How safe is an s2 ?

[QuattroFever]

Anyone got any info on crash tests and ratings?

We all know how tough and solid these cars feel but i watched a show yest. And they crashed a little city car into a huge old volvo estate and the volvo folded up like a tin can. whereas the little city car was still in reasonable shape. The volvo driver would probably have ended up in a wheel chair.

Got me thinking......how safe are these old behemoths?

[dest]

I dont think they are as safe as some people like to think!
Like you said, new small cars are very safe, even when you really wouldnt think so.
The reality is, S2's were not built to the same safety standards as todays cars.

[s2driveruk]

they have side impact protection, procon ten and generally they are hewn from granite. They we very pre-ncap but there is a much better chance of walking away in this car than plenty of others from the same era i'm sure...

[dest]

Just because they are made from granite, it does'nt mean they are safer.
Compare it to a Smart car made of plastic, I bet the Smart has a higher rating!

[s2driveruk]

i can assure you i know which car i would rather be in in an accident given the choice of a smart or a coupe...

The difference is going to be the speed and type of impact i'm sure....we could all pick out loads of pictures of cars crunched up. They dont have a crash rating whilst newer cars do...doesnt neccessarily mean the older cars are made from paper mache does it, they just weren't validated in a test thats all.

I know my pug 306 would not be a good place to be in a crash for sure!

[Rusty]

Modern cars are a lot better designed, don't forget that, bar a few bolt-on bits, the B3 was designed in the early 80s so is nearly a 30- year old design, the B4 will be marginally better but it's still going to be 20 years old...

[istoo]

I will dig out the photos but i know a lad in Orkney who had a massive smash in one and walked away. I have seen a few walk out with cuts and brusies crashes with the procon ten really working.
Although my wife askes the same questions about safety.

[dest]

They dont have a crash rating whilst newer cars do...doesnt neccessarily mean the older cars are made from paper mache does it, they just weren't validated in a test thats all.

Its not just that they were'nt tested, it is also that the older cars were not built to have to pass such tests!

[dest]

Ive just looked on the NCAP site, a '97 A4 is only 2.5 star rated, compared to a '97 Smart fortwo, which is 4 stars!

[Evilgoat76]

I'd be interested in which show that was. I've been to the scene of dozens of accidents and I have to say the tiny little cars rarely do well.

Just an interesting point to bear in mind. A well known motoring show that fudged results before put a newer car up against an older landrover discovery. The Newer car was perposely aimed at a known weak point that was unlikeley to ever be hit. Result, the newer car trashed almost 3 ton of land rover.

I have seen people walk away from crashes in older cars they would never have survived in a newer car. Case in point, my uncles stationary Volvo 790 being hit sideways at 70 by a tax (Pug 407) and him having nothing more than glass cuts.

The science behind it has gotten better and in some cases you are better off in a new car but you always have to remeber these tests are based on ideal conditions AND are often very contrived. I'd rather have the S2s I5 between me and whatever I hit than some mostly plastic 4 cylinder frogbox engine. If you look at the cars most people want to buy you'll find the saftey features from cars like the S2 have carried over into them and been been added to. Id rather have a bog standard A4 in a crash than any now 'economy' car (Pugs, Renaults, Most Fords....) That said my sister walked away from a 60 mile an hour shunt that trashed her Mk5 Fiesta and the cars in front and behind her with no injuries.

Procon Ten does work, and it has the fact that its very unlikeley to cause injury past belt burn by going off at the wrong time. Airbags can and do cause some nasty injuries, remeber its a bomb going off in your face. Not to mention the injuries caused by ham fisted mechanics and EMS personnel. The I5 also seen to be designed so that at a certain point it'll be ejected from the car, not comming through the bulkhead as happens with a few cars.

In Summary, I think I'd take the S2 over most small cars, but not over the newer cars from the same market segment the S2 was sold into. think theres a lot of 'this is a bigger car' involved but theres the science in it. I would interested to see something like S4 Vs S2. V90 Vs 240. Mk1 golf vs current golf etc.

As for the pic, NO car likes being upside down, well maybe a Bowler

Oh and the funniest things I've seen. Sat at the test track at TRL watching them test airbags on motorbikes. How did that ever seem a good idea

[GazzaG60]

id say we are safer in a less "solid" car.

i had a scirocco and that is a rigid shell. bumpers too are rock hard. where does the impact get passed to? the driver. i was pretty soar for 4 weeks.

potentially id pick the smart instead of the S2 also.

[Fat Audi 80]

The main safety feature of a car is its driver. I think people seem to forget that sometimes!

(Not withstanding cars coming over hedges and central reservations etc.) The best safety feature you can buy is some advanced driving lessons. You would be surprised what you learn....

Back on topic, the S2 is a very very solid car, as shown by the numerous folks on here that have walked away from "big ones"...

Cheers,

Steve.

[GazzaG60]

most crashes are front ends so a set of better brakes is a good feature.

[dest]

But "solid" is a bit misleading, because the higher rated cars safety wise have crumple zones, which obviously make them less solid.
Would you rather hit a rock solid concrete block, or one of those huge tubs of water you see on european toll booths and such like?
The water absorbs the impact energy, the concrete does'nt, and YOU suffer for it!

[GazzaG60]

exactly my point in the scirocco.

my car had a dint in the back bumper. the citreon behind was bent under and bust all over. i felt it the car didn't.

advanced driving can help you but not help others not run into you. if you wrap it badly and its evident you been playing and your an advanced driver. dont look for excuses either.