zoom44

Cars arnet doing very well in the bumper tests at low speeds. the top 3 performers were Galant, Camry and Mazda6 in that order.

the full article along with links to the full test reults and a video can be found at the autochannel:

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2...01/038690.html

here's the list

Bumper performance in low-speed crash tests:
VEHICLE REPAIR COSTS
Front full Front corner Rear full Rear corder TOTAL DAMAGE
Mitsubishi Galant $929 $1,138 $1,048 $1,162 $4,277
Toyota Camry $936 $1,467 $1,480 $1,028 $4,911
Mazda 6 $978 $1,384 $1,202 $1,397 $4,961
Ford Fusion $1,620 $991 $1,298 $1,121 $5,030
Volvo S40 $2,252 $1,306 $802 $1,240 $5,600
Kia Optima $1,730 $1,534 $1,715 $756 $5,735
Saturn AURA $1,032 $1,152 $3,191 $999 $6,374
Nissan Altima $945 $969 $3,114 $1,431 $6,459
Chevrolet Malibu $1,268 $1,610 $2,542 $1,226 $6,646
Subaru Legacy $3,911 $1,287 $1,122 $1,128 $7,448
Chrysler Sebring $1,084 $2,061 $3,210 $1,099 $7,454
Hyundai Sonata $4,312 $1,349 $739 $1,165 $7,565
Honda Accord $3,469 $1,169 $2,767 $605 $8,010
Volkswagen Passat $4,594 $1,544 $982 $1,139 $8,259
Pontiac G6 $4,588 $1,183 $1,638 $1,510 $8,919
Volkswagen Jetta $2,598 $1,223 $3,375 $1,824 $9,020
Nissan Maxima $4,535 $1,732 $1,787 $997 $9,051
1981 Ford Escort $86 $0 $383 $0 $469
Note: Sonata repair costs reflect reduced parts pricing, effective Jan. 2007

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Well, I knew about that already, Last time I had a little hit like maybe 20 mph, cost me 800 bucks including labor repaint and stuff.

*sigh*

http://video.msn.com/v/us/v.htm?g=E3...efault&fg=copy

rodrigo67

That sucks...and then you think how low the RX8 bumber is, you know it's gonna cost some bucks...

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

stop hitting stuff.

NgoRX8

iTrader: (1)

20 mph collision=800 bucks? sounds lucky compared to what it says on that news report.

New Yorker

It's an outrage. Not just that bumpers aren't doing their job in low-speed impacts (which is the big story), but also the fact that the bumpers themselves are so easily scarred when some ignorant moron—who's been taught "bumpers are for bumping!" by their equally ignorant moron parent—taps one while parallel parking.

Bumpers were pretty effective until 1982 when they lowered the standard from 5mph to 2 1/2, after Reagan took office. (I'm sure it's a coincidence.) Hey, there are stupid federal regs that hamper industry—but this was NOT one of them.

zoom44

interesting that i watched the today show today but didnt see their report . i read about it in my morning news reading

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=110679

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

If it wasnt that freaking bitch who just tried to past me from the right with her ultra slow *** beat up garbage Ford ....... I could've spent that money on an exhaust !

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

wtf ? 2 and a Half ? Yes ! now , careful everyone, I mean ppl thats on my *hate* list .....

Man, bumpers these days are only there to *show* .... they dont do ****.

NgoRX8

iTrader: (1)

that's true.... i hate having to repair. less money for mods

Aipex8

iTrader: (1)

I think car manufacturers see a bumper (I mean the actual structure under the bumper cover) as a device to protect the people in the car, not the car itself. Obviously repair costs are going to be higher when a car with a bumper cover is in a small accident. Would you rather go back to the days of ugly metal or unpainted black rubber external bumpers?

New Yorker

You make a good point that many don't realize: while cars in low-speed collisions incur more damage than cars 25 years ago, the occupants are much, much safer—as the cars are absorbing forces that used to be transmitted to the occupants.

Still… I wish there was a way our bumpers could withstand a very gentle 'tap' (like when parallel parking) totally unscathed.

And, of greater importance, in low-speed collisions (5mph and under), isn't there a way cars could safely protect passengers (as they now do) AND sustain only minor damage? I suspect they could if the government mandated it. (Or maybe they'll do it voluntarily—though for some reason I don't think that's gonna happen.)

zoom44

well there is another issue going on here as well and that is one of definition.

the bumper is not the exterior part of the vehicle that is the lower area of the front and rear fascia- that is a bumper cover. the bumper is actually under that steel/plastic/composite. its the steel bar that is under there that actually does the work of protecting the car components from damage. and its the bumper cover taking most of the damage in these tests.

the example of the old escort muddies the facts as it actually has a bumper that is external of any coachwork. the rest of the cars have bumpers that are covered by exterior bodywork- a bumper cover.

but a good point the IIHS makes is that many of the hidden bumpers do not adequately protect things like headlight/turnsignal combos. thats because the bumper does not extend to the sides all the way out to the corner. in most cases (like our 8 and the 6) it stops before getting in front of the wheels.

all auto makers would have to do, to reduce the costs associated with the types of accidents portrayed by the tests, would be to extend the bumpers out to the corners. this would add weight of course and cost at the out set.

also crumpling hoods will be more and more common as new pedestrian friendly regulations come on line. like the hood of the 8 cars will be switching to more pedestrian friendly designs to meet new euro-standards. anytime something hits the car from the front above the bumper it will be damaging to the hoods- but then thats the point.

zoom44

there is-

1. make it the law that all vehicles have a bumper external of the body work that extends the full width of the vehicle.

2. make it the law that all of the above bumpers be at the same height above the road surface no matter the size /height / styling of the vehicle.

CarAndDriver

"Testing for the first time by the Virginia-based Institute found that only three midsize vehicles — the Mitsubishi Galant, Toyota Camry and Mazda 6 — sustained less than $1,500 in repairs from each of the four crash tests.".....

"The full-front test represents a common situation where a car hits the rear of another vehicle that has stopped in traffic. In this test, the bumpers on only four cars — the Galant, Camry, Mazda 6, and Saturn AURA — stayed engaged with the test barrier instead of going under or over it. The result was lower damage totals than other cars in the same test. Damage to 3 of these 4 cars totaled less than $1,000, and the AURA was the only car among the 17 tested to limit damage to the bumper itself in the full-front test without getting into the car body.

"This test should be easy if cars had well-designed bumpers because the energy of the crash can be spread across the whole front of the car. Instead some cars sustained more damage in this test than the other three," Lund points out. The Nissan Maxima, Pontiac G6, and Volkswagen Passat each sustained more than $4,500 damage in the full-front test. Costly repairs were required to the cars' hoods, fenders, and headlights as well as air conditioning condensers.

"A big problem is that the Maxima, G6, and Passat underrode the barrier," Lund says. "Our research shows that this is also what happens in many real-world crashes. The bumper bar on the Passat, which is supposed to take the hit and absorb the energy in the crash test, wasn't even damaged. The car's grille, hood, fenders, and headlights were damaged instead."

Results were similar in the rear tests. Reducing the damage required the bumpers to engage the barrier and absorb the energy of the impact, but this mostly didn't happen. A relatively good performer in the full-rear test was the Hyundai Sonata. Its bumper did engage the barrier, and most of the damage was limited to the bumper (minor repair of the rear body panel also was required). Total damage came to $739.

Good bumper performance requires not only engagement with the test barrier but also strength sufficient to absorb the energy of a low-speed crash. Hyundai engineers strengthened the Sonata's bumper after learning about the Institute's upcoming series of new tests.

In contrast to the Sonata, the bumpers on other cars did slide under the barrier, and damage was much worse. The Chrysler Sebring, Nissan Altima, Volkswagen Jetta, and AURA sustained more than $3,000 damage apiece in the full-rear test."....

Full Press Release here: http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr030107.html

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

I think that's going to be hard, cuz people these days, demanding more and more performance, thats a good thing, but government and environmentalist always push for more and more emission reducing laws, thats also a good thing.

but there's a conflict in between Performance and Protect the earth.

The easiest way to increase performance? Cut the weight. I think thats what we're seeing right now. They dont care if you have to buy a new bumper for a 5mph *tap*.