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The new ones crumple like a coke can if you touch them against anything. I'm not a fan, as expensive as bodywork is these days, and with how much more irritati
by megaman22 9y ago
The new ones crumple like a coke can if you touch them against anything. I'm not a fan, as expensive as bodywork is these days, and with how much more irritating aluminum is to work with for your average shade-tree mechanic.
- tyingq 9y agoIt did cut about 700lbs off the vehicle, which (in part) took them from 17/23 mpg in 2014 to 19/26 mpg today. I can see the dilemma they have trying to keep up with CAFE standards: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_Average_Fuel_Economy#Agreed_standards_by_model_year.2C_2011-2025 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_Average_Fuel_Economy...
- toomanybeersies 9y agoI couple of years ago, I crashed an old Datsun/Nissan truck into a dirt bank going about 30-40 km/h (20-30 mph). It had some damage, but nothing that couldn't be straightened out with a crowbar, and it did need a new radiator. Try that with a modern car, and it would've been totaled, or at least cost a small fortune to get fixed. Upon saying that, if I crashed the truck going 100 km/g (60 mph), I would have probably died. So even though more modern cars don't stand up to low speed crashes so well, they reduce fatalities a lot.
- flachsechs 9y agonearly everything people find 'wrong' with modern cars is done for passenger and pedestrian safety. even the phone integration and annoyingly bad electronic gadgets and infotainment software are designed to get you to put down your phone when driving, or be more aware of your surroundings. remember, the alternative is nearly everyone staring at their phones while driving, and the obvious fallout from that (people still do it, of course, hence the physical safety features). this is the reality that car designers must deal with and a point that is totally lost on the majority of people who complain about 'new cars'. if they could sell you a 1200 pound tin can death-trap with insufficient power and torque, they would, and we'd buy it, because it gets 120mpg and costs $5000.
- Retric 9y agoActual bumpers are not a safety issue. Car companies simply make more money by selling body panels at high markup after every minor accident.
- flachsechs 9y agofor you to say something like "bumpers aren't a safety issue" pretty much discredits you immediately, but i'll answer anyway, for posterity. "actual bumpers" are quite likely the single most extensively regulated pedestrian- and collision-related safety part. there's extensive legislation about their design and characteristics. car companies exist to make money, yes, but they operate within a global framework of strict regulation.
- Retric 9y agoFeel free to look for an actual regulation that prevents ridged bumpers with shock absorbers. You will not find it and in fact many vehicles are sold that can have a 5MPH collision without significant harm. The reasons for this is people can walk into solid objects at 5MPH without significant harm. PS: Feel free to start with: 49 CFR Part 58
- userbinator 9y agoand in fact many vehicles are sold that can have a 5MPH collision without significant harm. ...or at least used to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bumper_(car)#Stringency_reduced_in_1982 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bumper_(car)#Stringency_reduce...
- flachsechs 9y agoi have no idea what you're trying to say, because you keep making typos in critical words.
- tyingq 9y agoProbably referring to the disappearance of external bumpers that could be cheaply replaced after an accident, or even a reasonable diy project. The bumpers today are underneath body panels, so a even a light accident isn't cheap or easy to fix. My guess is they don't exist anymore for several reasons. Style, aerodynamics, etc.