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I do not feel safe at all in my 1993 Geo Prizm. It does have a driver side air bag, but it is too slow to keep up with today's traffic. I would think an 80's Ford Escort is even more unsafe and slower than my car. My Geo just won't die, but it needs to be retired because it is too outdated.
My brother had an 80 something Escort GT.I thought it handled,braked,and accelerated pretty well for what it was.I wouldn't hesitate to drive one today if it was in good shape.
Its not a car I would 'choose' to be in if I knew I was going to have a bad accident,but there are PLENTY of new cars I wouldn't choose either.....and they are all safer than getting hit on my motorcycle,yet I still ride one.
People who are overly concerned about safety should probably just take the bus.
I drove a ‘73 Land Rover Series III for about 5 years on Phoenix’s freeways from ‘98 to ‘03. Sure, top speed was maybe 63 on a good day but it was rush hour and 63 isn’t feasible. Beyond that, it had great brakes, was build like a tank and people seemed to sense that cutting me off probably wasn’t a good idea. Lol I mostly worried about my knees. I would have been crippled if I survived a bad accident. Thank goodness I never had one!
Percentage of Accidents Resulting in Fatalities, by Car Model Year
Percentage of Accidents Resulting in Fatalities, by Car Model Year
1984 and earlier: 55%
1985-1992: 53%
1993-1997: 46%
1997-2002: 42%
2003-2007: 36%
2008-2012: 31%
2013-2017: 26%
...the source is the NHTSA. Airbags, improved architecture, and improved materials continue to reduce serious injuries and fatalities with each new generation of designs. Moreover, what's not shown here, is that in the last 5-10 years, electronic safety features allowing us to better *avoid* accidents have become more prevalent and more sophisticated. Those too, will only improve.
That's all interesting stuff, but I don't buy a car based on it's "crashworthiness". My criteria is a car that has the braking and cornering ability that allow me to avoid the crash in the first place....
That's all interesting stuff, but I don't buy a car based on it's "crashworthiness". My criteria is a car that has the braking and cornering ability that allow me to avoid the crash in the first place....
The point is, new cars are far better at protecting occupants in a crash than older cars. It's been a trend over the past 50 years. This information is all over in many forms and in many places, but some still deny it.
As to avoiding crashes, whether it's the electronic safety aids, or handling and braking, newer cars are improving those aspects too.
Not sure why you have issues with a Ford Escort, it was a solid car in its day and was quite the little race car particularly if equipped with the Cosworth engine. here read up on its history = https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Escort_(Europe)
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Percentage of Accidents Resulting in Fatalities, by Car Model Year
