AUTOMOTIVES Accident deaths vary with make of automobile RECENT FINDINGS by the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety indicate that passenger car occupant deaths occur more often in some cars than in others. Institute researchers computed death rates for 1984 10 1988 model cars during calendar years 1985 to 1989, and found that among 134 series of cars, Volvo’s 240 station wagon had ihe lowest death rate with O.S deaths per each 16,000 Volvo 240° station wagons registered. The Chevrolet Corvette had the highest death rate with 4.7 deaths per 10,000 Corvettes registered. A car series is defined as a fam- ily within a make with the same wheelbase and a degree of com- monality in construction such as body, chassis, etc. The study found that car size is an important influencing factor on death rates. Of the 14 vehicle series with the lowest death rates, five were large cars, seven were mid-size, and only two were small cars. Conversely, nine of the 13 cars with the highest death rates were small, four were mid-size, and none were large. Large station wagons, large two-door cars, and luxury cars were the groups with the fewest deaths per 10,000 registered car. The group with the highest number of deaths per 10,000 reg- istrations was mid-sized sports cars. The comparative safety of larger cars has prompted the In- surance Institute for Highway Safety and other traffic safety groups to campaign against the general downsizing trend of new automobiles. “These strong connections be- tween car size and motor vehicle occupant deaths once again make the case against fuel economy re- quirements that would force the downsizing of future car models,’’ said Insurance Institute President, Brian O'Neil. “Improving fuel ef- ficiency by making cars smaller would amount to trading lives for oil.’’ Greg Wilson AUTOMOTION However, the same NHS study revealed that some small cars were actually safer than some large cars. The Saab 900 four-door, VW Golf two-door, VW Golf Cabriolet, YW Jetta four-door, Subaru DL/GL 4WD four-door wagon, and Toyota Tercel 4WD four-door wagon all had lower death rates than full-size cars like the Chevrolet Caprice four-door, Buick LeSabre four-door, and Pontiac Bonneville four-door. Clearly, car-size is not the only factor influencing crash safety. insurance Institute accident Statistics indicate that driver age and sex explains some difference in death rates. Male drivers under 30 years of age are more iikely to be involved in fatal collisions. Another factor is seat belt usage. Most of the cars in ihis study were equipped with manual lap and shoulder belts, and were not equipped with automatic seat belts (which became available in the U.S. in 1989), or air bags. Seat belt usage in the U.S. is estimated to average 40% of all ATTENTION FLEET OWNERS “NO ONE SELLS HEAVY DUTY TRUCK PICK-UP, VAN & MEDIUM TRUCK TIRES FOR A BETTER PRICE THAN | DO” egctcr We Paw? A/S || Rallye” TAS AKTUG Friday, September €, 1991 — North Shore News - 314 ROADBLOCKS THE FOLLOWING are the scheduled coad closures and detours for the coming week in North Vancouver District. City, West) Vancouver District and along area highways. e North Vancouver District: Panorama Dr. to Galiamt) Ave. North: Road construction. Road may be closed comietely on oc- casions. Times will be posted. Hunter St. (Mountain Hws. to Orwell Sty: Road reconstruction. Road closed to through traffic. Merlynn Cres. and = Greylynn Cres.: Watermain replacement. Local traffic only. Woodbine Dr. (West Queens to Edgemont Blvd.) Storm sewer in- staltation. Local traffic only. ® North Vancouver City: Mahon Ave. to 29th St: work in progress. Open to local traffic. © West Vancouver District: No motorists, while in Canada it is over 80%. While the study assumed that this avecage is constant for ail makes of cars, | am of the opi- nion that owners of certain cars, such as Saab, Volvo, and Mercedes, are more likely to wear their seat belts since safety is a higher priority for these types of car owners. Another factor influencing crash safety is the construction of the car itself, Some cars are built with crash safety in mind. Defor- mable crush zones, impact deflec- ting beams, rigid passenger cells, roll cages and other passive safety devices are available on some automobiles, commonly European luxury cars. in addition, some cars are available with devices that im- prove driver control, such as all- wheel-drive, anti-lock brakes, and traction control. Drivers of these cars have a better opportunity to avoid a crash, or minimize the impact. And often overlooked are fac- tors such as outward visibility, braking power, handling prowess, engine power, and driver comfort, all features that can be used to help avoid accidents. Some or ail of these factors may explain why some smaller cars have lower death rates than larger cars. In any event, it appears clear that the make and model of a car is just as important to crash safety as how big it is. eet Boe Ba ALL SEASON RADIALS reo 8370 WHITEWALLS 155 80 _R13 Road * scheduled road detours. closures or ¢ Ministry of Highways: Cassiur St: Expect detours at Highway 1 and Cassiar St. and ar Cassiar St. and Hastines St. due to construction oof the Cassiar Connector. Motorists are urged to use detour routes or to expect delays. Squamish Highway: Between Sept. 3-27, there will be 20-minute delays at Porteau Bluffs, 25 kiiometres north of Horseshoe Bay, for rock scaling. 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