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ALS · 07-04-2008, 04:39 PM

If you look at that list the bottom three out of four vehicles listed are very popular with kids 16-21 years of age.
Chevrolet Cavalier
Dodge Neon
Pontiac Sunfire
These cars are driven by people that think they're Tony Stewart behind the wheel.
I wonder how many of these cars that were involved in fatal accidents where alcohol and high speeds were a factor.

Comparing a Volvo to a Corvette is like comparing apples to oranges.
I own Volvo's and yes I drive then for their safety features and their longevity.
My daily driver a 87 740 wagon (362K miles) is no where close to today's vehicles in safety features. Is it a safe vehicle in some ways yes in others it is sub-par. No ABS, No airbags but it does have great designed crumple zones and a pretty good safety cage for it's time. My 97 960 has all the modern features including side airbags and side a impact deflection system in the seat. The seats are designed to move inward toward the center if the vehicle is impacted at the door. Those six inches of movement could make a big difference in whether you get minor or serious injuries during a side impact.

I had a discussion with a female service writer at my dealer one day.
I was shooting the breeze with another service writer when she popped up and said she would rather be in an old 240 than a new 2007 XC70 that was sitting in front of her. Well the other service writer and I just looked at each other and rolled our eyes. She still was living in the past when she said the old 240's were built like tanks. Yes, they were one of the safest cars on the road 15 to 20 years ago.
I pointed out how much more safer that new XC70 was over the old 240's.
Better brakes, better handling, better crush zones, better safety cage, and the front and side air bags. Most of those old 240's never even had front airbags prior to about 1990.

The cars of 2008 are so much safer than cars built just 10 years ago.
Are there exceptions to that rule sure there are. Is my 960 safer than say a 2008 Civic, Focus, Cobalt or a Neon? Yes it is. Is it "safer" than an Chevrolet Impala, Buick Lucerne or a Cadillac CTS? I would say no. It may have been one of the safest cars in 1997 it isn't one of the safest cars on the road in 2008.

07-04-2008, 04:39 PM	#33 (permalink)
ALS EcoModding Apprentice Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 113 Thanks: 0 Thanked 22 Times in 16 Posts	If you look at that list the bottom three out of four vehicles listed are very popular with kids 16-21 years of age. Chevrolet Cavalier Dodge Neon Pontiac Sunfire These cars are driven by people that think they're Tony Stewart behind the wheel. I wonder how many of these cars that were involved in fatal accidents where alcohol and high speeds were a factor. Comparing a Volvo to a Corvette is like comparing apples to oranges. I own Volvo's and yes I drive then for their safety features and their longevity. My daily driver a 87 740 wagon (362K miles) is no where close to today's vehicles in safety features. Is it a safe vehicle in some ways yes in others it is sub-par. No ABS, No airbags but it does have great designed crumple zones and a pretty good safety cage for it's time. My 97 960 has all the modern features including side airbags and side a impact deflection system in the seat. The seats are designed to move inward toward the center if the vehicle is impacted at the door. Those six inches of movement could make a big difference in whether you get minor or serious injuries during a side impact. I had a discussion with a female service writer at my dealer one day. I was shooting the breeze with another service writer when she popped up and said she would rather be in an old 240 than a new 2007 XC70 that was sitting in front of her. Well the other service writer and I just looked at each other and rolled our eyes. She still was living in the past when she said the old 240's were built like tanks. Yes, they were one of the safest cars on the road 15 to 20 years ago. I pointed out how much more safer that new XC70 was over the old 240's. Better brakes, better handling, better crush zones, better safety cage, and the front and side air bags. Most of those old 240's never even had front airbags prior to about 1990. The cars of 2008 are so much safer than cars built just 10 years ago. Are there exceptions to that rule sure there are. Is my 960 safer than say a 2008 Civic, Focus, Cobalt or a Neon? Yes it is. Is it "safer" than an Chevrolet Impala, Buick Lucerne or a Cadillac CTS? I would say no. It may have been one of the safest cars in 1997 it isn't one of the safest cars on the road in 2008.