German Car Zone

^^^ Oh I agree and stated that in my post. The only area I think Volvo is equal to Mercedes is in sheer impact strength, body shell and roof strength. Mercedes safety resume is of course longer as far as innovations go.

There was a study done on rear impacts about 10 years ago and only 3 cars passed at the time, Mercedes, Volvo and Porsche. All the rest and I mean all, failed miserably.

Oh yes I forget to mention American cars in that equation, outside of a Volvo-based Ford there is no way an American car like a Chevy Cobolt or Dodge Avenger is going to take a harder hit and hold up like a Volvo S60 would.


M

Volvo used to be one of the safest car in the world but no longer.
But I like Volvo seats. I think its one of the most comfortable seats on the market today.

So you don't even consider Volvo to be one of the safer cars on the road? They've been regulated to being no more safer than anything else?

M

Exactly, that was 10 years ago. Times have changed as even smaller cars score high rating in Euroncap tests. What you said about injuries and deaths is difficult to take into account as every accident is different from the other one, plus there is the factor seat belts. Those who don't wear seatbelt tend to sustain significantly severe injuries and fatalities. Too many factors to make a fair comparison.

Throughout the latest decade every manufacturer have stepped it up with safety and hardly anyone gets higher ratings than the rest. All cars offer safety to the level that you don't have to worry about whether or not you'll be protected.

But you see you missed the point....that is just the point....lab crash test scores. Any and everyone can make their cars to pass these controlled tests. Well everyone but the Chinese. Just because a car gets the same rating in a lab crash test doesn't mean it will hold up the same in a real-world crash test. That is why the insurance injury/death information is so vital. True everyone has stepped up, but do you really think a cash-strapped GM, Fiat or Chrysler or a quick to the market Hyundai product is going to fare as well as a Benz, Volvo or Audi, or Saab in a real world crash with a semi? I wouldn't want to be in the questionable new comer to find out. The difference is that some have been sweating the details for years and years before the others even had a clue as to what safety was. Do you really think a Hyundai Sonta or a Chevy Impala is going hold up in a severe, outside the lab-controlled scope accident as well as say a Volvo S80?

The example about rear impacts was just one example. So if was 10 years ago and the rest have caught up to that standard, the ones that were at that standard haven't sat still in those 10 years either.


If we're going to put Volvo down as being no safer then we might as well do the same for Mercedes-Benz. Not to mention Audi, BMW, Saab and others that only jumped on the safety band wagon in the last 15 years or so.


M

You get what you pay for so obviously the more premium cars will have an edge, especially since they also weigh more. Insurance info don't tell the entire story as they don't disclose full information about each incident, such as speed of impact. Regardless of advanced an S-class is, not wearing a seatbelt can results in injuries that could have easily been avoided. Like one of my buddies that got caught in a head on crash, he wasn't wearing a belt so he pushed against the steering wheel with his arms ending breaking his right hand and elbow, plus he's face took some serious beating as it hit the steering wheel. A seatbelt would have done a good job holding him back.

But what I'm saying is that the Volvo cars aren't safe to the extent that you should turn down a Passat in fear of your safety.

True, accidents happens and injuries happen.....however insurance information regarding death and injuries provides a more in depth look than just looking to see who has a 5-star crash rating, that is the point. Clearly just looking at a crash test rating doesn't tell anywhere near the whole story either.



Of course not, a Passat is a German car from a company with a clue about safety. It is other cars like Hyundai, Honda, Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Chevy or plain Ford that has an identical "crash rating" to that Volvo that I'd be leery of. To say that a Volvo isn't any safer than any other car just simply isn't true. It may not be head and shoulders above the pack anymore, but it does have a clear edge compared to some.


M

You know what pisses me off? Mercedes-Benz in 5th place in terms of safety perception. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

Goes to show that these consumers have no friggin clue about cars in general. Volvos are safe cars but they've been living off that reputation for ages and from what I understand have not really been as innovative or even active in that department like they have in the past. Also, what makes Toyotas so safe? Or Hondas? Someone please explain this to me because I can blindly say that Mercedes has a much better safety record than either Toyota or Honda. Wow, the consumers who participate in these surveys should go back to Automotive 101 and actually learn something meaningful about cars.

Also, Toyota number one in terms of innovation! HUH? Oh, I get it! Toyota "invented" the savior of the world: HYBRIDS! That's more important than say Pre-Safe, DiesOtto, BlueTec etc. *Sarcasm intended*

Toyota is not an innovative company. They tend to take existing ideas and perfect them, which doesn't really count as innovation. The same goes for Lexus. And also, Toyota didn't invent hybrids - they perfected them. The hybrid concept in cars was like what, first shown or proposed by Audi or VW in the mid 1980s I believe. Heck, the Imperial German Navy used "hybrids" back in 1906 with the first gasoline-electric submarines. Toyota and innovation? Laughing out loud.


Oh well, these are clueless people who were asked what they think. The real terror begins when other clueless people ask these clueless people about cars. Oh my God, I can only imagine the bullsh*t that is going to be said there.

There is the opposite side of Pre-Scan, NightVision and the rest of the MB safety innovations: How many MBs on the road today are equiped with those features? Not many! How many Volvos are equiped with the Whiplas Protection System for rear collisions? All of them! That makes Volvo safer than MB, since they have their most important safety measures standard!

If MB equiped all their cars with that stuff, then the prices would reach the sky. You get what you pay for, as someone said earlier. With the Volvo money, you get all those safety equipment, with "worse" engine, handling, quality and prestige!

No offense, but that's a weak argument. MB's innovations are expensive intially but eventually filter down to the entire range. That's how its ALWAYS been.

The only way to tell which is safer, Volvo or MB, is to look at REAL WORLD crash data. None of this lab nonsense. Its no coincidence that many manufacturers are scoring 5 stars these days. They are designing cars specifically to score well on test. It's easy for them to design something to meet a preset criteria. Bugger the real world crash worthiness. MB, Volvo and a few other brands take their safety concepts beyond this rudimentary level.

I wonder if its just US consumers who are so misinformed (delirious ) or is it widespread. I have faith that the average Australian would score the Germans far ahead of Toyota and Lexus for style and design and innovation.