it rolled > over and over again. > That's one of the main reasons which I like the Volvo S80, I have a > feeling that even though the rollover rating for the 1999/2000 Volvo > S80 are not given, that the 1999/2000 Volvo S80 may likely have a 5 > star rollover resistance rating if it were tested. > I also feel that I'm correct in thinking that probably the roof of the > 1999/2000 Volvo S80 has a lot of structural reenforcement to prevent > it from collapsing in a rollover crash. > > I wish I could get the Toyota Matrix, but it looks just so tall and so > narrow, that I almost feel it's very likely to rollover in a side > impact or in a high speed turn. > If the Toyota Matrix was Short and Wide, then it would be the perfect > car for me as it would have a 5 star rollover rating instead of 4 > stars, and it's reliable and has good fuel economy as well, but > because it only has a 4 star rating in the rollover resistance test, > I'm leaning against it. > > Actually first I thought I'd get a 2001 Honda Civic Coupe with Side > Air Bags since it did pretty well in the crash tests, it had great > reliability, and it had great fuel economy as well, but my dad > basically made it clear that I would not be getting that car even > though I was going to buy it with my own money. > My dad said that since it only weighs 2500lbs, that it's an unsafe car > and the crash tests are all lies and propoganda so that the car > companies can get rich. > BTW, my dad drives a 2000 Lincoln Town Car, which in my opinon is a > LESS safe car than the Honda Civic Coupe with Side Airbags because of > its crash test results and the Lincoln Town Car's higher death rate, > its poor accident avoidance capability, and the FATAL flaw in the > Lincoln Town Car, it's REAR FUEL TANK which could rupture in a high > speed rear accident. > Well after my dad refused to allow me to get the Honda Civic, I > started looking at the 1999/2000 Volvo S80, and at first I was all set > on buying it, but then I realized that it's a very unreliable car and > that it would be in the shop a lot if I bought it. > I did think twice, but then I thought that safety is so important that > I could live with unreliability. > I then however discovered that maybe the 1999/2000 Volvo S80 is NOT as > safe a car as I had thought. > It's true that it did great in the NHTSA Side Impact Crash Tests, but > it was never tested in the Front Offset or Rollover Crash Tests by the > NHTSA so you don't get the whole picture. > 1999 Volvo S80 NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/804.html > To get the whole picture, I did a lot of research and I found the > results for the IIHS Front Offset Crash test, and the NCAP Crash Tests > for the 2000 Volvo S80. > I was Shocked that the 2000 Volvo S80 didn't do perfect in the IIHS > Front Offset Crash test, as you can see, the 2000 Volvo S80 did pretty > poorly in the Restraints/dummy kinematics category. > 2000 Volvo S80 IIHS Crash Test > http://www.hwysafety.org/vehicle_ratings/ce/html/00007.htm > > I found it almost mindboggling that Volvos Flagship Sedan(which I > previously thought to be the safest car of the 20th century)basically > got a D in the NCAP Front Offset Crash Test, but it got a B(85%) > overall because it got an A+ in the Side Impact NCAP Crash Test. > 2000 Volvo S80 NCAP Crash TEST > http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=4&id2=55 > Could it be true that a Volvo could produce a car that was so unsafe > in the front offset crash after all the money and research and hard > work they put into producing their flagship model? > > I wish I could afford the 2001 Volvo S80 since that got 5 stars in the > NHTSA Front Offset Crash test, while the 2000 Volvo S80 was untested > for the Front Offset test, but unfortunately the 2001 S80 is out of my > price range. > > One of 2 things have to be true, either the 1999/2000 Volvo S80 is a > VERY SAFE CAR and the NCAP are LYING and bias against Volvo, or > 1999/2000 Volvo S80 is perhaps the most overrated car ever in safety. > > There actually is some circumstancial evidence that the NCAP may > actually be bias agaisnt Volvo or something. > I mean look at how the 1998 Volvo S70 does excellent in the NHTSA > Front Offset Crash Test. > 1998 Volvo S70 NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/671.html > > Shockingly the same car the 1998 Volvo S70 does HORRIBLE(an F)in the > NCAP Front Offset Crash Test. > 1998 Volvo S70 NCAP Crash Test > http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=4&id2=54 > > After looking at all the results, 1 of 3 things must be true. > Either the NHTSA is bias in favor of Volvo, The NCAP is bias against > Volvo, or a North American 1998 Volvo S70 is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT > structurally than a 1998 European Volvo S70. > > 2003 Pontiac Vibe NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/2150.html > > 2003 Toyota Matrix NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/2149.html > > 2001 Honda Civic Coupe NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/1689.html > > 1995-2000 Lexus LS400 IIHS Crash Test > http://www.hwysafety.org/vehicle_ratings/ce/html/96031.htm > > 2000 Lincoln Town Car NHTSA Crash Test > http://www.nospam/NCAP/Cars/1003.html
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