![]() 02/08/2018 at 07:16 • Filed to: None | ![]() | ![]() |
Ouch.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 07:22 |
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Why are Minivans always horror shows in crash tests? You would think something with the specific purpose of transporting your kids around would be designed with safety as the number 1 priority.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 07:27 |
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I wouldn’t say that, most tend to perform better than average. But structurally, they’re big open boxes and that doesn’t help. Only pickups are inherently worse (but can be worked around).
The last gen Honda Odyssey was off the charts in some of the tests, including the weird ones like small frontal offset (or whatever it’s called). Part of the reason we bought one.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 07:54 |
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They really aren’t at this point:
![]() 02/08/2018 at 08:01 |
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I think part of the problem with minivans is that they don’t change the basic structure very often, and as a result they tend to fail the newer tests that were not in place when the vehicle was designed. The Mazda5, although redesigned for 2012, has essentially the same underlying structure as the first one introduced in 2006.
Sure, there were some added reinforcements and such, but it’s not like it was a clean-sheet design. Having been redesigned around 2010, it obviously didn’t fare well in crash standards introduced after that date.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this same evolutionary design mentality doesn’t apply to other minivans as well.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 08:54 |
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I think even just adding side curtain airbags would have helped a lot.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 09:19 |
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But big vehicles are always safer in a crash!
![]() 02/08/2018 at 09:28 |
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Uh, yeah - no.
![]() 02/08/2018 at 09:52 |
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Literally had that discussion with someone on the front page in the last month or two. He would not accept the results of NHTSA or IIHS testing, nor would he consider the possibility of a car crash into something other than another car.
It was a rather fruitless and frustrating discussion.