What safety features are required on new cars? Number of airbags, etc.
What safety features are required on new cars? Number of airbags, etc.
seems about 1000-2000 extra pounds..
Well, I know tire pressure monitor systems and stability control were recently made mandatory. I don't know if airbags are required...?
Seat belts, numerous aid bags, ABS, traction and stability control. , TPMS. are a few I can think of.
Crumple zones. Vast quantities of crumble zones. And pedestrian safety requirements in the design, which is why the front ends of new cars look so bloated.
Of course, GrantMLS already covered this - extra 1000-2000lbs. 
It's not that certain equipment is required per se, but more that to meet FMVSS safety tests you need all that crap, or the tests are easier with certain options such as airbags. When I worked at Toyota, the interior head impact tests were done at lower velocities if the car had airbags, for example.
Required by the law or required by consumers? Sometimes they are one in the same, but not usually.
Bryce
Required by law as of 2012:
Probably more...
Nashco wrote: Required by the law or required by consumers? Sometimes they are one in the same, but not usually. Bryce
Fair enough, I was just saying that FMVSS doesn't say "thou shalt have airbags" but it does say if you get a HIC score over 1000 you will not be able to legally sell the car in these United States.
Javelin wrote: Required by law as of 2012: * Pedestrian-safe front crumple zone/height
This one always cracks me up - YOU'RE HIT BY A FRIGGIN CAR and you're going to complain because it wasn't safe enough to do so. Come on.
tuna55 wrote:Javelin wrote: Required by law as of 2012: * Pedestrian-safe front crumple zone/heightThis one always cracks me up - YOU'RE HIT BY A FRIGGIN CAR and you're going to complain because it wasn't safe enough to do so. Come on.
seriously, i cant believe that one's become a LEGISLATED engineering problem for car makers. i'd either want to go all the way with a pillow deployment system or just get it over with entirely with instant death spikes.
Javelin wrote: Required by law as of 2012: * Traction & Stability Control---unnecessary/stupid * Tire Pressure Monitoring System---unnecessary/stupid * Pedestrian-safe front crumple zone/height---stupid * Driver & Passenger active airbags---smart * Pre-tensioning shoulder belts---smart * LATCH Car Seat anchors---? * Foot-brake Park override to shift out of Park---? * Automatic de-throttle w/brake application (proposed)---stupid * Emissions systems out the wazoo---sort of smart
Didn't we solve this problem over a century ago?
WilberM3 wrote:tuna55 wrote:seriously, i cant believe that one's become a LEGISLATED engineering problem for car makers. i'd either want to go all the way with a pillow deployment system or just get it over with entirely with instant death spikes.Javelin wrote: Required by law as of 2012: * Pedestrian-safe front crumple zone/heightThis one always cracks me up - YOU'RE HIT BY A FRIGGIN CAR and you're going to complain because it wasn't safe enough to do so. Come on.
Instant death spikes!
side note- just a few posts above this one- someone posted a bad. format fell apart.
In terms of safety, I'll agree that a lot of the extra safety stuff is not required by NHTSA, but by the insurance groups.
Emissions and CAFE are not something people really buy for. As much as Honda likes to point out their LEV vehicles, I really wonder how many more cars they sold because it had the sticker...
http://www.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/Cfc_title49/index.html
Has what NHTSA regulates.
And a subset of that is the 56 page rule that cars follow- http://www.nhtsa.gov/nhtsa/Cfc_title49/MVS01092008.pdf
tuna55 wrote:Javelin wrote: Required by law as of 2012: * Pedestrian-safe front crumple zone/heightThis one always cracks me up - YOU'RE HIT BY A FRIGGIN CAR and you're going to complain because it wasn't safe enough to do so. Come on.
FWIW it apparently originated in Europe, the birthplace of the nanny state.
the 1000 to 2 thousand lbs i disagree with. yes it all adds wieght but a 1990 miata with no airbags none of the electronic required bs. less crumple zone and a flimsier chassie wieghed how much. and the new one wieghs how much? no take away the bigger wheels tires brakes of the new one and unless the books on the cars are wrong its almost dead even........ yes cars are heavier now. no question. but what everyone misses i the rigidity of current cars. go jack up one corner of a first gen mustang and watch the whole car twist. now go jackup one corner of a 2011 no twist. yes they wiegh more but they are also alot faster and better handling than anything ever before.
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