Cars Have Gotten a Lot Safer, but There's Still Room for Improvement

Although there have been many problems with vehicle defects lately, cars in general have gotten a lot safer.  Today's cars have many safety features that past vehicles lacked.  Cars are safer today than they have ever been, but there is still room for improvement.

Purchasers of defective vehicles could be at risk of harm when vehicle features do not function as expected and should consult with a California lemon law attorney regarding their legal rights.

Vehicle Safety Improvements are a Positive Sign, but Things Can Get Better

Wired recently published a report showing just how much vehicle safety features have improved over the past two decades.  The dramatic changes in vehicle safety were demonstrated recently when comparing old and new cars.

The comparison took place in honor of the 20-year anniversary of Europe's New Car Assessment Program. To mark the occasion, the European New Car Assessment program conducted a crash test with a 1997 Rover 100 and a crash test with a Honda Fit, which is the modern equivalent. The crash test involved each vehicle hitting a barrier while traveling 40 MPH.

The old Rover had airbags, but the safety features were found to do a terrible job protecting passengers. The crash test dummies inside of the older car were restrained so poorly, the driver ended up sliding right around the airbag. The crash impact also caused the car's engine to slide into the legs of the passenger while the doors of the vehicle buckled and twisted in ways that made it hard for first responders to actually get access to people inside of the car.

By comparison, the modern Honda’s crash forces were largely absorbed by the windscreen. The side-curtain airbags in the Honda provided protection for the vehicle occupants and stopped the driver from sliding around. The metal structures of the car also stayed in shape and helped to keep passengers from serious harm.

The difference in performance helps to explain why car crash fatalities have fallen so much: cars are simply much better at protecting their occupants. However, as Wired explains, there is still plenty of room for improvement. The focus now has largely shifted to finding ways that technology can help motorists to avoid crashes in the first place. In particular, self-driving technology and crash avoidance features are the next frontier in vehicle safety and could help to significantly reduce crashes by eliminating human error as a collision cause.

All of this safety technology is going to be great for motorists so long as it works properly and isn’t affected by malfunctions.  If motorists do end up in a defective car, a California lemon law attorney can provide the consumer with help understanding our consumer protection laws. Contact The Bickel Law Firm, Inc. today.