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My First-Hand Prius Freeway Crash Rating Experience

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by travelette, Oct 27, 2011.

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  1. travelette

    travelette New Member

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    Having experienced a freeway speed head-on collision first hand, I thought people might appreciate knowing how much protection the Prius really delivers in these circumstances.

    I was hit by an SUV that lost control and came across the freeway. First, it hit me on the front passenger side. Then it turned perpendicular to the freeway, causing me to T-bone it head-on (I had slowed down a little and was slamming on the breaks as I hit it). I estimate that I hit the side of the SUV at around 50mph. Finally, the SUV spun around me and slammed into my driver's side. The total damage to my car was estimated at about $16,000 by the insurance company so the car was totaled.

    I walked away from the accident without any cuts or broken bones. I did get many soft-tissue injuries which will take a few months to heal, but mostly I was thrilled and amazed to be alive because I think I might not have been so lucky in another type of vehicle.

    I'm really thankful for all the safety features in the Prius and have since upgraded to a newer 2011 Prius.

    If you've got questions, post them and I'll do my best to answer.

    Cheers!

    See pics in my crash album [​IMG]
     
    #1 travelette, Oct 27, 2011
  2. dustoff003

    dustoff003 Blizzard Brigade #003

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    Holy cow glad to hear that for the most part you are okay. It's awesome that the Prius took all of that abuse and protected its driver. Did all of your airbags deploy? That looks like a Gen. II right? Does a Gen. II have side curtain airbags? Looking at your info. it says that you have a 2011 you have already purchased a replacement Prius? Any idea what caused the SUV to lose control?
     
    #2 dustoff003, Oct 27, 2011
  3. jerryl899

    jerryl899 Junior Member

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    Glad you're ok.
     
    #3 jerryl899, Oct 27, 2011
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  4. travelette

    travelette New Member

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    Oddly, none of my airbags deployed. I spoke to the insurance adjuster and he said that the front airbags probably didn't deploy because since the SUV and I were both moving, and I'd already been hit on the front right corner first, it might not have registered as a head-on collision.

    The car does/did have side air bags, but those didn't deploy either. The adjuster said that unless I had been the one being T-boned, the impact to my car was a glancing blow and not a direct hit.

    I think I might have been more injured than I was if the front air bag had gone off, so I'm glad it didn't. I'm not sure I can say the same for the side air bag. Even if it was a "glancing" blow, I hit my arm and hip pretty hard against the door. I currently (1.5 months post-accident) am having problems with my rotator cuff and my hip joint.

    The SUV lost control either because it was hit by, or was trying to avoid being hit by, an idiot in an Acura who thought going 100mph on congested L.A. freeways would be fun. At least now the idiot will have insurance rates that go through the roof and maybe a lawsuit with Caltrans.
     
    #4 travelette, Oct 27, 2011
  5. Jim Clark

    Jim Clark Member

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    From how you described the accident, I would have expected to see even more damage.

    I'm sure you went to the ER, maybe even got an ambulance ride. It's very important to get thoroughly checked out after a crash like that. Keep an eye out for unusual symptoms that might not show up right away.
     
    #5 Jim Clark, Oct 27, 2011
  6. J5A

    J5A Active Member

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    Your results are incredible - I am glad you were able to walk away from such a scary incident.
     
    #6 J5A, Oct 27, 2011
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  7. revhigh

    revhigh MPG Enthusiast

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    First of all ... very glad you're OK !!

    Second ... that doesn't look like the damage from a head on crash at freeway speeds, and THEN a 50 MPH T-bone to me .... no airbag deployment, no broken windshield .... hood barely buckled ?? I can't believe there's not more catastrophic damage.

    Again ... glad you're OK.

    REV

    REV
     
    #7 revhigh, Oct 27, 2011
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  8. travelette

    travelette New Member

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    Rev an everyone, thanks for all the well wishes. I wasn't treated at the scene, but did see the Dr. after and am still going.

    Revhigh, it's true that the damage doesn't look as bad on the surface as one might expect, but it was still 16K of damage (the repair estimate makes for interesting reading). The frame supports were affected. Perhaps the fact that the SUV was still in motion moving across the freeway helped? Perhaps the fact that the SUV had already hit me once, slowed it down considerably by the time I T-boned it? Perhaps the side of an SUV is softer than we think? Perhaps my airbag didn't deploy because it was defective? Should I call Toyota and ask?

    I'm just thankful I was in my Prius and not something else like my old Nissan or a Smartcar. I'm very grateful for the amazing Toyota engineering and I'd give a solid vote of confidence to anyone looking to buy a Prius for the safety features.
     
    #8 travelette, Oct 27, 2011
  9. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Glad to hear you're safe!

    You have to remember guys that the SUV is moving so even though he hit the SUV at 50mph, the SUV is probably going 20 or 30mph sideways as well. Unfortunately, the side airbags won't deploy on a side swipe (which sounds like what had happened based on your description in the first post).

    The fact that the airbags didn't deploy and he's alive and well shows that Toyota just didn't rely on airbags to get good ratings (some cars do and you can see the difference between with and without side airbags for example). Toyota built the body and frame with safety in mind.
     
    #9 Tideland Prius, Oct 27, 2011
  10. Buxley

    Buxley New Member

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    Glad you're OK
     
    #10 Buxley, Oct 27, 2011
  11. hong

    hong New Member

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    Wow glad you are not more seriously injured!
     
    #11 hong, Oct 27, 2011
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  12. dhanson865

    dhanson865 Expert and Devil's advocate

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    Actually as far as I can tell the Gen II prius is one of those cars. See http://www.informedforlife.org

    RISK ASSESSMENT for 2005 Prius
    (a) frontal impact fatality risk points (average 2011 vehicle = 32.8, including vehicle weight influence) 25.7 25.7 (no change for side airbags)
    (b) side impact fatality risk points (average 2011 vehicle = 16.5) 34.1 11.9 (big change for side airbags)
    (c) rear impact fatality risk points (average 2011 vehicle = 2.3) 3.1 3.1 (no change for side airbags)
    (d) rollover fatality risk points (average 2011 vehicle = 18.4) 36.1 36.1 (no change for side airbags)
    SCORE [Statistical Combination Of Risk Elements] (average 2011 vehicle = 70.0) SCORE = (a)+(b)+(c)+(d) >>>>>>>>>> 99.1 76.9

    for comparison of total scores

    2012 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4DR 2WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/ESC CONCERN: Above Average Risk 85
    2011 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/ESC Medium Risk 61
    2010 Toyota Prius 4DR PASS. CAR w/SAB w/ESC Medium Risk 65
    2009 Toyota Prius 4DR hatchback PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 79
    2008 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 79
    2007 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 79

    now lets jump down to when the Gen II had optional side airbags

    2006 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 81
    2006 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/oSAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 101

    2005 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC CONCERN: Above Average Risk 77
    2005 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/oSAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 99

    2004 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 80
    2004 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/oSAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 100

    2003 Toyota Prius 4DR PASS. CAR w/oSAB w/oESC CONCERN: Worst 10% for 2003-2010 139

    My 2005 Prius has side air bags and I consider it safer than any car I've ever owned but apparently there are safer cars.

    I'm not exactly sure why the 2005 is safer than the 2006 - 2009 in those tests but I'd feel safe driving in any Prius that's in sound condition.

    Looks like the 2011 is the safest regular Prius so far, not sure why the 2012 tested so much worse. I also don't see the v (Wagon) or c (small prius) in the test data yet.
     
    #12 dhanson865, Oct 27, 2011
  13. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Ahh yes, the one star difference without side airbags.

    I'm not sure what the differences are between, say a 2011 and the 2012. i know they made changes underneath but surely not anything related to the structure of the body (just more sound-deadening material). For 05 to 06, it's a2 point difference (99 vs. 101). Could it be the difference between a 15" wheel model and a 16" model? Not sure if tyres make a difference.
     
    #13 Tideland Prius, Oct 27, 2011
  14. dhanson865

    dhanson865 Expert and Devil's advocate

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    The 2006 still had stock 15" wheels so that isn't the change (to add to the fun the data for the 2005 says a 2006 was used in its place for updated crash testing).

    The 2006 Toyota Prius gets a tire-pressure monitor. Exterior styling is refreshed with new headlights and taillight clusters. Surely the plastic in that area isn't strong enough to affect crash data.

    The 2005 got a 5 star front impact rating from NHTSA but the 2006 got a 4 start front impact rating.

    Points are different in
    -----
    Frontal impact fatality risk (includes vehicle weight influence)
    Side impact fatality risk

    Points are the same in
    -----
    Rear fatality risk
    Rollover fatality risk

    2006 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC UNACCEPTABLE individual rating(s) 81 = 28.0 + 13.7 + 3.1 + 36.1 2954 4 4 0.12 4 4 4 0.13 G G M
    2005 Toyota Prius Hatchback 4 DR 2 WD PASS. CAR w/SAB w/oESC CONCERN: Above Average Risk 77 = 25.7 + 11.9 + 3.1 + 36.1 2943 5 4 0.10 ~ ~ 4 0.13 G G ~

    The cars only weigh 11 pounds different.

    The NHTSA frontal risk ( average of driver + passenger) was 0.10 for 2005 and 0.12 for 2006.

    Chalk it up to sample variance or some small calculation affecting the score more than you would expect but for some reason the 2006 gets the worst score since the Gen I Prius of 2003.
     
    #14 dhanson865, Oct 27, 2011
  15. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    From Home | Safercar -- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Starting with 2011 models, NHTSA has introduced tougher tests and rigorous new 5-Star Safety Ratings that provide more information about vehicle safety and crash avoidance technologies. Because of the more stringent tests, ratings for 2011 and newer vehicles should not be compared to ratings for 1990-2010 models. Overall vehicle score and frontal crash ratings should ONLY be compared to other vehicles of similar size and weight.
     
    #15 JimN, Oct 27, 2011
  16. travelette

    travelette New Member

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    dhanson,

    In all that knowledge you've amassed... do you have info on the specific criteria that would require side air bags to deploy and when they wouldn't deploy? Speed? Direction? Other factors?

    Thanks bunches!
     
    #16 travelette, Oct 28, 2011
  17. Codyroo

    Codyroo Senior Member

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    I'm impressed by two things

    1) That you are OK and that the car took the brunt of the damage.

    2) They actually CAUGHT the Acura driver (at least this is how I translate your story).

    Because I'm a morbid person, what was the Acura's story (besides thinking that going really fast was a good idea)? I'm going to assume it was a young male driver (sub 30 years old) with a modified boy racer car (I know, I'm really going on a limb with my stereotypes).

    Any details you can share about that driver.

    Oh and on the SUV driver too. How did they hold up?
     
    #17 Codyroo, Oct 28, 2011
  18. travelette

    travelette New Member

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    I agree completely on #1. When the impacts were over, my first thought was "wow, I'm still alive and I'm not bleeding!"

    #2, if the Acura hadn't hit anyone, he might have gotten away... except for the fact that there was a witness. An off-duty cop! Would you believe it? Talk about a reliable witness. As for stereotypes, I just looked at the police report and you are right on the money. The Acura driver is 20! So the car was almost certainly modified for/by the boy racer.

    The airbags of the SUV deployed, but I couldn't tell you when. The driver was a woman in her 40s-50s and she had a car full of kids. They were all put into collars at the scene. I saw one teenage boy on a stretcher, so he might have been in the SUV and closest to the door when I T-boned it (or in another vehicle altogether). The insurance rep for the Acura and the SUV is Allstate. She told me that no-one had major injuries, so the teenager is probably OK now. My injuries looked minor, but they'll need a few months of treatment to heal. Allstate isn't too happy about that, as you might imagine. Geico insured me, and despite a few hiccups, they've done great and I was able to upgrade to my 2011 Prius.

    Cheers!
     
    #18 travelette, Oct 28, 2011
  19. dhanson865

    dhanson865 Expert and Devil's advocate

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    While I have amassed a large amount of knowledge in my life I haven't shown much of it in this thread. What you saw here was simply my ability to look up some data and arrange it.

    I don't really know that much about car safety or airbags.

    I'm glad you are relatively unharmed and I'm hoping you heal fully but I don't have answers for you on those questions.

    I'd be happy learn the answers to those questions if someone else has the answer. If I stumble across a good article I might drop back in and link to it.
     
    #19 dhanson865, Oct 28, 2011
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  20. SageBrush

    SageBrush Senior Member

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    There must be easier ways to upgrade to a new Prius :D

    Just kidding. Awesome story, and fantastic outcome.
     
    #20 SageBrush, Oct 28, 2011
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