Re: Next-gen Suzuki Baleno (YRA) unveiled. EDIT: Now launched at Rs. 4.99 lakhs Quote:
Originally Posted by sourabhzen How did you come to the conclusion that it is least safe? Do you have any substantial data to prove that?
At per kg price TUV, Bolero, Sumo, will rule the market. I think we are not comparing potatoes and onions here. |
My dear friend. Just to let you know my thoughts on this.
How can you say that this car is as safe as the others ? There is no crash test data to prove it. It is the same for people who say lighter cars are less safe. But here is how some people including me arrive at the conclusion that lighter cars are less safer.
1. Yes. Opening and closing a door. It speaks a lot about the build of the car. Lighter doors = lighter body panels = tin can like crumbling during an accident. No, that is not crumple zone at work. That is just the car crumbling beyond repair. Before some people jump in and tell me that modern cars crumple because they have crumple zones, it would be a wise idea to see a few videos and get educated on crumple zones. They are provided so that the cabin remains in tact or gets the least amount of shock/impact transferred to it. That means, the front of the car car crumple, but intrusion into the cabin should be the least. Watch a few videos on crashes in other countries and see for yourself as to how crumple zones should actually work and how the cars get crumpled in India. Just check the "Accidents in India" thread in our own forum and see how many Marutis have this in place ? In any accident involving a Maruti (unless it is a fender bender), you can see that that whole car has been in a mangled state. Here again, before telling me that I am talking about the remains of the car that has been cut open to save the occupants, that statement will speak for itself. Why did the car go into such a pathetic state that people were to be saved after cutting the car open ? Reason is just what I said; the car crumpled like a tin can that it was not possible to take the occupants out by opening / breaking the door. The roof had to be cut open. And that is not a virtue of a safe car.
2. Lighter cars are less safer. Why ? Simply because we are not talking about a Mclaren or a Ferrari here. We are talking about mass produced cars which costs a few thousand dollars. No carbon fiber / high tensile light weight materials will go into the manufacturing of these cars because they come at a price. Yes, there are lighter cars that are safer, but not any that we get in India. If there was a way to manufacture light weight, safer cars, the world would have started doing that long back. No manufacturer will see any harm in advertising their cars with 5 Star NCAP ratings and also having a high fuel efficiency. Each drop of fuel matters for everyone in this world now. And all manufacturers know that people are watching the fuel efficiency of their cars. So if there was a way to manufacture light weight cars which are safe, then a lot of these manufactures would have started doing that. In our case, see the difference in weight between the Swift sold in India and in EU. Our's is light. Reason ? Is it just the exclusion of safety features like Airbags ? NO, it has been found that the structure itself has been compromised. So the argument in India that lighter cars can still be safer does not hold true. And again, before people ridiculing me by mocking and saying "For him, Bolero is safer/ Ambassador is safer", come on folks, those cars and designs are decades old. (But hey, I might still survive better in a crash in a Bolero than in a Swift or an Indica !! Who knows !!)
For me, 6 Airbags in a tin can is of no use. ABS and EBD can at least prevent me from getting into an accident. So they are useful. But Maruti giving airbags in all models as standard is just to impress the customers. Some people will just be forced to think that these cars are safer. You are entitled to your believes. But for me, a structurally heavy and solidly built car is much more safer that a tin can with Airbags (provided one is wearing seat belt in both cases). I believe there is little help that an Airbag can provide when the whole cabin is getting crushed. But when you think about it again, yes, a Baleno without Airbags will be less safer than a Baleno with Airbags. So it is a welcome move.
Note: This is not only about Maruti, it is the same with all manufacturers who produce light weight cars for India.
Last edited by aah78 : 29th October 2015 at 19:24.
Reason: crumble -> crumple on request. ;)
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