One of the most common reasons people cite for replacing their classic car with a newer model is improved safety. Advances in air bags, anti-lock brakes and traction control give drivers the impression of safety, both real and imagined.
Sure, your Austin Mini might not fare too well if it…
Lighting- easy and invisible (no pun intended) to do, esp with new LEDs vs low-voltage generating older electrics. Just because your car is 60s (or 70s or...) doesn't mean the illumination has to match!
Stu A
AZ
The best way to improve safety starts with the driver. Take it seriously, drive like your life depends on quality driving!
I recommend the LED lighting mods - running lights, turn signals, and headlights. I've added a third brake light to my Healey as well. I figure chances are better if you can see and be seen. One other safety upgrade I've done is a fuel pump inertia switch.
In reply to Bardan :
Absolutely! In an environment of distracted drivers, SUVs and big trucks, situational awareness and driving skill are everything.
In reply to wzayante :
Yea, driver training for teens has degraded since the 80s down to filling a square on a page. IDK about your state but AZ would issue a license to a monkey for $12. The only real form of safety comes from situational awareness and avoidance of that monkey.
We switched the Tiger to LEDs. It was easy.
I can testify to the value of updating a lap belt to a 3 point. The update literately saved my life when I rear ended an illegally parked semi on black ice in a 1967 VW bug. The front end was crushed so bad that the windshield popped out. It also moved the left front tyre back about one foot!
Fortunately, I had installed a 911 steering rack and some universal joints and I still broke a bone in my left hand with a collapsible hub Momo steering wheel. My chest was one BIG bruise and my knee had a laceration that needed a trip to the emergency room that needed to be stitched up.
Naturally the fuel tank ruptured and since it was after dark ~8 gallons of gas ignited. Fortunately the drivers door was sprung and I was able to get out. The car left a burn mark in the pavment for years as the transaxle case melted in to it.
My face wasn't rearranged and I couldn't sleep on my chest for a week. The codeen that I got for my knee help too...
P.S. I bought that seat belt for $1.00 at a rummage sale and it took a year for my hand to fully heal.
I had always thought that Nils Bohlin 'invented' the 3 point seat belt until I started reading old Hot Rod magazines. In the October 1952 Hot Rod 'What's New' column is an advertisement for 3 point seat belts at that time called 'Sam Browne-type' belts made by Air Associates in Teterboro, NJ and sold at Sears.
I had always thought that Nils Bohlin 'invented' the 3 point seat belt until I started reading old Hot Rod magazines. In the October 1952 Hot Rod 'What's New' column is an advertisement for 3 point seat belts called at that time Sam Browne-type belts made by Air Associates in Teterboro, NJ and sold at Sears.
Riding motorcycles in CA commutes trained me to simply stay away from other vehicles. If that wasn't possible, watch their front wheel- its the first sign of someone about to do something stupid. Many are so 'entitled' or distracted that they literally don't see others (or don't care).
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