More interesting stuff dug from NHTSA's history bin.
More crash tests - at 30 mph into a wall, a standard crash test in that era - on Motor Homes. These weren't full size RV's they tested, just class-C motorhomes (a motorhome built onto a truck or van chassis). These tests are from 1980, so their safety will not be as high as today's standards.
First up: the Odyssey Mini-lux motorhome, based on a 1980 Toyota truck.
Test date was Friday, February 22, 1980.
The 1980 Toyota truck was known for durability. As for safety in a high speed crash? Well, it is a Japanese vehicle from prior to the mid-1980s, so don't expect much. "Light trucks" (trucks, vans, and early SUVs) only had rudimentary safety standards. The occupant compartment is smashed both by the wall and by the camper RV area behind it. That being said, the driver does get very lucky on injury measures. HIC of 398 and chest G's of 39 make it look like a 5 star vehicle. But watch the structure at around 3:00 - 7:00. The steering wheel slams the driver's face. Around 8:15 - 8:45 will show you the passenger, who smashes into the windshield as his legs are forced upward by footwell intrusion. HIC of 1029 and 85 chest G's mean that this passenger would suffer serious head and severe to critical chest injury.
Next, the Chinook Gazelle motorhome.
Test date was Thursday, March 27, 1980.
The occupant compartment is significantly damaged, although largely holding its shape. Forces on both dummies were decent, but not impressive: driver HIC of 857 with 49 chest G's, and passenger HIC of 797 with 34 chest G's make this a crash that would be survivable for both occupants without serious injury. Crash and post crash inspection starts at 2:46 on the video; slow motion shots from 4:52. (By the way, hope those engineers are still alive: this was 33 years ago - the engineers could be anywhere from their 50s to over 100 now)
Third and finally, the Champion Trans Van motorhome - based on a full size circa 1979 Dodge van
Test date was Thursday, April 24, 1980.
Take a '70s Dodge van. No crumple zone, not much space ahead of the occupant compartment to slow down the van before the occupant compartment itself starts to collapse. Competing vans of the era were no safer. It was common to see vans' occupant compartments collapse - and the dummies experience very high forces - even in relatively modest front crash tests. What do you get when you add tons of weight behind an already badly overloaded front structure? A safety disaster. This is far worse than even the truck-based RVs. Driver: 1640 HIC, 79 chest G's. About a 50-50 chance of survival, with survival meaning severe to critical injury. Passenger: 1321 HIC, 96 chest G's, with severe head injury likely and chest injury likely to prove fatal. Just look at the video starting at 2:50 and the slow motion from 4:05. Two words: good grief.
The first four lines of this article were written December 31, 2012, and the rest was written June 21-28, 2013.
The conclusion is: truck based RVs of the circa 1980 era were unsafe. Van based RVs were a disaster.
More crash tests - at 30 mph into a wall, a standard crash test in that era - on Motor Homes. These weren't full size RV's they tested, just class-C motorhomes (a motorhome built onto a truck or van chassis). These tests are from 1980, so their safety will not be as high as today's standards.
First up: the Odyssey Mini-lux motorhome, based on a 1980 Toyota truck.
Test date was Friday, February 22, 1980.
The 1980 Toyota truck was known for durability. As for safety in a high speed crash? Well, it is a Japanese vehicle from prior to the mid-1980s, so don't expect much. "Light trucks" (trucks, vans, and early SUVs) only had rudimentary safety standards. The occupant compartment is smashed both by the wall and by the camper RV area behind it. That being said, the driver does get very lucky on injury measures. HIC of 398 and chest G's of 39 make it look like a 5 star vehicle. But watch the structure at around 3:00 - 7:00. The steering wheel slams the driver's face. Around 8:15 - 8:45 will show you the passenger, who smashes into the windshield as his legs are forced upward by footwell intrusion. HIC of 1029 and 85 chest G's mean that this passenger would suffer serious head and severe to critical chest injury.
Next, the Chinook Gazelle motorhome.
Test date was Thursday, March 27, 1980.
The occupant compartment is significantly damaged, although largely holding its shape. Forces on both dummies were decent, but not impressive: driver HIC of 857 with 49 chest G's, and passenger HIC of 797 with 34 chest G's make this a crash that would be survivable for both occupants without serious injury. Crash and post crash inspection starts at 2:46 on the video; slow motion shots from 4:52. (By the way, hope those engineers are still alive: this was 33 years ago - the engineers could be anywhere from their 50s to over 100 now)
Third and finally, the Champion Trans Van motorhome - based on a full size circa 1979 Dodge van
Test date was Thursday, April 24, 1980.
Take a '70s Dodge van. No crumple zone, not much space ahead of the occupant compartment to slow down the van before the occupant compartment itself starts to collapse. Competing vans of the era were no safer. It was common to see vans' occupant compartments collapse - and the dummies experience very high forces - even in relatively modest front crash tests. What do you get when you add tons of weight behind an already badly overloaded front structure? A safety disaster. This is far worse than even the truck-based RVs. Driver: 1640 HIC, 79 chest G's. About a 50-50 chance of survival, with survival meaning severe to critical injury. Passenger: 1321 HIC, 96 chest G's, with severe head injury likely and chest injury likely to prove fatal. Just look at the video starting at 2:50 and the slow motion from 4:05. Two words: good grief.
The first four lines of this article were written December 31, 2012, and the rest was written June 21-28, 2013.
The conclusion is: truck based RVs of the circa 1980 era were unsafe. Van based RVs were a disaster.
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