Tougher Safety Standards Expected

Light & Medium Truck, Dec 2007/Jan 2008 by Skipper, G C

Two key safety regulations from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will have a direct impact on light-duty commercial vehicles, and some manufacturers already have added compliant features.

One regulation calls for tougher standards to help protect passengers from side-impact crashes, a NHTSA spokeswoman said. The second calls for electronic stability control systems for light-duty commercial vehicles and cars with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds to reduce the risk of rollover injuries.

NHTSA rules requiring the use of ESC systems were finalized and published in 2007. ESC systems will be phased in starting with the 2009 model year when 55% of light-duty vehicles must be so equipped. By 2012, 100% of vehicles 10,000 pounds GVW or less must be covered, NHTSA said.

Side-impact crashes account for 28% of all fatalities, most of which are because of brain damage, according to NHTSA, and the agency expects these new requirements to save more than 300 lives and prevent approximately 400 serious injuries per year.

Recent impact tests conducted by the insurance Institute for Highway Safety underscored the need for tougher standards. The study said some 2008 sport utility vehicles ranked poorly in side-impact tests, The Associated Press reported.

The Toyota 4Runner and Nissan Exterra and Pathfinder models received good ratings, AP said. The second-highest rating went to the Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer. Among other models tested were the Chevrolet Trailblazer and the Jeep Grand Cherokee. The Cherokee was the only model to receive the top rating of good in rear crash testing, AP noted.

"The performance of some of these models in the side test was surprising," said David Zuby, senior vice president of the insurance institute, according to AP. "SUVs should have an advantage in side crashes because the driver and passengers ride higher up than in cars."

That assumption is an erroneous conclusion, Zuby said, according to AP. "Cars hold up better than some of these midsize SUVs in the test."

Farmers Insurance Group "fully supports" NHTSA's new regulations, Kevin Mabe, economist, said in a statement.

Automakers began to install side air bags in late 2003, before a 2004 NHTSA proposal called for side air bag guidelines, Mabe said. "In our own study, released earlier this year, Farmers shows that air bags of all types reduce the odds of a driver fatality by nearly 10%. Coupled with seat belt use, the odds plummeted by nearly 75%."

Standard on all General Motors Corp. passenger vans and available on cargo vans are side-curtain air bags, which are designed to provide a higher level of protection in the event of a side impact or a vehicle rollover, the automaker said. To help keep occupants safely inside the vehicle in a crash, GM added what it calls Enhanced Technology Glass in 12- and 15-passenger models. The glass is more shatter-resistant than typical auto glass, GM said.

In anticipation of the 2009 ESC requirement, some manufacturers already have introduced such technology in lightduty vehicles. NHTSA expects the technology to reduce SUV crashes by 59% and reduce rollover crashes significantly, Farmers Insurance Group said.

Benefits from ESC technology include optimum rear-vehicle stability and steering control during ABS stops, single-wheel traction control when necessary, smooth steering turns when traction control is active and a one-second response time to under-steering or over-steering, GM said.

The automaker demonstrated StabiliTrak's effectiveness during a recent press event at the Milford Proving Ground near Detroit. GM allowed automotive journalists driving its 2008 vans to execute a rapid double lane change on a vehicle dynamics test area that simulated packed snow conditions. Drivers swerved suddenly to the left, and then quickly swung back to the right on the slippery blacktop, activating StabiliTrak. Drivers felt the system "grab" the steering wheel and tires, immediately restoring control. Drivers also tested the system in sudden stops on the same surface. The vans stopped promptly, with no fishtailing.

StabiliTrak is standard on all 2008 vans, GM said.

In 2007, Dodge introduced Adaptive ESP, its electronic stability program, in Sprinter vans. Its sensors consider the vehicle's payload, the manufacturer said. With a self-learning algorithm, the system determines the vehicle's mass and center of gravity based on acceleration, speed, accelerator pedal position and brake pressure, said Randy Jones, manager of commercial vehicle communications for Chrysler LLC.

Adaptive ESP also works with other systems, including roll-over migration, roll-movement intervention and under-steering control, Jones said.

G.C. Skipper is a freelance writer covering the transportation sector.