Small car=Deathtrap? Your opinion?
 

What are your guys thought on driving small compacts vs small crossover/suv? Is it worth the extra saving in your wallet but to risk safety?
Obviously larger cars will fair better in a crash vs a small car but are they worth the extra $$$+Gas, Opinions?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu95gB04VC4

There is always someone bigger than you, even though I drive a big vehicle, safety is not the reason for me, in the past I have generally driven smaller vehicles.
But if I was buying a vehicle for my partner and child, then safety would be the first consideration.
So not always easy to answer a simple question.

This is true for sure.

Personally, I'd hate to make any decision purely based on fear. Drive any car that you feel is basically safe (i.e., fully functional and not falling apart) and let your driving skill and awareness keep you safe.

If a compact would suit your needs feature wise and you wanted more safety, then a large sedan would be a better choice than a crossover/suv. You'd have better safety in a crash, and you'd also retain maneuverability and resistance to rollover.

Safety vs $ is one thing ... but that is not the same as safety vs size ... or safety vs weight.

This is a common but I find at best misleading , and generally speaking incorrect initial assumption... even if it is shared by many people.

There are four other sides of this size/weight vs safety issue , most large vehicle advocates skip... and when looking over the whole issue ... I think in general small and light is safer than large and heavy.

#1> Someone is always bigger/heavier than you.
As others have said car vs car ... me buying bigger does not = me being safer. Unless you are going to avoid the roads that allow any bigger vehicle, the car vs car safety idea is faulty ... limited to roads that don't allow RVs and U-Hauls makes ones driving options extremely limited.

#2> The bigger / heavier vehicle is more dangerous to everyone else around it.
It posses a larger risk to pedestrians, to pets, to property, and in car vs car head on collisions those smaller cars ... or said another way ... choosing to buy bigger/heavier = choosing to put everyone and everything around you in greater risk.

#3> There are other types of accidents than head on car vs car.
Any accident involving hitting a stationary object the heavier car is less safe than the lighter car. It brings more energy into the collision. The human body has the same injury from force tolerances no matter the vehicle. This forces the heavier vehicle to be less safe than the light vehicle. Assuming otherwise equal technology F=ma. If A have superior technology to B that is about the technology not the size or weight.

#4> The heavier vehicle is more likely to get in an accident in the first place.
It's inertia ... the heavier vehicle's greater inertia reducing it's ability to brake to a stop or turn a tight corner to get out of the way... or course there are some technologies that can directly target braking and cornering ... and it is possible specific vehicle A might have some of those while specific vehicle B does not ... but that is about those technologies , and does not change the fundamental issues of greater mass and inertia ... the smaller lighter vehicle with those same level of technologies will always out-corner and brake shorter than the heavier vehicle.

- - - - - -
So as I see it the less $ aspect is a bonus on top of being more safe.

I remember going to a salvage auction where they sell totalled vehicles. The were 3 of the Toyota Land Cruisers there, or 1% of the total number of vehicles sold. All 3 were rollovers.
Not sure what the percentage of Land Cruisers is of the vehicle population but I am sure it's a heck of a lot lower than 3 of 300 or 1%.
Of course this does not even consider motorcycles.
The key to survival in any vehicle is knowing your limitations and situational awareness.
Take a 1 mile square slab of concrete. You have a Greyhound bus and I have a Turbo Carrera Porsche.
Do you think you would have any chance of hitting me intentionally in a bus versus Porsche contest?
Not a prayer.

regards
Mech

The wife drives a SUV (if you want to call it that). She is willing to sacrifice some mileage for better visibility and greater mass. To mitigate the cost of fuel we got the best mileage vehicle we could buy.

3800 pounds 32 MPG highway.

regards
Mech

If you drive a lot of highway, why not buy a used large car with good fuel economy?

Larger cars, at least here in Europe, depreciate faster, and get similar if not better mpg on the highway, so the cost of ownership is comparable to a smaller car and you get the space, comfort and safety along with it. They are also much more stable at speed because of better aerodynamics and longer wheelbase, so the active safety component is also better.

Let's not forget the importance of speed. KE = 1/2 M x V x V "KE" = kinetic energy "M" = mass and "V" = velocity.
So would you slow down to be safer?

if safety is your primary concern then search "traffic safety facts" and be done with it...