On September 9, 2009, the IIHS conducted a 40 mph offset crash test between a 2009 Chevy Malibu and a 1959 Chevy Bel Air (the Malibu's equivalent from fifty years earlier). The Malibu is a typical late-2000s family sedan, earning good ratings in full front, front offset, and side crash tests, while the Bel Air was sold twenty years before even the full front tests were launched. Found at techdata.iihs.org (requires registration). More detail can be found at the test report there.
First, let's look at intrusion. Malibu at left / Bel Air at right
Steering column: 2 cm rearward, 2 cm down - 3 cm total / 31 cm rear, 23 cm up - 40 cm total
Dashboard: 2-3 cm / 34-39 cm
Footwell: 3-10 cm / 31-62 cm
In the Malibu, the occupant compartment was barely compromised, while in the Bel Air, the footwell was driven back more than two feet, the dash more than a foot, and the steering column so far back and up that it ended up beside the dummy's head.
Here's the injury measures. The Injury Assessment Reference Values (IARV) indicate that serious injury would be likely if they are exceeded.
HIC-15: 215 / 461 (IARV: 700)
Max head G: 54 / 236 (IARV: 80)
Max neck Nij: 0.30 / 1.31 (IARV: 1.00)
The Malibu's driver was cushioned by an airbag, and contact with the bag was stable. Forces indicate that there would likely be no or minor head and neck injuries. In the Bel Air, the driver's head had a very brief but hard contact against the steering wheel, hence the relatively low HIC. Severe neck injuries would be likely. Further injury could result in the Bel Air due to the hard, jagged surfaces of the intruding dashboard.
Chest G: 41 / 85 (IARV: 60)
Chest compression (mm): 33 / 73 (IARV: 50)
Viscous criteria: 0.2 / 1.6 (IARV: 1.0)
The Malibu's driver would likely suffer only minor injury to the chest, if any. The IARV values were greatly exceeded in the Bel Air, indicating that fatal internal injuries would be likely. In the real world, the forces on the Bel Air driver's chest would be concentrated by the steering wheel and hard, jagged objects, as opposed to the stable, even forces imparted by an effective seat belt and airbag.
Femur axial force (kN): 2.8 left, 2.7 right / 10.9 left, 6.6 right (IARV: 9.1)
Max tibia index: 0.54 left, 0.59 right / 3.64 left, 1.96 right (IARV: 1.00)
Foot acceleration G: 215 left, 89 right / 462 left, 143 right (IARV: 150)
A stable footwell meant that the leg forces on the Malibu were low, the driver only risking a possible fracture of the foot. Serious injury would have been likely to both legs in the Bel Air. Forces on the left leg were so high that most vehicles rated "poor" for leg injuries had forces less than half as high!
Serious Injury Risk
Malibu - 14.0%
Bel Air - 89.5%
First, let's look at intrusion. Malibu at left / Bel Air at right
Steering column: 2 cm rearward, 2 cm down - 3 cm total / 31 cm rear, 23 cm up - 40 cm total
Dashboard: 2-3 cm / 34-39 cm
Footwell: 3-10 cm / 31-62 cm
In the Malibu, the occupant compartment was barely compromised, while in the Bel Air, the footwell was driven back more than two feet, the dash more than a foot, and the steering column so far back and up that it ended up beside the dummy's head.
Here's the injury measures. The Injury Assessment Reference Values (IARV) indicate that serious injury would be likely if they are exceeded.
HIC-15: 215 / 461 (IARV: 700)
Max head G: 54 / 236 (IARV: 80)
Max neck Nij: 0.30 / 1.31 (IARV: 1.00)
The Malibu's driver was cushioned by an airbag, and contact with the bag was stable. Forces indicate that there would likely be no or minor head and neck injuries. In the Bel Air, the driver's head had a very brief but hard contact against the steering wheel, hence the relatively low HIC. Severe neck injuries would be likely. Further injury could result in the Bel Air due to the hard, jagged surfaces of the intruding dashboard.
Chest G: 41 / 85 (IARV: 60)
Chest compression (mm): 33 / 73 (IARV: 50)
Viscous criteria: 0.2 / 1.6 (IARV: 1.0)
The Malibu's driver would likely suffer only minor injury to the chest, if any. The IARV values were greatly exceeded in the Bel Air, indicating that fatal internal injuries would be likely. In the real world, the forces on the Bel Air driver's chest would be concentrated by the steering wheel and hard, jagged objects, as opposed to the stable, even forces imparted by an effective seat belt and airbag.
Femur axial force (kN): 2.8 left, 2.7 right / 10.9 left, 6.6 right (IARV: 9.1)
Max tibia index: 0.54 left, 0.59 right / 3.64 left, 1.96 right (IARV: 1.00)
Foot acceleration G: 215 left, 89 right / 462 left, 143 right (IARV: 150)
A stable footwell meant that the leg forces on the Malibu were low, the driver only risking a possible fracture of the foot. Serious injury would have been likely to both legs in the Bel Air. Forces on the left leg were so high that most vehicles rated "poor" for leg injuries had forces less than half as high!
Serious Injury Risk
Malibu - 14.0%
Bel Air - 89.5%
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