IIHS fortwo safety results. = )

[jwight]

I hope smart is both aware of it and doing something to address the issue. If the VSS loads were exceeded and that's why the latches failed, fair enough - not been verified that I'm aware of. Smart should jump on it if that's the case.

However, the VSS apply to all cars sold in the US and again, as far as I know, their door latches aren't being reported as having failed to keep a door closed in the tests. If there are instances of other cars with latch problems then they've got the same issue as smart. Don't get me wrong, I like my car and feel perfectly safe driving it, but these two test results are what they are, based on the information we have now.

[mmmeat]

Originally Posted by jwight

I hope smart is both aware of it and doing something to address the issue. If the VSS loads were exceeded and that's why the latches failed, fair enough - not been verified that I'm aware of. Smart should jump on it if that's the case.

However, the VSS apply to all cars sold in the US and again, as far as I know, their door latches aren't being reported as having failed to keep a door closed in the tests. If there are instances of other cars with latch problems then they've got the same issue as smart. Don't get me wrong, I like my car and feel perfectly safe driving it, but these two test results are what they are, based on the information we have now.

Exactly. What we know is that something happened. What we don't know is Smart's response to it ... yet.

Your pal,
Meat.

[mmmeat]

Originally Posted by xcrew229x

Not to argue with two such ardent scholars, but the door coming open on a side t-bone impact is due to the fact that the door latch rod got triggered by the intrusion on impact. So what? No mention made of crash test dummy ejection. None. Car gets hit, car goes sideways, car stops. I investigated well north of 1500 accidents, and the ONLY ejections of occupants was on rollovers. Do the doors open when the smart rolls? That is the question.

I thought of that, too, but it really doesn't look like there was enough door flex to cause it (speaking as a neophyte who has only fixed doors on muscle cars and doesn't understand these newfangled skinny little plastic cars).

Not saying it didn't happen that way, but the IIHS test only said it popped, not that it was released.

I don't believe that the doors would pop open in a rollover (the passenger door didn't let loose in the crash test), but if the initial impact popped the door and the impact was greater than the crash test (or higher than the crash test targeted area?), there's the possibility that the Smart could have done the little pinball thing that's been reported it does in some accidents and bounced off in another direction with the door open, which could have ejected the idiot who wasn't wearing his seatbelt.

In any case, we wait and see what Smart does...

I'm sort of likening this to the whole "rollover-prone Suzuki Samurai" nonsense. Probably just a tempest in a tea kettle. Which means I only get to post forty or fifty more times on the subject.

Your pal,
Meat.

[xcrew229x]

The car did great in the test. That's all that matters. I saw a lot of barely injured, somewhat injured, very injured, and dead gone injured folks. I'm comfortable with the car. Everything else is just speculation.

[craven3557]

Meat, I like your new handle, legendary thread killer. nice