3rd Mar 2007, 06:34

14:49.

If you're the same person I've been arguing with, I don't get what you're saying. You just gave data that'd support my side. And yes, in offset crashes an SUV wouldn't take as much damage, however you made it sound like overall, SUVs are safer, which they are not and drivers of such vehicles shouldn't have the false sense of security.

And people are right, what the hell does this have to do with a ford fusion...

3rd Mar 2007, 07:20

Sorry, but in the real world large vehicles like SUVs are UNSAFE and cause MORE deaths and injuries per 100,000 miles driven then cars like the Honda Civic. You can make all the "physics" cases you want, but an unsafe vehicle is an unsafe vehicle.

And SUVs certainly cannot win when faced with a tractor trailer, so why don't you people drive those?

3rd Mar 2007, 18:59

6:34

If you have a 8000 lbs vehicle hitting a 3000lbs vehicle

The momentum of the heavier vehicle will do more damage.

The higher the center of gravity a vehicle = unstable

As far as cars vs. truck in crashing.

Trucks do not have to adhere to the same rules as passenger cars. They do not have to adhere to rollover rules or require door beams.

IMHO

Drive a 8000lbs civic.

4th Mar 2007, 12:53

Why on Earth would a truck or SUV NEED door beams?? They are made out of real steel.

5th Mar 2007, 16:42

Probably the funniest posts on this site are from those who keep ranting that rollovers are "unpredictable". NO rollover is unpredictable to a good driver. A good driver knows road conditions, his tire pressures, the roll tendency of his vehicle and the amount of surface roughness he is driving on based on temperature, oil content of the road surface, and inclement weather conditions.

SUV's are handled in emergency situations more by braking than by steering. You CANNOT jerk the steering wheel abruptly on an SUV. Of course, there again, all good drivers know this. In a situation where a car pulls unexpectedly into the path of an SUV the safest course for the SUV driver is to steer straight ahead and apply braking.

If people are not knowledgeable enough to predict ALL of their vehicles behaviors in ALL situations they should not be allowed to possess a driver's license for ANY motor vehicle.

7th Mar 2007, 11:13

No one but a VERY poor driver EVER gets in his vehicle without making sure all 4 tires are NOT FLAT (how anyone could get in a vehicle and drive off without knowing a tire was FLAT is unimaginable!!)

Also, all vehicles ALWAYS handle precisely the same in the same circumstances. To argue otherwise is to argue that there is some sort of "mystical" property to vehicles that gives them the free will to act differently in identical situations. Such an argument requires paranormal intervention, and although I don't rule out the existence of paranormal phenomena, I think it hardly applies to vehicle handling.

Road surface differences make a difference, yes, but a good driver can "read" road surface conditions and alter driving style accordingly.

The only wild card is the advent of outside factors such as other cars veering into your path or a child darting into the road.

In the case of a car veering into the path of an SUV, the safest course is to brake hard and hit the car, as swerving WILL cause a roll over, and, most likely also result in your hitting the car anyway.

In the case of a child running into the road, ANY maneuver to avoid the child is a MUST, whether your car rolls or not.

I've been in BOTH circumstances, and in both managed to avoid any serious harm to another person.

In one case another vehicle pulled into my path. I braked hard and hit the other car. Neither of us was hurt, though both vehicles were totalled.

In the case of the child running in front of me, I steered JUST ENOUGH, and VERY GENTLY, to avoid the child. A violent jerk of the wheel could (and probably would) have resulted in rolling over AND hitting the child.

I'm not saying that accidents CAN'T happen. What I am saying is that ALL vehicles handle in a VERY SPECIFIC way, and, like people, have unique characteristics that their drivers should become familiar with. I strongly support very intense driver-training and accident-avoidance classes for ALL drivers. It would cut the death toll on our highways tremendously.

Also, though I come across as pro-SUV, I AM NOT. I honestly wish the government would mandate that ALL vehicles sold for individual (not commercial) use be small, 4-cylinder vehicles that weigh less than 3000 pounds. We are using oil and fouling our atmosphere at an ALARMING RATE. However, our present government doesn't seem to be overly concerned with such matters. Until such time as large SUV's are outlawed, I have no choice as a loving family man than to INSIST that my family be in a heavier, safer vehicle to protect them from all the other SUV's out there (and virtually EVERY home on my street has AT LEAST one SUV).

My wife totally agrees, and often voices the wish that there WERE NO SUV's, but feels unsafe without one when 80% of the vehicles in our area are as large or larger than hers. I never worry about my wife being involved in a rollover (which would not hurt her anyway, as she wears her seat belt) because she is a highly skilled and very competent driver.

I personally DO drive a small, 4-cylinder car most of the time, as it is far more fuel efficient and I have enough confidence in my driving skills to not be as concerned about a serious accident.

Please DON'T construe my comments as "pro SUV", but rather "pro-family". I'd LOVE to see a country full of fuel efficient, smaller cars. I just wish we could reach that dream soon, but until we do, I feel a need to protect those that I love. I don't, for one moment, argue that a world free of SUV's would not be safer and kinder to the environment, but that day seems a long way off.

22nd Mar 2007, 05:12

11:13 Formula 1 drivers are without a doubt some of the best drivers in the world and there cars are built to have the most predictable highest limits in any vehicle and even they get into accident in there cars sometimes because something completely unpredictable happened that you, your wife or anyone on this forum could probably not even begin to comprehend so by your definition that makes us all bad drivers.

22nd Mar 2007, 08:17

Sorry, but your wife has allegedly learned to drive a car based on certain known characteristics, such as you turn the wheel right and the SUV goes right. That is NOT what happens when SUV high center of gravity takes over as the results are UNPREDICTABLE.

And if your wife feels safe driving the most UNSAFE vehicles on the road then she really should do some research into crash statistics.