The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) recently released its report on small overlap crash testing with minivans, and the results are not good.
The small overlap crash test simulates what happens when a vehicle clips an object, rather than hitting it fully head-on. “These crashes may be especially difficult for minivans to handle. That’s because minivans are typically built on car platforms but are wider than cars. As a result, more of the vehicle is located outside the main structure,” according to IIHS.
In their tests, the IIHS found three minivans – Chrysler’s Town and Country, Dodge Grand Caravan and the Nissan Quest – all rated poorly on the tests, with drivers likely injured to the extent that “a real person experiencing this would be lucky to ever walk normally again”.
Here’s part of their description of the crash forces experienced by the driver of the Town and Country:
“The Town & Country’s structure also collapsed around the dummy. Intrusion measured 15 inches at the lower hinge pillar and the instrument panel. The skin on the dummy’s left lower leg was gouged by the intruding parking brake pedal, and its left knee skin was torn by a steel brace under the instrument panel. The head barely contacted the front airbag before sliding off and hitting the instrument panel, as the steering column moved to the right. The door sill and the steering column both moved in toward the driver. The side curtain airbag deployed but lacked sufficient forward coverage.”
Here are the specific model years impacted by the latest crash test ratings:
- 2008-2015 Chrysler Town & Country
- 2008-2015 Dodge Grand Caravan
- 2009-2012 Volkswagen Routan
- 2011-2015 Nissan Quest
The only minivan to receive a “Good” rating on this test was the Honda Odyssey. The Toyota Sienna rated better than the Chrysler, Dodge and Nissan, but not as well as the Honda. The Kia Sedona was not tested, as the manufacturer has announced an upcoming design change to address small frontal overlap crashes.
View the original article online here.
