How safe are our cars in a collission

[Petrina Polo]

Hi,

How safe are our Polos in the event of a collission.. we have a few airbags around the place but im more worried about how do we fair...

It would probably be in the least safe categories for most cars due to its size and weight..

Am I correct?

[NickZ]

I think the Polo has a 4-star safety rating. Now whether that is the GTI (which has the extra airbags + ESP) or the standard polo is in question - if the four stars is based on a standard Polo I would imagine the extra safety gear lifts the GTI to a 5-star.

Our cars, despite being small are designed pretty well from a safety perspective - however I imagine you would be pretty f!@#ed if you get T-Boned by a 4WD.

[Markybhoy]

Here's some information on the polo's safety.

http://www.euroncap.com/tests/vw_polo_2002/114.aspx

However, there are a few things to note. The test was for a 2002 polo 1.2 L. The bigger engine of the 1.8 MAY make a difference to how an impact would affect the firewall and hence body injuries. However, for a small car I would say it does pretty well. Of course, it all depends on the accident and all the factors associated with it as to the extent of any injuries from it.

Cheers,
Mark

[leasaunce]

4 star... but obviously, if you crash against a much bigger car, the Polo is a no match.

I do feel much safer buying a Euro car.

[VW GTI]

There's only 1 way to find out.

[Petrina Polo]

I know they are good cars but do you guys get a little worried putting the family in them..

Are we compromising their safety by not having a bigger car?

[Markybhoy]

I know they are good cars but do you guys get a little worried putting the family in them..

Are we compromising their safety by not having a bigger car?

I'm pretty comfortable putting my kids in - one's 3yo and the other is 7 months old. I think the safety of cars is much, much better than say even 10 years ago. When I have the kids in the car I drive A LOT more carefully than if it's just me.

I've also got a classic mini (197 and I don't put the kids in that. Even light collisions are bad in those!

[Chuck]

i want knee impact airpags on the GTi...would be a great idea seeing as my knees are in the dash anyways

[Spec83]

It'll do better than a Holden (Opel) VB Commodore.......

Opel Rekord Crash Test @ 110km/h

[pologti18t]

It'll do better than a Holden (Opel) VB Commodore.......

Opel Rekord Crash Test @ 110km/h

They only crash test modern cars at 64km/h, so I am not sure of what the video is supposed to prove. A collision at 110km/h would mean nearly 4 times more energy to contend with.

a 110km/h impact into a wall is equivalent to two cars hitting head on at 110km/h EACH. No car will offer any significant chance of survival at those closing speeds.

[VW Convert]

They only crash test modern cars at 64km/h, so I am not sure of what the video is supposed to prove. A collision at 110km/h would mean nearly 4 times more energy to contend with.

a 110km/h impact into a wall is equivalent to two cars hitting head on at 110km/h EACH. No car will offer any significant chance of survival at those closing speeds.

Yes it is easy to make something appear to be what it is not, you can't compare that to normal crash testing. It does make great viewing however!


Cheers

George

[Petrina Polo]

If two cars are heading 110km/h in opposite directions isnt that collision gonna be much worse than if one car hit a stationary object at 110km/h... referring to a previous post.. (Pologti18t)

[NickZ]

Correct, unless the wall is moving towards the car at 110km/h an hour, the impact is not the same as a collision at 220km/h. A head on collision with both cars doing 110km/h - well no airbags or star ratings is going to help you at that point.

[DeanB]

It depends on a lot of things.

If you hit a stationary object like a cliff wall that will not deform then all that 110km/h impact energy will travel through the car and I can't imagine anyone getting out alive. Think of those horrific accidents they show usually of P-platers crashing into telegraph poles. The pole stays standing (or maybe snaps) the car ends up in pieces for 100m down the road.

However, if you hit something stationary that deforms or breaks up/moves so that it absorbs some of that energy you have a better (though still not good) chance to get out.

If you hit another vehicle head-on at 110km/h (both of you travelling at 110km/h) and it's a direct head-on nose to nose. Like previously said it is like hitting something stationary at 220km/h, though something that will deform a bit and help disperse the energy. Nevertheless you aren't likely to get out of it alive.

If the head-on is slightly off center you have a better chance to live.

In any of these situations the odds aren't good. You have to remember that the energy involved in a 1000+kg vehicle travelling at 100+km/h is very high and that energy has to disperse somewhere. Air bags will help you with a moderate speed. Once you start talking about 100+km/h there isn't much apart from harnesses, roll-cages, safety cells, etc to help you once you start talking about hitting things head-on.

[oliverconnell]

i thought the reason the polo didn't get 5 star ncap was that the one tested didn't have side airbags and that the polo minces pedestrians really badly. got 5 stars for side impact im pretty sure.