Posted on 06/11/2009 6:52:45 AM PDT by Red in Blue PA
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Even a fender-bender in a fuel-efficient mini car can lead to thousands of dollars worth of repairs, the insurance industry found in new crash tests.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported Thursday that repairing damage to microcars in low-speed crashes of 3 to 6 miles per hour could cost anywhere from $474 to $3,701.
The Institute conducted low-speed crash tests on the front and back bumpers and the front and rear corners of seven 2009 model year mini cars that have become more widely available with rising fuel costs in recent years.
The Kia Rio racked up the most damage among the tiny cars, $3,701 in repairs to the full front bumper. In the four tests, the Rio averaged $2,705 in damages.
The Smart fortwo had the lowest average bill of $899 among the seven vehicles tested. In one test, damage to the rear corner of the fortwo cost $507. The Chevrolet Aveo had the second-lowest bill, an average of $1,155 in damages for the four tests.
Among the other vehicles tested, the Hyundai Accent averaged $2,123 in damages, the Honda Fit racked up $1,960 in repairs and the Toyota Yaris would have led to an average bill of $1,951. Tests to the bumpers of the Mini Cooper generated average damages of $1,637.
Institute senior vice president Joe Nolan said bumpers should be designed to protect vehicle parts such as grilles and headlights. Damages should cost less than the typical $500 insurance deductible for a collision, he said.
"When you reach $1,000 (in damages) the bumper isn't doing its job, and anything $1,500 or higher is egregious," Nolan said.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.yahoo.com ...
You’re right.
A bumper cover (the plastic part you see on the outside), paint job to match the body, and labor is over a grand instantly.
For those interested in home repair, NAPA sells a special type of 2 part repair(sort of like a sophisticated bondo) for plastic bumpers. I’ve used it with success on some older cars that didn’t merit a professional job.
I agree that looks bad, although it might not be much different for a midsize or even a pickup. It’s hard to argue with 78,000# head on.
And that was a crash at 25 mph!
No way Obama will take away southern red-neck trucks.
This only one of the unintended consequences of high CAFE standards.
Contrary to popular perception, it’s all about structural engineering.
A large car whose structure can be compared to an egg-shell for the passenger compartment, with the bulk of the mass like a lead weight behind it, isn’t going to do too well in a head-on collision. The momentum of the extra mass at the rear is going to ensure the crushing of the occupants, too. Proper weight distribution, with advanced crumple zones will go far more in protecting the occupants than just adding mass to the vehicle.
can’t wait for ER nurses to come up with a catchy name for these vehicles (motorcycles are affectionately known as “donorcycles”)
Suicide clown cars ... Driven only by people with an IQ of ...
So, uh, how did the driver of the black car do in that? (Is this 0bama’s solution to universal health care, require tiny cars?)
Do they have a catchy name for SUVs that roll over and kill their occupants too?
Don’t know. I think he was a country boy from the midwest (probably with those intersections where you could see for miles all around). At least I would hope so...
He also told us that he never financed anything (always saved and paid cash) until he bought a car a few weeks before class started. He wanted to see how financing a purchase actually worked. He was turned down because he had no credit history. So he paid cash for the car.
Just remember that even a Smart Car gives more protection than a motorcycle (which few loudly & frequently deride as all kinds of stupid).
To its credit, the Smart Car is designed to route crash energy _around_ the passenger compartment, and presumably one reason fender-benders cost so much to repair is that the car is designed to disperse that energy by blowing the whole frame to pieces. Somewhere there’s a high-speed video of such a head-on crash test, and it’s just amazing watching the entire frame disintegrate (from one end to the other) while the passenger area is untouched.
Contrast this with, say, a motorcycle where the “crumple zone” IS the passenger.
When I bought my 98 F-150 it came with a steel bumper on the rear. I was rear-ended 3 weeks after I bought it - a minor tap I thought, as I hardly felt a thing (I was stopped at a red light at the time). My bumper had a small scratch on it and the left side was slightly pushed in (barely noticable). You should have seen the damage on the little Honda. Headlight and turn signal were destroyed, front grill was destroyed. Hood was pushed up. Bumper was dragging the ground. Who knows what the damage inder the skin was. It was a mess.
not sure, but SUVs are incredibly safe in a rollover-provided the the occupants are intelligent enough to be wearing seat belts.
An environmentalist would look at that photo and see a tragedy - not the loss of life, but the fact that diesel fuel is spilled all over the ground.
In micro cars, crashes that would be a "fender bender" in other cars become major. Repair costs are not the main concern - survival is.
I think they are called “Idiot driver thought it was a Corvette”
These are only the costs to repair the POS cars.......
What are the costs added to the “National Health Care”??
but he drives nothing that give more than 8 MPG.”
HE drive nothing!!
He is chauffered in nothing that gets more than 8 mpg.
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