CRASH TESTS ONLY TELL ONE CHAPTER OF SAFETY STORY:
SAAB SAFETY PHILOSOPHY PUTS REAL LIFE RESULTS FIRST
1998 EuroNCAP crash test results state that Saab 9-5 "provided the best protection for the driver and passenger in a frontal impact" of all cars tested
The Saab 9-5 achieved the highest point rating of any car tested to-date during the 1998 European New Cars Assessment Program (EuroNCAP). The September 1998 round of testing included such Saab competitors as the Volvo S70, BMW 5 series, Mercedes Benz E-Class and Audi A6. Each car tested was subjected to a laboratory front offset test, conducted at 40 mph into a deformable barrier, as well as side impact and pedestrian/car collision simulations. The EuroNCAP test program is conducted annually, and is supported by the British Department of Transport, the Federation Internationale de L'Automobile (FIA), the Swedish National Road Administration, the 9.2 million member British Automobile Associations and several European consumer group and motorist organizations. Despite the Saab 9-5's excellent performance in the EuroNCAP test, Saab Automobile AB's safety philosophy places little importance on single laboratory tests. The company feels strongly that single tests should not be considered indicative of a car's crashworthiness, as each only reflects a small element of a car's crash safety level. What counts for Saab-and Saab owners-- is how the car performs in its natural environment - on the road. This is the foundation of the Saab Real-life Safety philosophy. Saab has always regarded occupant safety as one of the most important attributes of its cars. Safety was crucial to the aeronautical engineers who designed the first Saab cars at the end of the 1940s. Equally important was their determination to supplement laboratory crash tests with knowledge of how the car behaved in actual accidents on real roads. Saab does not build cars with different safety specifications. Whether cars are bound for retail in Europe, Asia or the U.S., one safety standard exists for all Saabs. In addition, all new Saab designs are subjected to many more crash tests than mandated by various government agencies. The Saab 9-5 has been subjected to 40 different crash test variations, whereas only 11 are mandatory. In addition to this, Saab performs a substantial number of computer crash simulations before the car even enters the crash laboratory. Over the years, Saab cars have achieved top ratings in leading independent research studies, including ones developed by the Swedish insurance company Folksam. In addition, Saab cars consistently score extremely well in such real-life fatality rate and insurance injury claim indices as those published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI).
Accident Research
The most important validation of Saab safety is the data collected from Saab's own
accident research. Since 1971, Saab has been continually investigating Swedish road
accidents in which Saab cars have been involved. The Saab database now has information
on more than 5,000 serious road accidents. The accident investigations provide a wealth
of statistical information, but the most important knowledge is gained from the detailed
examination undertaken by Saab's own expert team of crash safety engineers. An important
element in the accident investigations is the analysis of the results carried out by the
safety engineers together with Saab's medical expert. This provides the safety
engineering team with a continuous flow of unique knowledge of how their designs perform
in real life. The experience obtained from accident investigations is also very
important when designing the various collision tests that Saab performs. "Using
experience from real life to make cars safer in real life has always been the natural way
of working for Saab engineers", according to Saab's Senior Safety Engineer Christer
Nilsson. "This is the essence of the Saab 'Real-life Safety' approach."
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