The vehicle group with the lowest driver death rate was large luxury cars, with 37 deaths per million vehicle years. The next lowest rate was in large minivans and station wagons, with 42 deaths per million.
''Because vehicle size and weight are so closely related,'' says Lund, ''it shouldn't be surprising that their effects on driver death rates are similar. In each group (cars, SUVs, pickups) the heavier vehicles, like bigger ones, generally had lower death rates. The death rate in the lightest SUVs, for example, was more than twice as high as in the heaviest SUVs.''
Kilogram for kilogram across the vehicle types, Lund explains, ''cars almost always have lower death rates than either pickups or SUVs. This generally is because the SUVs and pickups have much higher rates of death in single-vehicle rollover crashes.''
In some weight groups, says Lund, the death rates in cars ''were dramatically lower.'' For example, the rate in cars weighing 1,588 to 1,814 kg (this would include cars like the Buick LeSabre) was about half of the rates in pickups or SUVs of similar weight (such as Dodge Dakota and Nissan Frontier). The exception was light pickups, which had relatively low rates compared with cars or SUVs weighing about the same.
''There's no ready explanation for this exception,'' Lund admits. ''It probably has something to do with how light pickups are driven and their use patterns compared with larger and heavier pickups.''
Besides these broad death rate differences across vehicle groups, the rates varied within body style and size groups. In almost every size group of two-door and four-door cars, for example, the death rate for the worst vehicle was at least twice as high as the rate for the best vehicle.''
A lot of this seems to be explained by the price of a vehicle, since the more expensive vehicles that middle-aged people buy hugely score better than the ones that younger drivers buy. Now, as always, younger drivers get in more crasher than middle-aged drivers.
Consider the Infiniti G20 versus the Chevrolet Cavalier. The former's rate of 46 deaths per million registered years was much lower than rates for other small four-door cars, while the latter's was 162 per million. As a pseudo-luxury division, Infiniti attracts middle-aged buyers with money, while Chevy's entry-level brand (at the time) appealed to young people with little money or driving experience.
In many vehicle groups, says Lund, driver death rates are split fairly evenly between single- and multiple-vehicle crashes, but there are exceptions.
''Most driver deaths in large four-door cars and minivans occurred in crashes involving other vehicles,'' he says. ''In contrast, in pickup trucks and SUVs of almost every size, more deaths occurred in single-vehicle crashes. In large four-wheel-drive SUVs, for example, the death rate was almost three times as high in single-vehicle crashes as it was in collisions involving two or more vehicles -- 14 deaths per million compared with 40.
When it comes to vehicle type making a difference, consider that 11 vehicles, all pickups or SUVs, had more than 75 driver deaths per million in single-vehicle rollover crashes. ''This is in large part because pickup trucks and SUVs have relatively high centers of gravity compared with cars,'' Lund notes.
He points out that the Ford Excursion is a very large SUV with a high rollover death rate. ''This is at least in part because its occupancy rate tends to be high, which raises its center of gravity even higher.''
The vehicle with the very highest driver death rate in single-vehicle rollover crashes was the two-door, two-wheel-drive Chevrolet Blazer. The 251 deaths per million for this SUV compare with an average of 63 for all midsize two-wheel-drive SUVs, 34 for four-wheel-drive versions, and 28 for all vehicles in the study.
''Because vehicle size and weight are so closely related,'' says Lund, ''it shouldn't be surprising that their effects on driver death rates are similar. In each group (cars, SUVs, pickups) the heavier vehicles, like bigger ones, generally had lower death rates. The death rate in the lightest SUVs, for example, was more than twice as high as in the heaviest SUVs.''
Kilogram for kilogram across the vehicle types, Lund explains, ''cars almost always have lower death rates than either pickups or SUVs. This generally is because the SUVs and pickups have much higher rates of death in single-vehicle rollover crashes.''
In some weight groups, says Lund, the death rates in cars ''were dramatically lower.'' For example, the rate in cars weighing 1,588 to 1,814 kg (this would include cars like the Buick LeSabre) was about half of the rates in pickups or SUVs of similar weight (such as Dodge Dakota and Nissan Frontier). The exception was light pickups, which had relatively low rates compared with cars or SUVs weighing about the same.
''There's no ready explanation for this exception,'' Lund admits. ''It probably has something to do with how light pickups are driven and their use patterns compared with larger and heavier pickups.''
Besides these broad death rate differences across vehicle groups, the rates varied within body style and size groups. In almost every size group of two-door and four-door cars, for example, the death rate for the worst vehicle was at least twice as high as the rate for the best vehicle.''
A lot of this seems to be explained by the price of a vehicle, since the more expensive vehicles that middle-aged people buy hugely score better than the ones that younger drivers buy. Now, as always, younger drivers get in more crasher than middle-aged drivers.
Consider the Infiniti G20 versus the Chevrolet Cavalier. The former's rate of 46 deaths per million registered years was much lower than rates for other small four-door cars, while the latter's was 162 per million. As a pseudo-luxury division, Infiniti attracts middle-aged buyers with money, while Chevy's entry-level brand (at the time) appealed to young people with little money or driving experience.
In many vehicle groups, says Lund, driver death rates are split fairly evenly between single- and multiple-vehicle crashes, but there are exceptions.
''Most driver deaths in large four-door cars and minivans occurred in crashes involving other vehicles,'' he says. ''In contrast, in pickup trucks and SUVs of almost every size, more deaths occurred in single-vehicle crashes. In large four-wheel-drive SUVs, for example, the death rate was almost three times as high in single-vehicle crashes as it was in collisions involving two or more vehicles -- 14 deaths per million compared with 40.
When it comes to vehicle type making a difference, consider that 11 vehicles, all pickups or SUVs, had more than 75 driver deaths per million in single-vehicle rollover crashes. ''This is in large part because pickup trucks and SUVs have relatively high centers of gravity compared with cars,'' Lund notes.
He points out that the Ford Excursion is a very large SUV with a high rollover death rate. ''This is at least in part because its occupancy rate tends to be high, which raises its center of gravity even higher.''
The vehicle with the very highest driver death rate in single-vehicle rollover crashes was the two-door, two-wheel-drive Chevrolet Blazer. The 251 deaths per million for this SUV compare with an average of 63 for all midsize two-wheel-drive SUVs, 34 for four-wheel-drive versions, and 28 for all vehicles in the study.