Instant Compact F150 (Structure matters!)

[Diehard]

Smart Cars are much more crash worthy than they appear.

That is the video I saw before I went for a test drive. The design is absolutely impressive and I have no doubt it does better than many car's it's size and some larger. What I think people under estimate is that energy has to go somewhere. Even in the same video at the end they say the passengers would not have survived this crash.

In the same video you can see how much more energy the Mercedes can absorb. It still have half the hood to go when smart car is already in the passenger area. Now imagine instead of a stationary concrete or a moving sedan, driving this 1.5K Ib car into a moving 7K Ib Rivian. There is no amount of good design will help you survive that collision. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the Rivian driver walk away from it. This vehicle's natural habitat is European roads when the accident is likely happen with a scooter at 40 mph.

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[Crissa]

That is the video I saw before I went for a test drive. The design is absolutely impressive and I have no doubt it does better than many car's it's size and some larger. What I think people under estimate is that energy has to go somewhere. Even in the same video at the end they say the passengers would not have survived this crash.

In the same video you can see how much more energy the Mercedes can absorb. It still have half the hood to go when smart car is already in the passenger area. Now imagine instead of a stationary concrete or a moving sedan, driving this 1.5K Ib car into a moving 7K Ib Rivian. There is no amount of good design will help you survive that collision. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the Rivian driver walk away from it. This vehicle's natural habitat is European roads when the accident is likely happen with a scooter at 40 mph.

It doesn't matter. The safety capsule works, as opposed to the one on many larger vehicles. (See also those pictures of the F150s with their cabs crushed and no other damage to the truck.)

-Crissa

 

[Diehard]

It doesn't matter. The safety capsule works, as opposed to the one on many larger vehicles. (See also those pictures of the F150s with their cabs crushed and no other damage to the truck.)

-Crissa

I guess we will have to play chicken when I get my F150 with you in a smart car to settle this argument

 

[cvalue13]

Hah. I've been in an accident while carrying a load. You do not want stuff flying around.

when I see people driving with their pets free in the the vehicle

The topic also raises one thing I value about the Lightning / a frunk: sitting a tool bag with hammers etc inside the cab of the truck is asking for the cab to double as a meat blender in a crash or rollover

 

[charliemagpie]

Maybe we can fit the smart car in the cabin lol

 

[JBee]

That is the video I saw before I went for a test drive. The design is absolutely impressive and I have no doubt it does better than many car's it's size and some larger. What I think people under estimate is that energy has to go somewhere. Even in the same video at the end they say the passengers would not have survived this crash.

In the same video you can see how much more energy the Mercedes can absorb. It still have half the hood to go when smart car is already in the passenger area. Now imagine instead of a stationary concrete or a moving sedan, driving this 1.5K Ib car into a moving 7K Ib Rivian. There is no amount of good design will help you survive that collision. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the Rivian driver walk away from it. This vehicle's natural habitat is European roads when the accident is likely happen with a scooter at 40 mph.

The primary cause of injury in a auto accident is rapid peak body deceleration and contact, so if you can keep that within reason by providing a constant low rate inside a safety capsule, without any ingress into the safety cell your job is done. The energy of stopping the vehicle is not as relevant as stopping the people "slowly" to reduce injury.

The smart is essentially inside out in that regard, in that the outside safety cell is not deformable and the soft deformation and retardation is inside the safety cell instead. There are obviously limits to the amount of energy the capsule can resist, but you'd be surprised how compliant any vehicle becomes when dealing with trucks especially ones with large indevisable, poorly secured loads.

 

[Cybertruck Hawaii]

Ehh, the only way to provide positive peer pressure is to be out and open. If it's safe for you to do so. I mean, putting a gun sticker on a car you're storing guns in is probably not the best idea, for instance. But people are just more likely to be sympathetic to those they know in person. So it's a social win for equal rights. And safety!

People are also more apt to do the safe thing if they see/hear others doing it.

-Crissa

?I get a kick out of those student driver decals. That’s not an excuse to drive like a turtle, folks!?

 

[Ogre]

when I see people driving with their pets free in the the vehicle

The topic also raises one thing I value about the Lightning / a frunk: sitting a tool bag with hammers etc inside the cab of the truck is asking for the cab to double as a meat blender in a crash or rollover

Looking at some non-Lightning F150 accidents and completely crushed cabins, a hammer o the back of the head might not be overly concerning.

 

[tmeyer3]

Saw this crazy video from the IIHS where they loaded up an F150 with concrete and smashed it into their test wall at 40MPH.

These guys were just testing their system out to ensure it could handle the weight, but seeing what this load did to the cab of the truck was … stunning.

That white block you see in the drivers seat of the truck was strapped down in the bed of the truck at the start of the video. If anyone was in the truck when this crash happened they would likely be dead. The load just smashed through the entire bed wall, rear seats, front seats and is now smashed against the firewall.

When people talk about 3500 pounds of cargo capacity, that’s the kind of crazy forces you are dealing with.

Also notable, the truck just accordions up, but not in a good way.

I no longer want a mid gate, plz make that rear wall tighter than a crabs ass hole on the CT!!!!!!!!!!

 

[cvalue13]

Looking at some non-Lightning F150 accidents and completely crushed cabins, a hammer o the back of the head might not be overly concerning.

strange. At least since 2021 the F150 is an IIHS top pick for safety with the highest possible marks in all but one minor category. NHTSA also gives it an overall 5 star rating (4 only in rollover). Only it and the Ram have as high a rating.

 

[Diehard]

The primary cause of injury in a auto accident is rapid peak body deceleration

In a head on collision, driver of the Rivian/F150 with four times the momentum will experience much smaller rapid peak deceleration than driver of the smart car no matter how much better those airbags in smart car are. Of course I have never done a test with those cars but I sincerely am having problem picturing how this could not be true.

 

[Ogre]

strange. At least since 2021 the F150 is an IIHS top pick for safety with the highest possible marks in all but one minor category. NHTSA also gives it an overall 5 star rating (4 only in rollover). Only it and the Ram have as high a rating.

Ford sold 5.2 million “Super Duty” trucks with weak roofs that would crush people inside during rollovers, the jury determined. The flaw was present in all “Super Duty” models between 1999 and 2016, their lawyer, James E. Butler said.

Attorneys showed evidence at the trial of nearly 80 similar wrecks where people had been killed or injured when the trucks’ roofs crushed them during rollovers.

Ford has refused to say how many similar incidents it is aware of. Nor has the car giant ever issued a recall, Butler said.

 

[Crissa]

I no longer want a mid gate, plz make that rear wall tighter than a crabs ass hole on the CT!!!!!!!!!!

If they can made a driver's door that doesn't crumple in a T-crash, they can make a midgate that holds up to a load strapped to it.

-Crissa

 

[tmeyer3]

If they can made a driver's door that doesn't crumple in a T-crash, they can make a midgate that holds up to a load strapped to it.

-Crissa

Oh yeah, I was tad inebriated when I made that comment.
Lol sorry

But yes, I'm sure you're right. The approach is so different between the f150 and CT that it isn't a valid comparison to begin with, really. I had no idea the cab was so flimsy though.... 40mph really isn't that fast and..
Just wow

I've resolved to watch the crash tests of all future vehicles I purchase. Including, if available, a load in the bed.

 

[Crissa]

In a head on collision, driver of the Rivian/F150 with four times the momentum will experience much smaller rapid peak deceleration than driver of the smart car no matter how much better those airbags in smart car are. Of course I have never done a test with those cars but I sincerely am having problem picturing how this could not be true.

...And in every other accident, the one in the giant vehicle has more momentum to arrest, which means they're more likely to lose control and more likely to roll over.

And that mass will crush itself against whatever it hits, which probably won't be a softer car.

-Crissa

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