Test drive

dwill · Post by **dwill** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 9:00 am

Drove a 91 Delica last night. Cool van. A little harsh, a little noisy, but peppier than expected and pretty fun to drive. Love the way the 2nd row seats swivel backwards.

But - no airbag and basically your knees are at the other guys bumper if you crash. Hmm... Are retrofit airbags possible or would that be way too difficult? I don't mind a 'little' danger on the road but it seems a little risky to have this front driving position with very little to protect you.

Green1 · Post by **Green1** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 2:15 pm

crash test results on these vehicles are actually quite good.... the Delica also has a major advantage in collisions in the avoidance department, the visibility out of the vehicle is superb allowing you to avoid more collisions than in a vehicle with poorer visibility

near as I can tell there is no way to retrofit airbags in to a vehicle that was not manufactured with them in place, to do so would be EXTREMELY dangreous.

As for airbags in general, I'm personally of the opinion that the fewer explosives you position near the occupants the better off you are.

dwill · Post by **dwill** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 2:27 pm

Spoken like a true Delica enthusiast

But, as the survivor of a coma-inducing, near fatal accident I know that all the visibility in the world didn't save my butt. It was the OTHER guy that needed better visibility - or better brakes.

Green1 · Post by **Green1** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 2:35 pm

the front driving position is no worse than a normal position really, crash survivability is an odd thing actually and is rarely intuitive, for example the smart car outperforms all the larger mercedes vehicles in crash tests... go figure...

reading the UK site I was asking about crash results for these vehicles, and (unfortuantely) there is a wealth of experience on there about it, and not one of them lists a serious injury (I think the most I saw mentioned was some cuts from broken glass)

much more woriesome than the front driving position is the high centre of gravity, these vehicles are more prone to rollovers than shorter vehicles, but seemingly no worse than any other SUV on the market, and as I mentioned earlier, few real injuries.

dwill · Post by **dwill** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:10 pm

Green1 wrote:reading the UK site I was asking about crash results for these vehicles, and (unfortuantely) there is a wealth of experience on there about it, and not one of them lists a serious injury (I think the most I saw mentioned was some cuts from broken glass).

Course it could be because the guys with serious injuries aren't around to post any more

I hear what you're saying. But I'm not sure I trust anecdotal evidence anymore.

A ride in the back of an ambulance with your daughter in a coma beside you will certainly give you second thoughts about safety and how much you're willing to risk to have a fun vehicle. I drive a Volvo now (and save the 'risky fun' days for jaunts in my old Vette) for that reason and I'm not sure I'm willing to buy something without at least an airbag and a half decent safety rating.

Dawg · Post by **Dawg** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 8:10 pm

I have always have some reservations about vehicles with airbags if they are used off road. I'm not one of those bush basher's. But sometimes one does get jolted.