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In case anyone is interested -- a head-on test crash of a 945 versus a Yaris.
Article:
http://www.alltommotor.se/artiklar/nyheter/krockprov-toyota-yaris-vs-volvo-945-1.9939/crash-test-volvo-945-vs-toyota-yaris-1.10023
Video:
http://www.alltommotor.se/artiklar/nyheter/krockprov-toyota-yaris-vs-volvo-945-1.9939/krocken-toyota-yaris-vs-volvo-945-1.10030
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If you check carsafetyresults.com it shows the Folksam results for various cars including Volvo 200 series through S80. (Folksam is a Swedish insurance company.)
The most recent results are from 2007 and they show the 200, 700 and 900 series as being 20% safer than average. The 800 series and the S60-80 and V70 are 25% above average.
The website states: "Data from the research of Folksam is based on authentic accidents and revealed large differences in chance to survive, depending on models of the cars involved. In the less safest cars, you will run several times higher risk to be killed or seriously injured, as compared to the safest cars."
As far as the Yaris crash, it would be great to try the same experiment on 1994 Taurus or Cavalier, if anyone can find one still running.
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Let's assume that the older Volvo was not weakened by rust. Notice how the Yaris penetrated deep into the Volvo in this offset crash. Similar to the Renault / 940 crash. It appears to me (and I most certainly can be wrong here) that the newer cars are stiffer and perhaps better optimized for the offset crash. When the 740/940 series was being designed, airbags were hardly on the scene. So I suspect that they had to be designed a bit on the soft side to reduce the occupant deceleration in a crash. But with the airbag as part of the design, a car could be made stiffer for the same occupant deceleration. So the Yaris cannibalizes, in a sense, the Volvo.
Perhaps the lesson is that there is no single best design. Rather, the best design depends on what other vehicles are on the road. If there are a lot of SUVs on the road, a small car like the Yaris would get hit high and the SUV would ride over the Yaris front and into the windshield. The Volvo would fare no better against an SUV. If all SUVs had to have low mounted bumpers then the cars would fare better but the mass difference would still favour the bigger SUV.
In my neck of the woods, the roads are dominated by SUVs and pickups. When I am in my 740 with no airbag it is not the Yaris that concerns me! In the interest of safety, our family hauler is now a 2005 Toyota Highlander. Didn't want an SUV but wanted to live even more.
Bill
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Bill - I read where a 740 met a BUS head-on in Sweden, and all the occupants survived. As others have mentioned, the survivability ratings across the board in the 200/700/900 series is very high, and while SUVs have a size advantage in a head-on crash, they are not necessarily safer. Keep in mind that their high center of gravity makes them susceptible to rollovers, and in some SUVs, the roofs have been known to collapse, killing the occupants. Volvos have very robust roof lines which have proven themselves in rollover situations. Roof strength was a critical issue with the IIHS' most recent safety awards, and where manufacturers such as Honda, Toyota, fell short. In fact, Toyota/Lexus is specifically mentioned as being wiped out for this very reason. Don't put down your 740 for being "unsafe," for goodness sakes.
http://www.iihs.org/news/rss/pr111809.html
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Scott N
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Scott,
I wasn't beating up on the 740 in particular. My point was that no car will fare well against a vehicle that 'mounts' the car and comes in through at window height like a deer. It's the height mismatch. The 740/940 generation was optimized for full front collisions and I bet that the 740/940 would win over the Yaris in a full front collision. Perhaps that's why the 740 survived against the bus. I think that offset front collisions are the most frequent though, which are not in the 740's favour. Ditto for side impacts.
Crash safety is important but it is not the only consideration of course. Reliability is an important factor in overall safety (as in being broken down in a remote area or on a busy highway), handling and visibility for accident avoidance. Etc. And all this pales in comparison to the nut behind the wheel. And the vehicle has to do the job it was purchased for, should be environmentally friendly, affordable, and so on. All things considered I feel the 740/940 wagon has got to be close to the best balance ever achieved. In a more perfect world, they would be the dominant form factor but, alas, the government regulations requiring a low fleet average fuel consumption drove manufacturers to make trucks more car-like and SUVs became all the rage. What a waste.
Bill
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Interesting video. Do realize the intent of the test was to show how safe a modern small car is.
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Can anyone speak enough Swedish to say who won?
-Ryan
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Athens, Ohio
1987 245 DL 314k, Dog-mobile
1990 245 DL 134k M47, E-codes, GT Sway Bars, GT Braces, Draco Wheels
1991 745 GL 300k, Regina, 23/21mm Turbo Sway Bars
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Google translator can get this page and the linked ones into English - a bit fractured, but you'll get the meaning.
Overall, the Yaris' dummy fared better. The Volvo's driver would likely have sustained very serious lower body and pelvic injuries (left wheel penetrated the passenger compartment, floor buckled severely, etc). They state that without the airbag the Volvo driver would likely have been a fatality, and even with the bag, an "older" driver may have been killed. (Damn.)
Crash speed was 64km/h or 40MPH. Given the weight discrepancy of the vehicles, this is (very) approximately like the Volvo hitting an offset barrier at 35MPH and the Yaris at 45MPH. Note that the 945 continues on a little after impact, but the Yaris is stopped (and spun around 180).
Find and open the (translated) link for the comments of a Volvo "Safety Officer", who does some rationalizing but admits to weakness in the 700/900 platform's floor structure, which he is quick to say was resolved in the 850/70 series.
There is comment that the Volvo was ahead of the safety curve for its time, but even with the weight discrepancy, modern small cars are safer.
Whatever, I'm keeping my Volvos.
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I don't necessarily think the Toyota dummy fared better. Taken from the article:
"But at the same time shows the values from the dock in the Volvo to the strain on his head and his chest was not as great as one might think. There are high loads on the driver's legs, but the head and chest have fared very well. In contrast, Yaris shows high load on the chest, caused by both the airbag and seat belt. We see a high acceleration and large deflection of the chest of the driver," he says.
Quite honestly, if I were a driver and subject to such a collision, I'd rather the force be directed toward my legs than my lungs/heart/chest!! The test shows that the structure of the Yaris is sound for its size, yes, but in the Volvo the energy is more transmitted through the car vs. the occupant. And I wish I could find the fatality stats for the 700/900... I wish I would've saved the link.
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Scott N
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That noted, one still has to conclude that the 700/900 series is obsolete.
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See the 700/900 FAQ at the drop-down menu above right.
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I recall seeing somewhere on this board the global fatality statistics, by year, make & model for Volvo.. If my memory serves me right, the 240 has the best record, but the 740/940 wasn't too far behind.
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Scott N
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Right. And surely that has something to do with the dynamics and crashworthiness of Volvo's designs. However I think that statistic is likely more due to the tendencies of the Volvo drivers at the time.
I recall that the US vehicle with the worst fatality rate was the 2WD, two-door Chevy Blazer.
-Will
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854 - 244 - Mini
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I can believe that, and can speculate....high centre of gravity, high proportion of young, male drivers....hmmm.
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I have an identical white-on-gray 940 Turbo wagon. My neighbor behind me has a gray Yaris 5 door. Walking past his car in the driveway I honestly have wondered what if-- oh, never mind.
Chris
'93 945T 183K
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