Crash test: 2009 Chevy Malibu vs. 1959 Chevy BelAir (car crash, vehicle, sedans)

[hoffdano]

Watch this video. This was done by the IIHS, the other major vehicle testing program. It is an "offset" crash.


IIHS: 2009 Chevy Malibu vs. 1959 Chevy Bel Air (Just Because They Can) | The Truth About Cars

[Omaha Rocks]

Wow. I would NOT have expected that outcome!

1 driver would suffer a minor knee injury.
1 driver would be killed instantly.

[las vegas drunk]

That old piece of crap bel air got owned. I bet the Malibu even weighs less.

[las vegas drunk]

Originally Posted by Omaha Rocks

Wow. I would NOT have expected that outcome!

1 driver would suffer a minor knee injury.
1 driver would be killed instantly.

I completely expected it. The 50's and 60's cars were all unsafe garbage compared to the newer cars.

[AlfredB1979]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

I completely expected it. The 50's and 60's cars were all unsafe garbage compared to the newer cars.

What he said.

I'd expect my first car (69 VW Beetle) to lose to a Smart Car. But, with a gas tank in front under the hood, we'd both lose.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by Omaha Rocks

Wow. I would NOT have expected that outcome!
1 driver would suffer a minor knee injury.
1 driver would be killed instantly.

........."The Malibu's dummy had something his friend in the other car lacked -- a seatbelt and airbag."

Video with audio here: Highway Safety Exclusive: Car Crashes, Travel Deaths Prevented by Technology - ABC News

[Innovator831021]

For cars of comparable weight that is expected. I would like to see the Malibu versus a typical car of the day... a big full size sedan, the Malibu would be absolutely slaughtered however the older sedans simply had no crumple zones.

[Steve_TN]

No shock here. The crash technologies designed in todays cars make them far superior, crashwise, than to most of the vehicles made in that era.

[hoffdano]

It is a shock to see the BelAir just get destroyed where the driver sits. It looks like it was made of tin foil. I bet a head on would have driven the BelAir's engine into the cabin and killed both driver and passenger.

[cardinal2007]

Originally Posted by Omaha Rocks

Wow. I would NOT have expected that outcome!

1 driver would suffer a minor knee injury.
1 driver would be killed instantly.

Anyone keeping up with upgrades in safety technology would've been able to predict this, it is not like old cars are blocks of lead. Clearly the driver of a 1959 vehicle would've died on a collision at 80mph, this was pretty much what was expected, and kind of a waste of a nice '59 Bel Air.