A head-on collision with a semi? Sorry, I thought we were talking about realistic scenarios, not one-in-a-million freak accidents.

Why don't we talk about which cars are safest for driving through plate-glass windows and into huge vats of molten chocolate? Seems about as relevant to the topic if you ask me.

 

Those are great topics! For the niche market with drivers of convertables and drivers that have diabetics

Head on against a semi or a train will prolly result in your immediate demise regardless of what vehicle you are driving.

 

So...when was the last time you were on a two lane country highway? Which is where a lot of us good 'ol boys drive...Just saying that it's not a freak accident, it's what happens when someone crosses the line. And those semi's take up the WHOLE lane too, and often you don't have a shoulder to cling to.

 

i think it all goes back to what the one guy said bigger is better...i would feel pretty safe in a brand new f150 just as i would in my 91 but a small car not so much....andym it is actaully alot more likely here in coal country. actually my cousins sister died from getting hit head on by a coal truck the parents survived, granite it wasnt at a high rate of speed...^^^^^ exactly what i was thinking big red

.....but to each his own

 

Here in Missouri you're pretty likely to slam a semi hauling turkey's (4th in the nation) or a semi with a pot of cattle (3rd in the nation). Both would commonly be found on a narrow country road headed to or from no where.

 

It doesn't matter. It's not really the point of the thread.

Neither is comparing the safety of a 6000 pickup truck to that of a Honda civic. I don't know who brought small cars up anyway.. it sure wasn't mentioned in the OP and it's not a fair comparison by anyone's standards.

 

i thought i'd add my 2 cents here since i was in a offset head on less then a year ago. i was in my '00 excursion and other lady in a 2010 subi forester. all her air bags went off and she had no injurys. my bags did not go off, i got whiplash and still some neck issues but relatively minor injury's considering the impact. i was going 35mph and she was going around 30mph. my truck was totaled due to the frame being bent severely. her car was obviously totaled but it sure did a good job of protecting her. its better to replace a car then deal with long lasting injurys.

 

I don't think this is a new midsize SUV vs. old big truck discussion. Not really a honda vs semi discussion either. I think it's closer to old car's vs new car's safety. There are valid argument's for why people think the way they do, and no accident is the same. Personally, I feel that my truck has superior or equal safety to a new car or truck.

 

I thought the new 150/250's were heavier than the early 90's models? A heavier truck with airbags and crumple zones is going to be safer than a lighter truck without them.

 

i agree big red..... everyone has there own reasons and opinions why they think the one is better...i personally feel more safe in my 91 150

 

Out his driveway, vs a Camry.



Both Lost. Lots of damage. Minor injuries, lots of expenses.

 

lol camry did that.... I love my camry too.

Anyways, Andym. I brought the peterbuilt into this saying I would not want to be in it, in a accident. But, not with the scenarios these guys are coming up with.

1. With most I would kill the other driver and have to live with that.

Or 2 I try and avoid the hazard and roll my rig killing myself. We haul wood chips. Most loads are around 105,000. Yes, you come at me, I will not yield, sorry for your life but, you cant have mine... I hope I never have to watch that happen.

When the next fool crosses the line I rather be in a truck, yes. But not my 95.... I rater be in my Camry then that beast. Cant believe this thread is still going .

 

I'll take the ditch if there's no shoulder. You're going to die in a head on with a semi unless you're lucky. Probably be ok with a ride in a corn field or whatever is just off the road.
I've seen some pretty outlandish comments in here, many of which only reinforce my strong belief that people need to take a damn physics class to graduate high school. Energy is conserved, it is not lost, only transformed. Either the energy of an impact is dissapated as heat in the bending of the vehicle crumple zones, or it is turned into kinetic energy as the cars bounce off eachother. The heavier the car in the case of "bouncing" accelerates less than the lighter car, and the occupants of the lighter car are also accelerated more than the occupants of the heavier car. I would estimate that the new pickup trucks, which are both heavy and have crumple zones, are a hell of alot more safe to endure an accident in. Not a head on with a semi, or jumping the grand canyon, or having a 10,000# I-beam dropped on them, but an everyday, run of the mill accident between two passenger vehicles.
Two old school, body on frame vehicles of similar mass hit eachother, everyone is going to feel it.

If one of those vehicles was a bit more modern and had crumple zones meant to protect the occupants, those occupants would be better off. And to be precise, the other older vehicle would experience a bit less acceleration because some of the energy of the impact would be transformed into heat as the crumple zones of the newer vehicle bend up.

In any case, remember equal and opposite forces. An F-250 hits a Civic; both vehicles experience the same force. Force is the product of mass and acceleration. The F-250 has alot more mass, so to keep the equation satisfied, it accelerates less than the Civic. Less acceleration=less injury (unless the decreased acceleration comes at the cost of a crumpled passenger compartment).

Yes I'm a big nerd.

 

All I know is these are my experiences.

I have been rearended in a few times over the years in our 85, 95, and other 95 F150 and there was no damage. The two cars were totalled and the Chevy Suburban even had damage.

I had 40 mph offset head on collison in my truck with a Honda Odessy minivan, that pulled out in front of me in the rain, and all I had to do was get a new front bumper. The minivan wasn't drivable.

I had a 60 mph colision in the old 95 with the rear corner/side of a 2000 F150, that drove across the access road in front of me after exiting the freeway, and my truck didn't look all to bad, but the frame was bent, and there were no injuries.

I had a severe high speed accident in the 85 with a large oak tree, which totalled the truck. There were no real injuries, just bumps and bruises.

 

I have know people that have come out in good shape and not so good shape after various types of accidents in either type of vehicle. I know that some of the new cars are safer, but I'm not convinced they all are.