IIHS Institute Crash Test Danger in the Back Seat in Family Cars (IIHS)
Honda Civic. High score in driver protection, but rear passenger protection is not good enough (Photo: IIHS)
Most family cars do not provide good protection for passengers in the rear seats. That's according to the latest crash tests conducted by the U.S. Highway Traffic Safety Insurance Institute, IIHS.
The institute, which is funded by insurance companies in the United States, has been conducting more challenging crash tests for years than those conducted by the US government, and sometimes also than those conducted by the European crash test, Euroencap. In the past, the institute has tested the durability of popular models in rolling over and colliding from behind. Over the past year, he's been putting the spotlight on the safety of rear-seat users, adding to the driver's dummy in his standard frontal crash test, a backseat dummy that resembles a short woman or a 12-year-old boy.
Toyota Corolla. The unit alongside the Civic that did not completely fail to protect the rear occupants (Photo: IIHS)
After a series of tests that revealed problems protecting rear occupants in recreational vehicles, the institute released the results of its crash tests for five 2023 family models: the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Nissan Sentra, Subaru Crosstrek and Kia Forte. The first four are sold in Israel, and the Forte is not imported to Israel in the current generation.
And the results: only the Civic and Corolla received an "acceptable" score, while the others received a "poor" score.
The Civic and Corolla had no trouble protecting their drivers, but the test dummy in the rear seat slipped under the seat belt, exposing it to abdominal injuries from the hip belt, which can lead to internal injuries.
This was also better than the performance of the other three cars: where measurements taken from the rear dummy dummy also showed a moderate or high risk of head, neck or chest injuries.
Kia Forte. Not imported to Israel, but sold in the US. A "poor" grade due to the failure in the back seat (Photo: IIHS)
The IIHS launched the updated test last year, after research showed that newer vehicles now have a higher risk of fatal injury for passengers strapped in the rear than for those in front. It's not because the back seat has become less safe. Instead, the front seat has become safer due to improved airbags and advanced seat belts rarely available to rear occupants. It is important to remember that even so, the rear seat remains the safest place for young children, who may be injured by the swelling of a front airbag.
For a vehicle to receive a "good" rating, the test must not show an excessive risk of injury to the head, neck, chest, abdomen or hip. The test dummy at the rear should remain during the crash without sliding forward under the knee belt, and the head should remain at a safe distance from the front seat rest and the rest of the vehicle. A pressure sensor on the upper body of the posterior dummy is used to check if the shoulder belt is too high, which can make the restraint system less effective.
Nissan Sentra. Fear of head and neck injuries to the driver, in addition to problems with rear protection (Photo: IIHS)
As always, the cabin structure must maintain adequate survival space for the driver, and measurements taken from the driver's dummy should not show an excessive risk of injury.
All five family cars provided good protection in the front seat. However, measurements indicated a slightly higher risk of head or neck injuries to the driver's chin. For the back seats it was a different story.
Subaru XV Crosstrack. "Poor" grade due to the danger in the back seat. Maybe the new model will be better (Photo: IIHS)
The Civic and Corolla provided adequate protection in the back seat. In the Corolla, the dummy doll's head at the back has approached the back of the front seat, increasing the risk of head injuries.
- Car
- safety
Tags
- Crash tests
- Honda
- Toyota
- Kia
- Subaru
- Nissan
