All five individuals where released from the hospital with minor injuries, and Lewis and Evans both went to jail for charges ranging from child endangerment and neglect to DUI, a charge which can be levied in Tennessee even if you aren't behind the wheel. After a performance like that, we sincerely hope nobody ever buys that dad a beer ever again. [WSBTV]

Roy Lucke, senior scientist at Northwestern's Center for Public Safety, says "This is one of the most off-the-wall things I've ever read, but the science is good." The researchers behind the study cite causes for the mortality rise to people rushing to get to polling places with which they may not be familiar, often in the dark before or after work. The moral? Get out and vote, but do it during daylight hours and make sure you're driving a huge SUV so you're protected. [MSNBC]

The long-rumored Audi A7 is expected to be a coupe-shaped sedan, in the same vein as the Mercedes CLS. Though obviously this particular mule is based on an old tarted-up A6. We'd think that would mean mere body damage like this wouldn't be a big deal, so we're assuming more was broken here than the exterior skin.

AAA Supports Passenger Restrictions — Cites Recent Teen Driving Crashes

HB 4151 would make graduated licensing laws even stronger

DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 12 /PRNewswire/ — Michigan's graduated driver licensing laws are among the best in the country, resulting in a dramatic decline in deaths and injuries since they were enacted in 1996. However, AAA believes that these laws can be further strengthened to help prevent even more deaths and injuries among teen drivers and their passengers.

A significant number of teen crashes in Michigan this spring and summer — including a fatal crash this week in Macomb County — have lawmakers taking a second look at legislation that would place restrictions on the number of passengers that can ride with a teen driver. House Bill 4151 would limit the number of teen passengers to one. AAA strongly supports this bill.

"According to a March 2008 report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), when teenage drivers transport passengers there is a greatly increased crash risk, with greater risk associated with more passengers," said Jack Peet, Community Safety Services manager for AAA Michigan. "In fact, when there are multiple passengers, the crash risk is 3 to 5 times greater."

A recent analysis from AAA finds that crashes involving teen drivers ages 15 to 17 cost American society more than $34 billion annually in medical expenses, lost work, property damage, quality of life loss and other related costs in 2006.

"The impact of a teen crash extends beyond the emotional tragedies and physical injury at the crash scene, with costs that can extend to employers, families, the government and society overall," said Peet. "These economic figures provide one more reason for legislators to improve graduated driver licensing laws in their states."

New research by AAA shows an alarmingly high number of teens admit to engaging in very risky behavior behind the wheel. Some of these behaviors — like driving under the influence — are problems the safety community has battled for years. Others — like text messaging while driving — are new behaviors. They all pose a threat to road users and must be corrected by teens, parents and safe driving educators.

For additional information on teen driving visit AAA.com/safety.

Source: AAA Michigan

CONTACT: Jim Rink, +1-313-336-1513, or Nancy Cain, +1-313-336-1514, both
for AAA Michigan

Web site: http://aaa.com/safety

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which Mr. Sepkowitz cites as his source, says 31% of people involved in fatal crashes in 2007 were speeding at the time. From this, we can draw several conclusions. The first is that while speed was a factor in these crashes, it is not given as the cause. The other obvious conclusion is that two thirds of people involved in fatal crashes were not speeding at the time. So, by Mr. Sepkowitz’s logic, isn't it actually safer to speed than it is to drive at or below the speed limit? Maybe we should call for a ban on not speeding.

There’s a huge gap in the NHTSA’s numbers, meaning we don’t know what percentage of overall speeding traffic, nor what percentage of overall law-abiding traffic, was killed in road accidents. Therefore it’s impossible to determine the true statistical danger of speeding. Nor does the study state what the actual cause of all the accidents was. If, for instance, a person was killed by a truck running a red light, while that person was speeding, would speed or the running of the red light be considered the cause? The NHTSA doesn’t know, but would in that case list speed as a factor. We'd list "running of the red light."

Mr. Sepkowitz goes on to contradict his own argument by stating that in 2006, “76 percent of speeding drivers killed in motor vehicle accidents had been drinking.” Wouldn't that suggest drinking, not speed, was the contributing factor to their deaths?

But how should we limit the performance potential of vehicles to a speed which Mr. Sepkowitz feels is safe? “It’s called cruise control. In its common application, cruise control maintains a steady speed, but a minor adjustment would assure that vehicles, no matter the horsepower, never go past 75 miles per hour.” Hmm, perhaps Mr. Sepkowitz should stick to his important day job — you know, being vice-chairman of medicine at the Sloan-Kettering cancer center — rather than playing amateur car mechanic. [via NYTimes.com]

After seeing the first crash of a GT-R in Malaysia, and another one crunched by the boys at Top Gear, we're sadly starting to get used to the sight of Godzilla with battle scars. Perhaps the beast really is too fast to tame. (Hat tip to Joe!) [MyGTR]

Lax safety and licensing standards and an insufficient infrastructure, combined with heavy and varied traffic (cars share the roads with trucks, rickshaws, motorcycles, mopeds, animals, pedestrians, vendors, carts and bicyclists) are largely to blame for India’s high rate of accidents. But the biggest killer is thought to be the huge numbers of new vehicles and new drivers flooding India’s roads. The already massively overcrowded thoroughfares are being pushed to the breaking point, literally. It’s a problem shared by other developing nations: The World Bank estimates that by 2020, the number of people killed by car accidents globally will increase from 1.2 to 2 million.

India plans to spend $500 billion over the next five years to repair and upgrade its transportation infrastructure, reports Business 24-7, but much of that will be spent on airports and seaports rather than on roads, and what money does reach them is largely expected to be lost to corruption and mismanagement. 90% of India’s passenger traffic and 65% of its freight travel by road.

Business 24-7 goes on to report that, “loopholes in the system put licenses in the hands of those ill equipped to drive, there is also a general apathy among consumers towards seat belts, air bags and even motorcycle helmets.”

Hormazd Sorabjee, the Editor of Autocar India says, “Safety is unfortunately not a big part of the purchase decision of Indian consumers. Our best-selling small cars are typically not the safest vehicles on the road because consumers are more worried about fuel efficiency and the cost of ownership, and would rather not pay for safety features such as air bags and anti-lock brakes."

The Tata Nano, for instance, doesn’t include airbags, antilock brakes or side-impact beams in its $2,500 price, but does claim to have passed the required frontal and side impact tests.

To counteract the increased accident and mortality rates, vehicle manufacturers are setting up their own driver training schools. "We do believe the need for training is becoming increasingly relevant due to the increase in vehicle volumes, high speed roads, enhanced performance of vehicles, and the requirement of specific skills for application on vehicles," says Debasis Ray, head of corporate communications at Tata. [Business 24-7 via Bikes In The Fast Lane]

Well, according to Mrs Mellin:

"We had split up and been to court. He wanted me to walk away from the farmhouse and the business and leave me with nothing...so we met in a pub after a court hearing and he started having a tantrum. As we made our way back to our cars he opened the boot and said: "There's my rope, that's what I'm going to kill myself with." I told him to grow up and give me the rope. But he just laughed."

This is getting to be an epidemic here lately. First it was the flying M5, then it was a disintegrated SLR, followed closely by an upended M3. It's craziness. If you have a very nice, very fast car DO NOT GIVE THE KEYS TO YOUR DUMB KID. Given the baked-in stupidity of your average teen, mixed with the "Look how cool I am" braggadocio inherent in prom night, one would think this idea would have been self-evident to the Florida family who handed over the keys to little Timmy so he could impress his prom date. We have a secret for you, Timmy's dad: If you're loaded enough to have a Porsche Carrera GT, and Timmy can't seal the deal without driving it, little Timmy is a failure.

You do not have to one-up your idiot neighbors. In fact, do not buy your son a car at all. If you do, buy him a clapped-out 80's-era Volvo. We know you think your son deserves all the best, but he also doesn't deserve to turn into that idiot teen who gets ridiculed on the internet for crashing expensive BMW's into peoples houses — or for ramping off the end of a runway berm, killing everyone in the car. [E46Fanatics]

We've never been to the home of hoonage, so we don't really know what Australia's roadside fatality rate on koalas looks like. But we assume it's a lot like armadillos in Texas and raccoons in Michigan — rare in the city, but not uncommon out in the sticks. Gail Gipp, manager of the Sunshine Coast's Australian Wildlife Hospital, said of the little marsupial, "He just shook his head and started to come around. Being hit at that speed, it is amazing he survived. He just clung on. He has a lovely placid, relaxed nature and I think that definitely helped him."

Ely was taken to the Wildlife Hospital where it was discovered that, although he had suffered only ruffled fur, the koala had a case of Chlamydia and would need to be admitted to the hospital for several months of treatment. We didn't even know koalas could get the clap. Ya learn something new every day. (Thanks for the tip Brett) [The Age]

As Kim Taylor was running down the hill beside her driveway, chasing after her red Mazda Miata, she couldn't help but be confused. She was sure she had put the parking brake on. And yet there was the little convertible, on its way to her neighbors' pool for a 40 MPH splashdown. We have a feeling this was just one of those days.(Thanks Chris)
[York Daily Record via 11Alive]

Apparently this happened along some tollway in New York; no word on the involvement of Larry, Curly and Mo. [Loqu]

Nobody seems to have been hurt here, but there are definitely some bruised egos. It's worth the trip over to the BBC website to check out the video, as it's rife with funny British words and pronunciations like "sa-LEE-ka," talk of bonnets, and amusing Irish accents. We're going to hell, we know. [BBC]

The simple answer is "because the IIHS is a consortium of insurance agencies." When massive damage occurs in something like an underride accident (where the car goes under the truck), they have to pay for fixing things. The remarkable part of the article in Automotive News was the complete lack of the term "survivability" in any of the IIHC's arguments. Our favorite part?

The insurance institute contends that its new request is backed up with fresh research showing that vehicle damage could be dramatically reduced with better alignment of bumpers between cars and trucks.

Photo credit DieselPowerMag.com

On a tangential note, one of us had a friend in college who was in love with car gadgets. His '93 T-Bird SC was decked out with all the goodies available at the turn of the century, and included was a remote starter. Only problem was the car in question was a manual and the parking brake was hit or miss. Needless to say, eventually the 'Bird ended up punching a hole in the back of his parents garage when he started it while in gear. Moral of the story; Don't disable the safety interlocks on your cars, kids. [TheRecord]

These bandages are actually magnets, and possibly better looking than having a nasty ding visible. They could also be funny for when you accidentally ding someone else. Forget about leaving contact information — just slap a bandage on it and you're ready to flee the scene. [Product Page via NA]

Design constraints, like the need to lower the door window, mean car frames cannot be built with the beam already in place. Like airbags, once activated, the brace would need a trip to the workshop to be reset, but the team are working on making the brace retractable.

Hooray, safety! [New Scientist via Giz]