[Qwackertoo]

I want the XC90. I heard the other day there hasn’t been a death in one of those in 4 years. I might have to settle for the XC60. But definitely looking at those two.

[posterchild]

I’ve been looking at the xc90 also. I am also hoping cars will someday be ennui proof.

[meatloaf]

As long as you don’t take a drive outside an area served by a well financed fire dept, you’ll do fine.

Automakers have increasingly moved to higher strength steel to make cars safer. Before that 36,000 psi steel was the norm. Now 120,000 psi steel is in use for certain components.

Sounds great? It depends. If you’re in a car wreck that leads to entrapment, many fire departments don’t have rescue tools that can sever 120,000 psi steel. Instead the jaws on the cutting tools snap.

Add to that the use of magnesium for components such as dashboard supports. Look up what it takes to put out a magnesium fire. Hint: it’s not water.

Now imagine being entrapped in a car, it catches on fire from either something in the car or maybe the Mack truck that hit you, and the fire department can’t put out the ignited magnesium or cut you out of the car.

Get the picture? They don’t tell you about the potential in their ads. As a volunteer fire fighter I can tell you our old set of rescue tools probably won’t work on your car. And, we can’t afford a new set that can.

Good luck.

[jjotto]

Yep. Volvo XC90 is one of the few vehicles with driver death rate of zero “per million registered vehicle years”.

(The only vehicle on the zero-death list that’s not an SUV or van is the Audi A4 AWD.)

http://www.iihs.org/iihs/topics/driver-death-rates

[rockinqsranch]

We did not like the obstructed visibility rear in the 90. Got a great deal on a smaller V50 T-5. Had it four years now, and zero repair. Only regular maintenance. Great car, but our old SAABs get much better mileage. All are Turbos.

1999 9-5 v6 auto gets us 26 mpg. (Wagon)

2001 9-3 4cyl 5 speed stick gets us 31 mpg.

2011 Volvo T-5 auto gets us 21 mpg.

[Grams A]

Several people I know will only buy or have bought Volvo’s for their teenage kids based solely on their safety record. Of course, the kids hate their body styles but that is not the first priority with their parents.

[Dr. Sivana]

I want the XC90. I heard the other day there hasn’t been a death in one of those in 4 years.

That has as much to do with the type of people who purchase Volvos as anything. Corvettes do well in crash tests, but some of the drivers tend to be on the aggressive/reckless side.