What is Digg?73 Comments
- acontorer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3A lighter car like this has less momentum and therefore is *easier* to keep uncollapsed when it hits a wall. By contrast, it's *harder* to build a small car that remains uncrushed when hit by another, heavier object (like a truck). That video wouldn't be so cool.
- tolkachi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1For full episode:
http://www.finalgear.com/downloads/fifthgear/6/4/ - clvrmnky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Nice find. Impressive engineering.
- JIMBOWYMBO, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I actually Own a Smart. The model shown is a "Smart For Two" (formerly called Smart City Coupe). It used to be manufactured by Mecedes Benz an Swatch (yes, the watch firm) but nowadays its owned and completely manufactured by Mercedes.
For you Americans with your huge and fuel consuming cars this little will seem insane. But the truth is that in cities like Madrid, where I live, its a real blessing. You can park wherever you want, eats only one gallon every 60 miles and is one of the safests small cars. - Svoma15, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Very nice!
- mexicanpizza, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Except your chest collapsed like a soda can
- switchman401, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I did some research, the car is actually 8.2 ft!
- dignon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1A lot of people here commenting that obviously have no idea what they are talking about (what a surprise). Just to clear a few things up:
- The crushed front end would not crush your legs, that's a "crumple zone", its supposed to collapse to absorb and disperse the impact. You'll notice the occupant cage is completely intact. The idea is to save the life of the occupants... the car can be replaced. If you drive *any* car 70mph into a concrete barrier the car will be written off.
- Hitting the vehicle with your unbelieveably stupid american SUV would have similar results. People incorrectly assume that bigger is better. This simply isn't true, especially in the US where the safety standards for SUVs are lower than those for cars. There was a video of a Smart Car colliding with a large Mercedes which played out very similar to this video.
- Smart Cars are coming to the US in 2006. Although they aren't as "smart" as the rest of the world (another surprise). They may already be available in some markets through a company called "Zap". - skater2968, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1i love fifth gear. they bring us such wonderful reviews.... like crashing into polls!
- jonny5, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0whats the point of having a car that holds shape really well, when you will just be a mangled wreck on the back seat.
- pjvdg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@AbaraiRenji: "i think its a renault, french car."
It's not renault, the car driving behind the smart car is a peugeot. The smart itself is actually manufactured by Mercedes. - curtisound, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0i agree with the sentiment of some others. without a proper crumple zone to absorb the impact, inertia slams your organs against your body cavity killing you without a scratch.
- thecolorme, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0If I could choose, I'd be the passenger.
- flipper5311, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0german made
- Sculptor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Either way these engineers are way ahead of the game. After whitnessing an auto accident just last week where 30 MPH totaled one car and maybe the other. I would of liked some of this tech on my side.
- freonchill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0yea, but look @ the front; well rather the inside of the front...
you might still be alive (if all the broken plastic hadnt cut into you TOO much) but you wouldnt be walking, as your legs would be either crushed or completely sheared off.
so either way, from the plastic or your legs, you would be bleeding to death. - saintwanker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0thats insane
- JaggedEdge, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Im glad to see others were thinking about more than just the darn car, and it appeared to me that if i were in there going 70mph... aside from a messed up pair of legs, hardcore whiplash, and internal bleeding from near all of my organs... I wouldnt mind getting into a crash with that car.
But of course...its not the car, its the fact that your going 70mph.. - stalkingu, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1umm. ok its cool that the car keeps it shape, but most cars are designed to take crumple ( in the right places) this doesnt. it makes me think the car isnt taking any of the force which most of the latest cars do. this would mean that the force would be transfered onto the driver.
- themulf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0car 1, neck 0. Wish I had one.
- Sthanny, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Truly nice :)
- Dgen_X, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0wow...amazing
- andyman1, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0wow, that was really impressive!
But...was it just me, or did it look like even though your body would end up in decent shape, you really wouldn't have any legs left? - mlebeau, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1themulf: You don't have a neck? Sorry to hear that, man.
- Boondoggle, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"yes, the car does survive. however, if you were in a car that crashed at speeds like that the resulting g-forces would kill you. so not much point in the car surviving is there?"
I'm not sure the car "survives". It is ruined beyond repair. - camintmier, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Ooh! That's gotta hurt! They should have had a crash test dummy in there "driving" it, to see how hurt a person would be in the car. It's definatly a cool looking car though.
- bking, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0stalkinu, not at all. The force would not go to the driver. The driver's inertia will carry him just as far as it would if the car didn't crumple. A lack of crumple zones keeps all the force focused on the object being struck. This is demonstrated by the concrete barriers being shifted by being hit with the car.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1cheese06, wait 'til you see what my RPG does to your hummer
- LeFrenzy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0yeah vive la france.
although if it had gotten hit by an american SUV, it wouldn't survive I think =/ - cannuck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Required E.U. crash tests show that driver of Smart Car badly injured on frontal crash especially in both thighs, passenger get chest damage - overall car only scores 60% on safety! But even worse news for pedestrian being hit by Smart car - 39% rating meaning mucho damage to pedestrian!! Sevral other brandsuper mini cars scored 100% on safety - the FIAT PUNTO, PEUGOT 1007, Renault CLIO, Toyota Yaris
http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/ratings.php?id1=1
http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=1&id2=69 - mushoo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@dave
Nice one, when he mentioned the Hummer, that pic immediately came to mind. - DaveHimself, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"yeah well what if my dawgawn Hummer hit the side of the smart car. its toast."
Actually Hummers are the collision companion of choice. They are the glass jaw of the automotive world.
Have a look here:
http://greedoneverfired.blogspot.com/2005/08/bummer.html - MrMustard, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I remember watching this episode a while ago and even the presenters commented that anyone inside the car would, more than likely, not have survived.
Cars use crumple zones in order shield any occupants from the extreme forces involved in a high speed collision, that's why you are far more likely to survive a crash if you hit a stationary object from the front as opposed to something hitting you from the side. - combatchuck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Why would I drive a little faggy car like that when I could drive my BRONCO with a 15 inch lift and HAIRY BALLS hanging from the chrome-plated trailer hitch that I've never used? Why would I wanna drive a car that gets more than 15 miles per gallon? Everybody knows that using more gas means MORE POWER! Nothing is more exciting than roasting all 4 tires at every stop light! I bet that thing can't even do 90 in the far right lane and scare the ***** out of people doing the speed limit.
- kola_kidd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0a slighty bigger version of the "for 2"
http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=1&id2=224 - kola_kidd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=1&id2=69
- piwy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@ tolkachi: it is a frech made car. but by a german company. namely Daimler-Benz (same guy's that own chrysler and make mercedes benz remember?)
@ combatchuck: yah that would be the us, try roasting your tires at a stop here and clock how fast the cops will get you. and another thing you can park two of those in the parking space of a standard family car. good luck parking your car in a packed mayor european city.
@they sell thease in aust and no one buys them if they sold them in the us it would be a flop
http://www.frontlinetech.blogspot.com
lobbster posted by lobbster :of coarse no one is buying. try using a city car to run in the outback. you wouldonly be able to use the car in the mayor ctis like sidney and such. not much of a market
according to the official EU safety tests both the 1999 and the 2000 model of the smart have a 3 star (out of 5) rating for driver safety. a full front impact was found to be the most dangerous for both the driver and the passanger with high chanses of damage to the chest and upper leg yet no risks were found to the feet and ankle. Side impacts were found to be the safest.
It should be noted that a 3 star rating is the same rating as suv's like the jeep cherokee (in 2002) and the mitsubishi pajero (2003) got.
full safety specs can be found here http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_ratings/details.php?id1=1&id2=69 - dstart, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Isn't this from the UK program 'Fifth Gear' ?
This is quite old. - chriskelley, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0at 6'3" I'll be really happy the frame kept it's shape when I've got a rear view mirror in my forehead, a shifter in my thigh, a steering wheel through my chest and my legs severed at the knees.
- wrenchhead, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0yes, the car does survive. however, if you were in a car that crashed at speeds like that the resulting g-forces would kill you. so not much point in the car surviving is there?
- bacon_skoda, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0maybe in 20 years, they can afford a dummy.
this crash is meaningless.
a poor man's crash test - leesto, on 12/17/2008, -0/+0That's mad. No wonder it's a city car
- imightbewrong, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0yes it is!!
- elev8, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0THIS WAS ON THE GOOGLE BLOG A FEW WEEKS AGO. IS TALKING IN CAPS ANNOYING OR WHAT?
- cannuck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Hmm I live in Canada - and I just phoned Mercedes Benz and asked for crash test results done by the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety (http://hwysafety.org/ratings/summary.aspx?class=40) - for the Smart car. Manager told me car not sold in the USA - therefore not tested there. I then was told that it passed the minimum standard crash tests done by Transport Canada - but that I can't get actual results! If you check above web site - you'll see that only one small 2006 car will protect you in a collision - the 2006 Hinds Civic!
- volatileacid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I remember watching this on UK television last year I think - old news.... the DECELERATION would kill you even if the human body survived the impact without even a scratch.
- beni, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Kamikaze!!!
- liveinabin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Yeah! My Smart car vs. your SUV. Let's see who lives ! :)
Such a shame to see it smashed. Aside from the black shell (ours is silver) that was our car :) - piwy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0forgot to mention that the bigger version even has 4 stars. on par with most big family cars out there
- curiouslyvague, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0just to clear up the parentage of the Smart, it was originally a Swiss idea pitched to VW, but eventually developed by Mercedes and built at a plant in France (Can't get much more euro than that). Oh, and I had one just like that, loved it and now have a roadster coupe (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/smartroadster/). it rules. Yay me.
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