While combination head and torso side airbags for the front occupants are available on the Neon/SX 2.0 models, DaimlerChrysler did not ask for a second test with the airbags.
''With a poor structure, the company probably didn't think side airbags would make a big difference in the Neon's performance,'' Lund says. Pointing to the Neon's marginal rating in the IIHS's frontal test, he adds that ''if safety is a priority, the Neon is a small car to be avoided.''
In the Cobalt and Corolla with the curtain airbags, the heads of the dummies in the front and rear seats were cushioned, Lund says, ''and head injury measures were low.'' That's important, as ''Head injuries are a factor in many deaths in real-world side impact crashes, and side airbags designed to protect the head make a big difference.''
In the Cobalt, forces on the driver dummy's torso indicated the possibility of rib fractures or internal organ injuries, and in the Corolla there was the possibility of a fractured pelvis. Protection for the rear passenger was good in both cars.
''GM and Toyota still need to beef up the side structures to improve their side impact ratings from acceptable to good,'' says Lund.
Four of the vehicles that earned poor side crashworthiness ratings (Elantra, Forenza, New Beetle, and Spectra) are equipped with standard side airbags with head protection. These cars are rated good or acceptable for head injury measures recorded on the driver dummies. The Saturn ION with optional side airbags also earned an acceptable rating for driver head injury. However, the structures of all of these vehicles allowed too much intrusion during the test. Forces recorded on the driver dummies' torsos and/or pelvic areas were high.
"Side airbags can protect the head, but if the vehicle structure doesn't hold up well then serious injuries to other body regions still can occur," Lund points out. "With better structures along with the side airbags, the performances of these vehicles would improve."
IIHS research shows that side airbags with head protection are reducing deaths by about 45 percent among drivers of cars struck on the driver side, Lund reports. Before the availability of head-protecting airbags, there was virtually nothing to prevent people's heads from being struck by intruding vehicles or such rigid objects as trees or poles in serious side impacts.
Lund says that side airbags that protect the chest and abdomen, but not the head, are also reducing deaths but are less effective, registering about a 10 percent reduction in deaths. On top of that, he says, well-designed doors with appropriate padding can provide good protection for the chest and abdomen.
Head-protecting airbags are necessary for effective side impact protection, but torso airbags are not. For example, the Corolla the IIHS tested was equipped with torso airbags. The Cobalt wasn't. Both had head-protecting curtain airbags, and both earned acceptable ratings.
''These side impact results are similar to the results in 1997 when the IIHS first rated small cars in the frontal offset crash test,'' says Lund. ''Back then, no small car earned a good frontal crash test rating. Now almost every small car earns a good rating in the frontal test. As manufacturers redesign their vehicles, we expect that small cars will get better in the side impact test too.''
''With a poor structure, the company probably didn't think side airbags would make a big difference in the Neon's performance,'' Lund says. Pointing to the Neon's marginal rating in the IIHS's frontal test, he adds that ''if safety is a priority, the Neon is a small car to be avoided.''
In the Cobalt and Corolla with the curtain airbags, the heads of the dummies in the front and rear seats were cushioned, Lund says, ''and head injury measures were low.'' That's important, as ''Head injuries are a factor in many deaths in real-world side impact crashes, and side airbags designed to protect the head make a big difference.''
In the Cobalt, forces on the driver dummy's torso indicated the possibility of rib fractures or internal organ injuries, and in the Corolla there was the possibility of a fractured pelvis. Protection for the rear passenger was good in both cars.
''GM and Toyota still need to beef up the side structures to improve their side impact ratings from acceptable to good,'' says Lund.
Four of the vehicles that earned poor side crashworthiness ratings (Elantra, Forenza, New Beetle, and Spectra) are equipped with standard side airbags with head protection. These cars are rated good or acceptable for head injury measures recorded on the driver dummies. The Saturn ION with optional side airbags also earned an acceptable rating for driver head injury. However, the structures of all of these vehicles allowed too much intrusion during the test. Forces recorded on the driver dummies' torsos and/or pelvic areas were high.
"Side airbags can protect the head, but if the vehicle structure doesn't hold up well then serious injuries to other body regions still can occur," Lund points out. "With better structures along with the side airbags, the performances of these vehicles would improve."
IIHS research shows that side airbags with head protection are reducing deaths by about 45 percent among drivers of cars struck on the driver side, Lund reports. Before the availability of head-protecting airbags, there was virtually nothing to prevent people's heads from being struck by intruding vehicles or such rigid objects as trees or poles in serious side impacts.
Lund says that side airbags that protect the chest and abdomen, but not the head, are also reducing deaths but are less effective, registering about a 10 percent reduction in deaths. On top of that, he says, well-designed doors with appropriate padding can provide good protection for the chest and abdomen.
Head-protecting airbags are necessary for effective side impact protection, but torso airbags are not. For example, the Corolla the IIHS tested was equipped with torso airbags. The Cobalt wasn't. Both had head-protecting curtain airbags, and both earned acceptable ratings.
''These side impact results are similar to the results in 1997 when the IIHS first rated small cars in the frontal offset crash test,'' says Lund. ''Back then, no small car earned a good frontal crash test rating. Now almost every small car earns a good rating in the frontal test. As manufacturers redesign their vehicles, we expect that small cars will get better in the side impact test too.''