This comes as no surprise to me. I rear-ended a Kia Spectra at about 5-10 mph merging onto a highway. The Kia's rear bumper was a little scuffed. My '96 Firebird on the otherhand is in the body shop getting a new hood, font bumper cover, passenger headlight assembly, and passenger front fender. The Kia driver and I were both stunned by the amount of damage my car took, but I guess we shouldn't have been.
Cost to repair his car: less than $500
Cost to repair mine: hahahaha. I have to laugh to fight back the tears.
@Socialvegetable: Rear enders usually have much more damage than the rear endees. The rear of the car is not built as softly as the front, because how often are you driving backwards quickly into something?
@philibuster: That, and when both vehicles are braking hard, especially a wedge-shaped Firebird, the active vehicle often ends up underneath the passive one's bumper, damaging its hood as well.
Excellent crash performance should translate into a stiffer chassis and better mounts subframes and components. These should translate into better handling and vehicle dynamics.
So given their excellent crash survivability rating, I'm hoping for a professional demolition derby series featuring only Toyota and Honda hybrids.
"Sunday, Sunday Sunday...8pm at the Fairgrounds, it's Battle of the Hybrids! Watch as your favorite drivers narrowly escape chemical burns and electrocution. If you're not there you better be dead or in Jail...and if you are in Jail...Breakout!"
The IIHS tests are getting too easy to ace. these automakers with their supercomputers are able to dial in their desired scores. It's like the automakers are a frat house with copies of all the old tests filed away for the football players.
Obviously, it's time for the IIHS to modify their testing procedures. I think randomly-placed explosive charges will liven things up a bit.
I'm pleased that the Soul did well. The prospective drivers of these are probably going to do something stupid, but they've got their whole lives ahead of them to wise up.
But why are we trying to save the Yippies*?
*Yippie:n.1: A former yuppie turned hippie using "ill-gotten" gains in a manner in which to atone for their misdeeds whilst suckling at the corporate teat.
2: A hippie, who is, despite the patchouli stench, gainfully employed, and can afford a Prius over an '83 Vanagon. var: yippy pl: yippies.
@smalleyxb122: I'm not sure how the Soul got a good rating in the frontal crash since the driver dummy's head went outside (see the freeze frame shown when the movie is unplayed). It could easily strike the post or mirror whilst flailing about. That isn't safe.
The 2010 Kia Soul (Why not Seoul?) also gets my pick for the only box car I don't absolutely detest. Congratulations on the award and your sexy rear sloping roof.
@Karsten Von Urea for All Sales Event: Actually, as odd as it is, the Nissan Cube is pretty cool. I just wish that Toyota would bring back the original xB, as the new one just has no soul, pardon the pun.
@Ash78: Investigator: "Ah, it's a classic case of Prius-remorse."
Cop: "But, how did he end up in the grille of that Mack truck if he crashed over there?"
Investigator: "Well, the Prius is just so horrible that when he tried to crash and kill himself he realized that he couldn't. This caused his brain to implode with rage and he ran straight into traffic, causing much more damage."
Cop: If only the Prius was unsafe, it could have saved the lives of those 50 people who crashed when he ran into traffic.
Investigator: "If only..."
That's why I always refer to the "mid-cycle refresh" as a "mid-model correction." They correct what they regret with the original--usually, the taillamps, but in this case, the driving experience.
I will forever love the Insight, if only for this true story that I kid you not happened to me just last Thursday:
I was trying to wrangle down some running/ignition issues with my '75 Mark IV. After replacing the control module I noticed that the coil harness was actually brittle enough to loosen with expansion... as the engine warmed up, the harness loosened resulting in a flaky connection. Eureka! Time to cable-tie that sucker tight and go for a test drive!
So I get on I-64 Westbound to run from one side of Frankfort KY to the other... a nice convenient dragstrip with hills made just for this kind of testing. As I accelerate on up the entrance ramp it becomes apparent that I did indeed fix the root cause of my nagging issues. So I give it a little more, and slowly but surely the 7.5L 220hp V8 scoots my 5,300lb bombastic Malaisemobile out of its own way. Eventually I'm chugging a smooth 80 mph, exhaust leak and all, and for once the Tankster actually seems like it has more to give: why not take and enjoy the fruits of my repair success? I put the signal on, get in the left lane to pass a semi, and see a new Insight in front of me.
No problem, he's almost ahead of the semi anyway so there's no need for me to slow down here, if he's like most hybriders he'll promptly flee back to the right lane as soon as he sees that faux Rolls obscenity in his rear-view mirror.
But he doesn't.
He passes the semi, passes the geriatric Grand Marquis ahead of it, the Trailblazer ahead of that... and holy shit is he actually getting away from me? I didn't even realize we'd pushed up to 90mph going downhill to the river....!
So at this point I figure what the heck, and gun it... first time getting my tank to the century mark (yay!) but that damn Insight is STILL ahead of me (boo), but now only by a safe margin. It's clear he has no intention of making this easy for me, using traffic as picks to block... but dammit if I haven't found a like-minded soul.
And then I glance at the bewildered face of the unsuspecting Mazda driver we blast by at 100, and it hits me:
A tiny, modern Hybrid is doing three digits, seemingly to flee a smog-choked monster from the 70's. And for every tree he's saving, I'm probably killing five.
It was a thing of beauty, but alas my exit approached too quickly.
I salute you, Insight Driver, for having the balls to have a little fun, and for helping me headasplosde countless witnesses to the greatest impromptu race of total polar-opposites ever seen.
A strolling player promoted this comment
Edited by GIC asks not for whom the bell tolls at 07/22/09 1:39 PM
GIC asks not for whom the bell tolls was starred
GIC asks not for whom the bell tolls was unstarred
@goingincirclez: Hah, that actually sounds almost exactly like the jaunt to my parents' house yesterday, in which I hit 100mph in my Prius and beat a black Mazda3 that was right up my trumpet.
@goingincirclez:
"A tiny, modern Hybrid is doing three digits, seemingly to flee a smog-choked monster from the 70's. And for every tree he's saving, I'm probably killing five.
It was a thing of beauty, but alas my exit approached too quickly."
@goingincirclez: Dude, great story. Makes me miss central Kentucky even more than I already do, and I didn't think that was possible. Heart click, and thanks for sharing that with us.
08/13/09
08/13/09
Cost to repair his car: less than $500
Cost to repair mine: hahahaha. I have to laugh to fight back the tears.
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@MrHowser: Appears to be the former. I suspected it was.
I've also got his panflute chart Sharpied on my bedroom wall.
08/13/09
08/13/09
"Sunday, Sunday Sunday...8pm at the Fairgrounds, it's Battle of the Hybrids! Watch as your favorite drivers narrowly escape chemical burns and electrocution. If you're not there you better be dead or in Jail...and if you are in Jail...Breakout!"
08/13/09
Obviously, it's time for the IIHS to modify their testing procedures. I think randomly-placed explosive charges will liven things up a bit.
08/13/09
But why are we trying to save the Yippies*?
*Yippie:n.1: A former yuppie turned hippie using "ill-gotten" gains in a manner in which to atone for their misdeeds whilst suckling at the corporate teat.
2: A hippie, who is, despite the patchouli stench, gainfully employed, and can afford a Prius over an '83 Vanagon.
var: yippy pl: yippies.
08/13/09
08/13/09
08/13/09
I still have my membership card from 1970 somewhere. Oh wait, I think I burned it.
08/13/09
08/13/09
08/13/09
08/13/09
08/13/09
Cop: "But, how did he end up in the grille of that Mack truck if he crashed over there?"
Investigator: "Well, the Prius is just so horrible that when he tried to crash and kill himself he realized that he couldn't. This caused his brain to implode with rage and he ran straight into traffic, causing much more damage."
Cop: If only the Prius was unsafe, it could have saved the lives of those 50 people who crashed when he ran into traffic.
Investigator: "If only..."
07/22/09
http://www.mugen-power.com/street/insight/
07/22/09
07/22/09
But, but, but...
07/22/09
07/22/09
I was trying to wrangle down some running/ignition issues with my '75 Mark IV. After replacing the control module I noticed that the coil harness was actually brittle enough to loosen with expansion... as the engine warmed up, the harness loosened resulting in a flaky connection. Eureka! Time to cable-tie that sucker tight and go for a test drive!
So I get on I-64 Westbound to run from one side of Frankfort KY to the other... a nice convenient dragstrip with hills made just for this kind of testing. As I accelerate on up the entrance ramp it becomes apparent that I did indeed fix the root cause of my nagging issues. So I give it a little more, and slowly but surely the 7.5L 220hp V8 scoots my 5,300lb bombastic Malaisemobile out of its own way. Eventually I'm chugging a smooth 80 mph, exhaust leak and all, and for once the Tankster actually seems like it has more to give: why not take and enjoy the fruits of my repair success? I put the signal on, get in the left lane to pass a semi, and see a new Insight in front of me.
No problem, he's almost ahead of the semi anyway so there's no need for me to slow down here, if he's like most hybriders he'll promptly flee back to the right lane as soon as he sees that faux Rolls obscenity in his rear-view mirror.
But he doesn't.
He passes the semi, passes the geriatric Grand Marquis ahead of it, the Trailblazer ahead of that... and holy shit is he actually getting away from me? I didn't even realize we'd pushed up to 90mph going downhill to the river....!
So at this point I figure what the heck, and gun it... first time getting my tank to the century mark (yay!) but that damn Insight is STILL ahead of me (boo), but now only by a safe margin. It's clear he has no intention of making this easy for me, using traffic as picks to block... but dammit if I haven't found a like-minded soul.
And then I glance at the bewildered face of the unsuspecting Mazda driver we blast by at 100, and it hits me:
A tiny, modern Hybrid is doing three digits, seemingly to flee a smog-choked monster from the 70's. And for every tree he's saving, I'm probably killing five.
It was a thing of beauty, but alas my exit approached too quickly.
I salute you, Insight Driver, for having the balls to have a little fun, and for helping me headasplosde countless witnesses to the greatest impromptu race of total polar-opposites ever seen.
And I'm glad I didn't lose to a fucking Pruis.
07/22/09
07/22/09
"A tiny, modern Hybrid is doing three digits, seemingly to flee a smog-choked monster from the 70's. And for every tree he's saving, I'm probably killing five.
It was a thing of beauty, but alas my exit approached too quickly."
One heart click for that sir!
07/22/09
07/22/09
i smell a COTD.
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