NHTSA Revises Crash Standards To Thwart 5 Star Crash Ratings

The NHTSA Administrator David Strickland announced that the company plans to revise its five-star crash safety program and add new tests for vehicles.

The five-star crash safety program currently relies on the frontal crash test, to determine how well a car’s passengers would fare in a head-on crash. Strickland said NHTSA engineers are now analyzing ‘small overlap’ crashes, when a corner of the front bumper hits an object, and oblique crashes, when the vehicle hits an object at an angle. The ‘small overlap’ test, which is similar with the one of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, will replicate the small-overlap crashes in a realistic way. By adding more tests, it will be harder for automakers to earn the five-star rating.

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Steve - 1/21/2013 1:19:56 PM

+1 Boost

Talk about skewed "reporting". The NHTSA is attempting to create standardized tests that accurately and reproducibly reflect real-world scenarios in order to predict the degree of injuries a vehicle's occupants are likely to sustain in typical vehicular incidents. Unfortunately, auto-makers are aware of the details of these tests, and so they (typically) design and build their cars to pass these *specific* *tests*, rather than making their cars as safe as feasible.

This can be likened to being a college student, knowing what's on the exam, and then memorizing only the material that will appear on the exam while skipping other classes and assignments. The NHTSA (professors) want to make sure the car makers (students) make genuinely safer cars (get a well-rounded and meaningful education). The objective is NOT to "thwart 5 star crash rating" (ensure the students get poorer grades).

Agent009 - 1/21/2013 3:35:45 PM

-4 Boost

It sounds like they are trying to make the vehicle the equivalent to the bullet proof vest. After that goal is accomplished they will look at lower speed limits to make sure the cover bases.

Steve - 1/22/2013 10:40:52 AM

+3 Boost

009: Your rhetoric reminds me of folks who's reaction to any discussion about any firearm regulation is, "The next thing you know, the Blue Helmets will be marching in and we'll all be socialist slaves."

*I* believe the NHTSA is not attempting to force auto-makers to create "the equivalent of bullet-proof vests", but rather, just raising the bar a notch or two to foster the development of yet safer vehicles. I'm glad folks with your attitude didn't slow the development and implementation of seat belts, ABS, progressive-deformation body panels, etc.

And by the way, do you have something against bullet-proof vests? If you do, talk to the good American people on our streets and abroad (police and soldiers) who use them, and owe their life to them. I think they're a good idea; but hey, everyone's entitled to their own opinion, right?