statistically speaking...

[mr. fix it]

I made the mistake of watching a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan front corner impact test right after buying ours.

I will likely be killed or severely maimed if this happens since the steering column on every test is pushed to the passenger side which conveniently relocates the airbag approximately 1' to the right of the driver while pushing the drivers' head towards the windshield post...

 

[swisherred]

I made the mistake of watching a 2017 Dodge Grand Caravan front corner impact test right after buying ours.

I will likely be killed or severely maimed if this happens since the steering column on every test is pushed to the passenger side which conveniently relocates the airbag approximately 1' to the right of the driver while pushing the drivers' head towards the windshield post...

wow....just watched those...you are right. The whole column moves a foot to the right. Airbags dont help if they move.

 

[Big_John]

 

[MoparJim]

I LOVE this clip of Buster Keaton! What a perfectly executed stunt! Thanks so much for sharing this.

 

[FrankieD]

I am afraid not. To wit:

Thank you. I am now terrified to drive my 66 300.

 

[rapidtrans]

I was hit square on in my ‘14 300 right at the cowl/A pillar. The full size suv ran the red never hitting the brakes. Punted the big 300 right into the next lane over. Yeah, she dropped her phone when her airbags blew scaring her kids to death. Over $14k in repairs yet not one piece of glass was cracked nor airbag deploy. There’s a reason that 300 weighs more than my Monaco. If I had been driving my Neon or Monaco I’d have been ambulanced to Crittendon Hospital. Sheriff’s Deputy that heard the crash couldn’t believe I was standing in middle of intersection without a scratch.

 

[Mid70's Chrysler Fanatic]

Time for something newer swisherred! Like a fuselage! Uncomfortable shoulder belts, locking seat backs, less stabby dashes. Our car's are tanks, we are soft. Airbags work.

<snip>

Indeed. And as IIHS puts it in the video below, "you can't repeal the laws of physics." I figure my survival chances in my '74 wouldn't be great in an offset wreck against a Tahoe, maybe not so bad against a Smart Fortwo.

<snip>

Even the Chrysler imperial would fail on its passengers, just like the Chevy.

I think a '64-66 Imp would do suffer less damage than the '59 Chevy, but the driver would be just as dead. (Not that I want IIHS to test one, mind you.)

According to what I just looked up, a fusie or formal C-wagon is about 1000-1500 lb heavier than the Benz used in this test.

 

[3C's & a D?]

A medical expert once opined that the sudden stop in motion, from say 50mph to naught in a split second, in the event of an accident, is a major cause of death. That is, our internal organs can't withstand the forces involved, regardless of safety features in our cars.

Sudden deceleration syndrome will get you everytime.

 

[Lincsmoparmike]

Interesting if somewhat macabre discussion. Its the balance between primary safety (Driver competence, concentration, focus on what you are doing and obviously not being under the influence of drink or narcotics ) and secondary safety (air bags Anti lock brakes and all the other nanny safety devices we have in modern cars)
When the primary safety fails - through lack of concentration or incapacitation either by the driver or another road user then the secondary safety comes into play.
Modern cars encourage distraction of the driver by all sorts of devices which were unheard of back in the day, in car entertainment, smart phones, satnav and even internet access. Why? because most modern cars are dreary boxes and the drivers are not really driving them but just guiding them to the mall, work or some other destination - they do not engage the driver.
In contrast older cars were engaging in themselves, they were awkward, full of foibles and sometimes real pains in the butt - and actually just driving them was just interesting - entertaining and rewarding.
I have four cars and only one has a radio and two are old and dont have any form of in car entertainment and and they don't need it they are just fun to drive! My 68 Monaco will be the same when we get it rolling down the road - it wont need any sort of in car entertainment!

 

[Bill Watson]

The outcome would be a little different without that X-frame, not wildly different, but...

But that Chevrolet X frame had no side chassis frame. Only the "X". And the same goes for the 1959 Pontiac and Cadillac. An "X" but no side chassis frame. Could see the side of the car being pushed in due to the lack of side chassis framework. The 1959 Oldsmobile had a combination X and ladder frame under their cars.

For the unibody Lincolns, the big 131" wheelbase Lincolns were built 1958-60, and the 123"/126" wheelbase built 1961-69.

 

[DesertMopar]

I like this bumper sticker...

View attachment 382073

I might get one for the wagon But I'd want it to say..."No ***** Pillows, We Die Like Real Men!"

I have some of these stickers coming for my 67 Newport

 

[Mid70's Chrysler Fanatic]

FWIW, I have a copy of an article from Changing Times magazine about IIHS 45-mph crash tests (ca.1971) that pitted full-size cars against subcompacts of the same make. (They had to settle for a Dodge Colt to use with C-body.) A grainy photo shows the Colt folded like the Toyota Yaris in the above video; the Plymouth Fury looked rebuildable.