Feds Cite "Safety Concern" on 2008 Smart Fortwo

[NANCYSMART 0]

Hello,

I found that the US organization Safercar.gov (NHTSA) just tested the Smart. Thought you'd like to see the results. There's video of both tests on there too.

http://www.safercar.gov/portal/site/saferc...s=Passenger+Car

this is the home page, if that doesn't come up: http://www.safercar.gov/

Edited April 3, 2008 by NANCYSMART

[ianjay 6]

Can't get the link to work or the home page to explain its rating.Ian

[rawlus 0]

ratings described here (PDF)

[rawlus 0]

crash test results here

[MikeT 744]

Hmm, a door popped open, not good. Average rating overall....

[dancote 0]

Despite the high front and side impact ratings, NHTSA still expresses safety concerns. Read about it and see the video HERE

And be sure to read the "informed" comments.

Edited April 3, 2008 by dancote

[bilgladstone 13]

Um... yeah.

"... and it actually did earning four stars in the front crash test for both the driver and passenger and five stars in the side crash test, the highest number the federal agency gives." And Bubba goes on arguing that it still ain't safe.

Never let the facts get in the way of a really good opinion. It's a national tradition.

B

[emphasis is mine]

[Razorback 0]

Overall I'd say that it was good but the door opening was bad.

[Dave777 0]

It actually was 3* for the passenger, not 4*.

[smrtie 3]

NHTSA report in........

WASHINGTON - A government crash test of the 2008 Smart Fortwo micro car, the fuel-sipping vehicle that made its debut in the United States this year, has found a safety concern in side-impact testing, officials said Thursday.

During the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration side test on the Smart two-door, the driver door unlatched and opened. The government said that could lead to a driver or passenger being ejected from the 8-foot, 8-inch vehicle.

NHTSA, however, still gave the car its top score of five stars in side testing because of the ability of the car to protect the driver and passenger from injuries in a crash.

Rae Tyson, a NHTSA spokesman, said the rating is based on the level of protection that the vehicle provides to occupants, but it wanted to note a potential safety implication.

“Given the amount of attention on smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles in general and this vehicle specifically, we wanted to try to get the vehicle tested and the results out there as quickly as possible,” Tyson said.

A Smart spokesman did not immediately comment on Thursday. Smart, a division of Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz brand, began selling the cars in the United States in January.

Test results from the new micro car have been highly anticipated in the auto industry because of the vehicle’s miniature size and concerns that a driver or passenger would be more vulnerable in a crash.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a Virginia-based organization that also conducts crash tests, is completing testing on the Fortwo and is expected to release its findings later this month.

The French-made vehicle, which has been sold for about a decade in Europe, has a steel safety cage and four standard air bags, including two in front and two on the sides to protect the head and abdomen. It also has standard electronic stability control, which is designed to stop vehicles from swerving off the road.

Smart has said the vehicle is designed to receive a four-star crash rating from U.S. regulators.

In NHTSA’s testing, the Fortwo received four out of five stars in the front-end crash on the driver’s side. On the passenger side, it received three out of five stars.

In a December interview, Smart USA President Dave Schembri said every showroom would display the vehicle’s tridion safety cell, which protects occupants in a steel housing.

“We’re taking the safety story, and we’re telling it right on the showroom floor every day,” Schembri said. “Because once you walk people through that ... you get it, because you can see it. It acts very much like a NASCAR racing cage.”

The 1,800-pound car gets 33 miles per gallon in the city and 41 miles per gallon on the highway. Smart has marketed the vehicle as a good choice for consumers grappling with high gas prices and urban congestion but unwilling to sacrifice safety.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23940824/

[smrtie 3]

In the frontal crash the Fortwo got a 4-star for the driver, 3-stars for passenger.

Here is the official NHTSA link

http://www.safercar.gov/

Fill in the car details in the middle column.

pedro

Edited April 4, 2008 by smrtie

[MikeT 744]

Repost, and an interesting result. They need to redesign the doors, I am afraid!

[smrtie 3]

OOps, sorry for the repost

[MikeT 744]

Maybe a moderator can merge these threads? TIA

[MikeT 744]

Could a mod please merge this thread with the two other ones in the News and Entertainment forum?TIA

[smart142 605]

By KEN THOMAS

WASHINGTON (AP) — A government crash test of the 2008 Smart Fortwo micro car, the fuel-sipping vehicle that made its debut in the United States this year, found a safety concern in side-impact testing, officials said Thursday.

During the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration side test on the Smart two-door, the driver door unlatched and opened. The government said that could increase the likelihood of a driver or passenger being ejected from the 8-foot, 8-inch vehicle.

NHTSA, however, still gave the car its top score of five stars in side testing because of the ability of the car to protect the driver and passenger from injuries in a crash.

Rae Tyson, a NHTSA spokesman, said the rating is based on the level of protection that the vehicle provides to occupants, but it wanted to note a potential safety implication.

"Given the amount of attention on smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles in general and this vehicle specifically, we wanted to try to get the vehicle tested and the results out there as quickly as possible," Tyson said.

Ken Kettenbeil, a Smart spokesman, said the vehicle was designed to receive a four-star crash rating from U.S. regulators and the results were consistent with their expectations and similar tests in Europe. He called the safety concern in the side crash an "anomaly."

In other NHTSA tests, the Fortwo received four out of five stars in the front-end crash on the driver's side. On the passenger side, it received three out of five stars, meaning the passenger would face a 21 percent to 35 percent chance of serious injury.

In rollovers, the Fortwo received 3 out of 5 stars and had a 21 percent risk of rollover.

Smart, a division of Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz brand, began selling the cars in the United States in January.

Test results from the new micro car have been highly anticipated in the auto industry because of the vehicle's miniature size and concerns that a driver or passenger would be more vulnerable in a crash.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a Virginia-based organization that also conducts crash tests, is completing testing on the Fortwo and is expected to release its findings later this month.

The French-made vehicle, which has been sold for about a decade in Europe, has a steel safety cage and four standard air bags, including two in front and two on the sides to protect the head and abdomen. It also has standard electronic stability control, which is designed to stop vehicles from swerving off the road.

In a December interview, Smart USA President Dave Schembri said every showroom would display the vehicle's tridion safety cell, which protects occupants in a steel housing.

"We're taking the safety story, and we're telling it right on the showroom floor every day," Schembri said. "Because once you walk people through that ... you get it, because you can see it. It acts very much like a NASCAR racing cage."

The 1,800-pound car gets 33 miles per gallon in the city and 41 miles per gallon on the highway. Smart has marketed the vehicle as a good choice for consumers grappling with high gas prices and urban congestion but unwilling to sacrifice safety.

On the Net:

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's crash test and rollover ratings: http://www.safercar.gov

Smart USA: http://www.smartusa.com

Link.

[smart142 605]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The tiny Smart ForTwo, recently introduced in the U.S. car market, gave a less-than-stellar performance in its first crash test by the federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The FortTwo got four out of a possible five stars for protecting the driver in a front impact crash but just three stars for passenger protection. Three-star scores have become rare in government crash tests, with most newer models getting four- and five-star scores.

Three stars means an occupant stands a 21% to 35% chance of a serious injury in a front crash with a similar-sized vehicle. The chance of injury would be higher in an impact with a larger vehicle.

At just under nine feet long, the ForTwo is the smallest mass-market car sold in the United States.

In a side-impact crash test, the ForTwo got the highest possible score of five stars, but NHTSA added a "Safety Concern" note to the rating. The door popped open after the test.

While that doesn't affect the score, a "door opening during a side impact crash increases the likelihood of occupant ejection," the agency noted.

For rollover resistance, the ForTwo earned three stars. According to NHTSA's tests, it has 21% chance of rolling over in a crash.

No other passenger car - a group that excludes trucks, vans and SUVs - has a rollover rating below four stars, according to NHTSA. The cut-off for a four-star rollover resistance rating is a 20% chance of rollover.

All Smart cars are equipped with electronic stability control, a system that helps prevent skids and rollovers during quick maneuvers. NHTSA's three-star score takes that into account by adding to a vehicle's rating if it can complete a test maneuver without tipping..

A spokesman for Smart USA said the results were generally in line with the company's expectations. The company had said in the past that it expected the car to earn four-star crash test results.

Smart is a product of Germany's Daimler (DAI), which also makes Mercedes-Benz luxury cars.

First Published: April 3, 2008: 2:35 PM EDT

Link.

[Diesel Dave 11]

Funny how they always mention "Nascar". That's the only way "Bubba" can understand it. Sad.

[SmartieParts 12]

Could a mod please merge this thread with the two other ones in the News and Entertainment forum?TIA

Merged at your request... there were 5 topics that were parallel all discussing the same thing. I don't like to merge (just try reading the above and tell me it still flows) but it was getting a bit silly with that many concurrent threads - Steven

[ValgardForkbeard 2]

Not necessarily sad, just putting it in terms their target audience will understand. You could go on about the engineering of the cage, and how it disapates the energy of a crash to the entire car ... or you could compare it to ...like, remember at the TallyGator 500, when that guy in the red car went backwards into the wall after hitting 5 other cars? Pieces flying everywhere, and the car tumbled into the infield, then the driver climbed out. Looked like he was fine.Whatever works, and if the bubbas don't get it, they won't buy smart.MG

[SmartieParts 12]

Remember the origin of the term though... bubbas are bubbas because of what they drive and their attitude about it, not where they're from. A bubba that buys a smart isn't a bubba! - Steven

[biggreenbooga 0]

I hope they don't buy the car. I don't want them ruining the image for me.

[smart142 605]

April 4th, 2008 11:00 AM

Smart’s Fortwo minicar received top marks in a U.S. government side-impact crash test, despite the car’s driver-side door opening during the simulation.

The Fortwo scored five out of five stars for side impact crashes, while earning four stars for drivers and three starts for passengers during head-on impacts. While the problem of the opening door wasn’t enough to mar the perfect rating for Smart, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did note, “A door opening during a side impact crash increases the likelihood of occupant ejection.”

Smart has been selling the Fortwo about as fast as they can bring them into the country, with the American public seeming more and more receptive to small, fuel efficient vehicles. Roger Penske of the Penske Automotive Group recently said that he could sell as many as 15,000 more units than the 25,000 Fortwos he has been allocated for this year.

Link.

[smart142 605]

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Daimler AG's new Smart minicar got top marks for handling side crashes in a U.S. government crash test even though the driver's-side door opened during the simulation, the U.S. agency said.

The German automaker put the two-door Smart ForTwo model on sale in the United States this year, eager to tap demand for fuel-efficient cars at a time of near-record prices at the pump.

On its website, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that the driver's door unlatched and opened during a side-impact crash test of the model.

"A door opening during a side impact crash increases the likelihood of occupant ejection," it noted.

Still, the Smart car got five out of five stars for its ability to protect occupants during side crashes. It won four stars for sheltering drivers and three stars for passengers during head-on crashes.

Penske Automotive Group, which is distributing the car in North America, has said it expects to sell up to 25,000 two-seat Smart cars in the United States this year.

Daimler was not immediately available for comment on Friday.

(Reporting by Michael Shields)

Link.

[Guest kwaldron]

... despite the car's driver-side door opening during the simulation.Yeah, they never should have rotated the door handle.