http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/03/opinion/03sat2.html?ex=1328158800&en=acf14cab049b2f3b&ei=5089&partner=rssyahoo&emc=rssThe federal government is exploring ways to strengthen its testing and rating system for the crashworthiness of motor vehicles. The effort is long overdue but still likely to fall short of what really works.
In too many cases, the tests are weaker than they should be and fail to address current kinds of accidents, like what happens when one of today's larger SUVs collides with a smaller one.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tackles vehicle crash protection in two major ways. It sets minimum crashworthiness standards and requires the manufacturers to test their vehicles and certify that they comply. Then the NHTSA conducts its own more rigorous tests on a number of new cars. The results are converted into a five-star rating system to indicate which vehicles are more crashworthy and which are less likely to roll over. The theory is that consumers will be more interested in buying the safer vehicles, thereby giving manufacturers a strong incentive to surpass the minimum requirements.
Nowadays, a vast majority of vehicles get four or five stars, providing little way for consumers to detect differences and giving manufacturers little incentive to keep improving. Unfortunately, the tests have not kept pace with the times as more sport utility vehicles, minivans, and pickups are manufactured.
For everyone's safety, consumer advocates and vehicle insurers should press hard for the strongest possible tests and standards.
