http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosins...A01-285039.htm

 

If gas prices keep climbing like they are, it won't matter about the roofs because nobody will be buying these heavy gas-guzzling SUVs anymore.

So it's OK to spend a ton of money on a stronger roof (that should never come into play anyways), but we still see less than 20mpg on virtually every SUV on the road...

 

Why not just nip it in the bud and require all cars have roll cages :rollseyes:

 

Roll cages from the factory... hmm.. I'm liking that idea.

 

I'd buy a factory car without airbags, crumple zones, soft dashboards, etc, if it had a cage and five point harnesses...

 

people are just soft these days. parents these days are raising a bunch of yuppie sissies and when the children see that you can blame somebody else for you own unsafe reckless beahvior and get 300+ million dollars they think that by whining enough that they will get their way. They dont want to have to work for anything or take resopnsibilty for their actions because their parents dont either.

well i got a little off topic but bottom line is that when you drive you should realize that you could be killed and especially if you drive your suv like NASCAR at 90 mph on a backroad. Yes you are going to roll and get hurt. People should realize this before they put their kids in their suvs

 

We were on Alligator Ally the other day and saw Explorer, MDX's, and other large SUVS passing us at speeds well exceeding 90mph. I'm sorry, but if you're driving an SUV at over 90mph, and you should crash for any reason, it's your own fault, and you deserve it.

No matter how safe they make cars, people will figure out a way to kill themselves in them.

 

you don't necessarily want a bare cage shooting thru the cabin if your not wearing a helmet.. because metal tubing doesn't yield too well to an unprotected head...

 

So more, cost, weight gain and regulation because a few people can't excercise the requisite self control?

Evolution and natural selection are what have got the human race to where it is now. Unfortunately, too many soft-minded folk are trying to undo natural selection with all these nanny laws to prop up a bunch of fools who metaphorically speaking, need to have someone around to change their ****ty diapers every time they make a f***ing mess of things.

So what's next... are we going to be driving 10 ton APCs and be limited to 25 MPH because a few dill-holes can't handle it?

 

In light of the current gas prices and a subsequent decrease in SUV sales, GM still decides to put all of their other worthwhile projects on hold in favor of their new trucks. It really, really, really doesn't make any sense to me. Granted their sales are still relatively high, I don't see how it's sustainable.

Fads are more or less cyclical in nature, with the SUV age is on it's way out in favor of more.....efficient vehicles.

 

I don't believe cars will gain much if any weight from the new standards. SUVs and Trucks, though, will be the losers.

Why don't I believe cars will be very effected? When was the last time you visited the junk yard and saw a 4th gen F-body with a crushed roof??


I've seen plenty of dimunitive foreign cars with demolished roofs, but very few American cars (unless they were obviously doing something approaching hyperspace when they crashed).

The F-bodies (in particular) show that strong roofs and heavy weight don't necessarily go hand in hand.


However, trucks don't follow the same crash standards as cars, and already carry their weight higher than car, and are therefore far more unstable in emergency manuvers than cars (top reason why, unlike alot of others here, I will NEVER reccommend them to anyone just because they have a newborn or a young child! ).

Any change in roof standards will have minimal impact on cars, but far more on trucks.

 

If drivers ED were replaced with go-kart racing on a small asphalt road course and followed up by auto-X school.... insurance would eventually be soo cheap.... I tihnk.

 

Cars will soon be replaced with levitating bubbles, set from the factory at 2 MPH, for safety sake. If we keep saving all the knuckleheads, who lack personal responsibility, there won't be any room on the planet for everyone.

 

Here is the real problem. We have lame driver's training and testing here in the US... plus populations that don't even bother with licenses and insurance.

 

i don't think that would necessarily help too much.. because I bet you most of the problems stem from people not paying attention and not caring about rules and such.