Jump to content

Crash test video's


Happyoldgit

Recommended Posts

I've never seen any info on Defender crash testing. I presume it has been done? Were the results just too terrible to show?

Si

You won't see any

As with the rules of crash testing . It only has to be tested again if a cars Bulk head is changed in size. mmmm 90/110 and a series. same bulk head size. They are still running on a series 1 crah test. This is why they don't really want to change the defender and why it it will have to be a totally differant truck

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've never seen any info on Defender crash testing. I presume it has been done? Were the results just too terrible to show?

I imagine it could do OK or fail quite spectacularly, depending on what the test actually was :unsure:

I have seen a lot of rolled 110s here (high speed rolls - a product of Defender handling + gravel roads + lots of wind + inexperienced drivers used to none of the above) and everything above nipple height is potentially just one big crumple zone. I've seen one where the whole cab was flat-packed down to the height of the top of the speedo binnacle just as though it had been dropped on its roof (well it had, in a manner of speaking!) The alli windscreen frame pops at the corners, the B pillars have all the strength of a bean tin and the back upper bodysides aren't much better. Even in a relatively modest roll you usually end up with one side (the side it lands on first) crunched down by 18 inches or so. You really, really don't want to roll one... but having said that it's amazing how few people have been killed here considering the number of accidents.

However, in a frontal impact (as tested by almost all crash tests AFAIK) it would probably do quite well due to the chassis - depending on what you were running into. Not so sure about how well the occupants would do in biffing their heads on a relatively unforgiving dashboard though!

And I think probably the less said about side impact protection from a Defender door the better :blink:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting indeed....

It amazes me how much modern technology there is in cars now and how much we take for granted. Pareticularly impressive is the Air bag deployment. Watching the deployment in the Corolla video you can see how clever the boys and girls that design and fit this stuff are ie the timing is absolutely spot on to catch the occupants head before it smacks into the dash/wheel.

You also appreciate the benefit of how well designed the crumple zones are, again on the Corolla I don't think the windsreen is even cracked/broken post head on impact and it looks as though the doors would still open.....all clever stuff.

As for which car not be in or near if it crashes - well I certainly will avoid being behind a suzuki grand vitara if it was reversing towards a car park bollard - the spectacular way the rear screen is projected out at high speed in bits when the spare wheel carrier is struck is very impressive..........

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Airbags are AWESOME things, I've been to at least two RTAs when the driver walked away after a big crash absolutely uninjured.

One particular muppet was not wearing a seatbelt at the time! He swerved to avoid a fox at about 50mph, slid through a lampost and into a ditch (trees and ditches are the worst things to crash into), before hopping back out and coming to rest back on the road. The car was absolutely wrecked, and I asked if he had been wearing his seatbelt. "Oh no mate - I don't like the idea of getting trapped in one after a crash!"

Were now having to assess every vehicle on scene before we start casualty extraction in case there are any airbags have not deployed. They cause a very serious risk of injury if they deploy outside an impact, and I can imagine that if you were leaning on an airbag-supporting structure in the vehicle when it went off it wouldn't be much fun!

The policy document that came round did have one nice little cheery note at the end...

"ASSESSMENT OF UNDEPLOYED AIRBAGS MUST NOT DELAY POTENTIALLY LIFE-SAVING TREATMENT OF CASUALTIES"

Oh, really? Hadn't thought of that.....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

from wikipedia.org

Road accident statistics on a model-by-model basis from the UK Department of Transport show that the Land Rover Defender and Land Rover Discovery are the safest cars on the UK roads (measured in terms of chance of death in an accident) - between three times safer than the safest Volvo models, twice as safe (half the death-rate per accident) compared with the Jeep Cherokee and Toyota Land Cruiser and only matched by the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Jaguar XJ.

Combined with a roll cage a defender is probably the best thing to be in... B)

cheers,

tom

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fact 1 : If you deploy an airbag in a Defender the bulkhead jumps forward by two inches. Hence the next one will be monocoque.

Fact 2: If you are too close to an airbag when it deploys it can actually lift your head off the top of your neck. Nervous lady drivers gripping the wheel too close have been killed this way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fact 1 : If you deploy an airbag in a Defender the bulkhead jumps forward by two inches. Hence the next one will be monocoque.

Fact 2: If you are too close to an airbag when it deploys it can actually lift your head off the top of your neck. Nervous lady drivers gripping the wheel too close have been killed this way.

And don't forget how airbags kill kids sat in rearward facing child seats.....

that is why the first 6-10 pages of the manual supplied with my Corolla are full of warnings about how to adjust your seating position and wear seatbelts properly.... and why Toyota (and many other manufacturers) allow you to deactivate the passenger side airbag.

It's a bit like the warning on a MacDonalds coffee cup states.... 'Warning this carton contains a hot liquid'

nay never.......... I didn't know that!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fact 2: If you are too close to an airbag when it deploys it can actually lift your head off the top of your neck. Nervous lady drivers gripping the wheel too close have been killed this way.

I heard somewhere (Radio4 most likely) that sitting too close to the airbag (as per women drivers) results in injuries to the passenger/driver comparable with falling from a tall (5 story?) building. The explosive force behind an airbag is quite staggering but as we know, they only remain inflated for a few mili-seconds.

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 years later...

I had a bad accident in my 110 3 years ago. My girl looses their brakes in neutral gear down a hill in her Series.... she hit us at about 65 kph in the back. Everybody in the car had seat belt (my dogs were in the back). Nobody was hurt, it's really amazing how strong the chasis is. Not even a mm of deviation in any measure. The inertial system of all seat belt worked OK, all the doors could be open, the car shut down in the first impact (there were two impacts) due to the switch. Damage limited to rear door and glass, fuel lines and one of the engine hoses. My car could arrive to a safe place by its own means (we tried to tow it with a Grand Cherokee V8 and a Mitsubishi V6 with really bad results, my car had to take them from the mud they were trying to pass me) just making some house mechanic.......

I suppose if there is a roll over, things are very different, so we are trying to build a roll cage. I really consider my car to be very secure even in the event of a lateral crash (what the hell can hit me in my door except for some buses and cargo trucks? if that happens, believe me it doesn't matter if you drive a Volvo or a Defender).

Recently in a near city a bus hit a Toyota LC HDJ200 with curtain airbags, pretensioners and armored at Level 4..... two of three ocupants died.. the other one is still at comma.... in the last 3 weeks, there have been 4 mortal crashes of Hilux (3 Hilux, one Fortuner, the 7 pass version) in my region, all of them due to lost of control of cars at low speed:

They didn't see a bump in the road, the driver lost control of the car:

http://www.eluniversal.com.co/cartagena/sucesos/tragico-accidente-en-cienaga-de-oro-deja-dos-muertos-y-un-herido-95449

Their rear right tire exploded at about 70 kph (2 months ago same happen to me and all the time the car was in control):

http://www.elheraldo.co/region/padre-e-hijo-murieron-al-volcarse-camioneta-en-la-via-cienaga-barranquilla-83868

They lost the control due to explosion of left front tire at barely 60 kph (for godsake, look that front windshield structural line, it's almost as weak as Defender's....

http://www.elheraldo.co/local/dos-heridos-en-accidente-en-la-via-al-mar-87049

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have seen an accident involving a discovery - some principle of ladder chassis and weak body bolted on top - and the ladder chassis penetrated the side of a transit and the disco bodywork just folded uo when it came into contact with the transit. It was not good for the disco or the transit! Quite frightening how it folded off the chassis and crushed the cabin

It general I feel safe in my 90, but I have no illusions in a proper high speed crash or a roll over. That's why I fitted an internal hoop when I bought mine!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience. By using our website you agree to our Cookie Policy