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Shopping for Safety
Most carmakers actively advertise their safety features. Significant improvements have been made to protect occupants in a crash or to help drivers avoid a collision. All vehicles are now equipped with safety belts, air bags, collapsible steering wheels, shatterproof glass, padded dashes, and a host of other safety features.
Government tests ensure that all vehicles meet minimmum standards for crashworthiness. The New Car Assessment Program operated by the U.S. Department of Transportation tests how well vehicles protect occupants when crashed at speeds greater than the current federal safety standard. The government uses "stars" to rate vehicles - five stars is the highest rating. Selecting a vehicle with a high rating will help keep you and your passengers safe. See how your car stacks up by checking the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Crash Data .
New cars are also equipped with "crash avoidance" features such as daytime running lights, anti-lock brakes, improved light systems, and a passenger door mirror. One manufacturer now offers a night-vision system; other carmakers are developing similar systems. Ask your sales representative about these safety features.
Traction Control
Many cars are equipped with a system that controls the power to each wheel; this ensures that tires maintain proper traction, no matter the conditions.
A traction-control system may be particularly valuable if you travel on roads where traction varies greatly during the year. Some systems are so sophisticated that they also augment your steering, adding or lessening it as needed.
Anti-lock Brakes
Anti-lock braking systems prevent a vehicle from skidding out of control; the braking system rapidly applys and releases the brakes. The system performs differently from traditional brakes, and it's best for your own safety that you understand how to use it.
Anti-lock brakes can be noisy, and the feel of the brake pedal may startle you until you become accustomed to it. Avoid inadvertently taking your foot off the brake when they hear the noise.
Because anti-lock brakes prevent tires from "locking up," you can steer the car even with brakes are fully applied. You must remember to "stomp and steer," by exerting as much pressure on the brake as possible and continue steering the car away from danger. This practice is counter to stopping with non-anti-lock brakes, which require you to "pump" the brakes to prevent skidding
If you buy a vehicle with anti-lock brakes, find a safe place and practice a panic stop several times to get a feel for this safety feature.
Lights
Many carmakers now include daytime running lights as standard equipment on cars sold in America. Research shows that making a car more conspicuous to other drivers significantly reduces head-on and front-corner collisions.
Daytime running lights come on whenever the car's engine is on, but usually only at 80 percent power to conserve bulb life. At night, they will automatically assume full power.
Rear fog lights, directional signals on the front fenders and mirrors, and cornering lights on the side also make a car more easily seen.
Size
Generally, larger cars have lower fatality and injury rates than smaller cars. This is true when large cars collide with small cars, other large cars, or fixed objects such as guardrails.
Consider buying the largest car within the class for safety. However, all cars are safer today when compared with cars from a few years ago, so size should be only one factor in your decision.
Safety Belts: Lap and shoulder belts are still the single best protection against death and serious injury in crashes, even though they might cause injury in minor crashes.
Estimates show that three-point lap/shoulder belts reduce the risk of a fatality by about 45 percent and the risk of serious injury about the same percent age.
Adjustable-height shoulder belts are particularly beneficial for children or smaller adults. By positioning the shoulder belt properly, you can significantly prevent abdominal injuries.
Also look for automatic pretensioners, which are wired to sensors that tighten the belt immediately on impact, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the belt. Not all cars have these features.
Air Bags
When used with safety belts, air bags dramatically improve your chances of surviving a head-on crash. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration credits air bags with saving approximately 2,000 lives over the past decade. Many models now offer door-, pillar-, or roof-mounted air bags for better protection.
Many people doubt the effectiveness of air bags despite the evidence of their benefits. These concerns are, in part, a result of air bag-related deaths, many involving children. In virtually all cases, the person fatally injured was either unrestrained or improperly restrained.
AAA recommends that drivers who cannot position themselves at least 10 inches from the steering wheel may want to have an air bag on/off switch installed; an application is available at your local AAA office.
Children under 12 should be properly restrained in the back seat.
To help minimize the risk of injury or death from air bags, the federal government is currently allowing manufacturers to "depower" air bags by about 25 percent to 35 percent . Initial indications are that this change has resulted in air bags that are just as effective as more powerful bags, without the unintended consequences of more powerful bags.
Air bags are a safe and effective device for preventing injury and death. Their presence in any vehicle enhances the effectiveness of its other crashworthiness features including the lap/shoulder belt.
Safety Seats
Every state requires safety seats for young children. Many cars and minivans have an integrated child's safety seat concealed in the rear seat, easily accessible when needed.
Integrated safety seats solve a significant problem facing parents: achiving proper fit with a store-bought safety seat. To fully protect your child, the safety seat must be installed so that it doesn't move when you tug it firmly from side to side or forward and back. It should seem "embedded" in the car's seat.
Studies show that 80 percent or more of all child safety seats are installed incorrectly, putting children at unnecessary risk in a crash. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions when installing a safety seat.
Never place your infant (less than a year old and under 20 pounds) in a rear-facing seat in the front seat if there is a passenger air bag. The air bag could gravely injure the infant should it deploy.
In two-seaters and pickups, where babies in rear-facing safety seats must ride in the front, you may want a switch to deactivate the air bag.
All children 12 years of age and under, especially those in safety seats, should ride in the rear whenever possible.
In some cars, safety seats don't fit well in the back: the car's seat cushion may be too deeply contoured or the distance between the lap belt anchors is too narrow. In other cars, you may need additional hardware or supplemental belts, depending on the safety-belt design.
Be sure the car you choose can accommodate a safety seat if your child needs one. Take the seat with you on the test drive and install it according to directions of the seat manufacturer and the instructions in the car's owner's manual.
