It's summertime, and not surprisingly, convertible sales are up. While nothing beats driving around with the top down, exactly how safe are convertibles when compared to a regular car? For the first time ever, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducted crash tests on convertibles.
(See video from General Motors at:
http://media.medialink.com/WebNR.aspx?story=33588)
To earn the top award, a vehicle had to have good ratings in all three Institute crash tests: front, side and rear. Among ten mid-sized models tested, the best performers were the Saab 9-3 and the Volvo C70, both of which earned the overall "Top Pick" for crash protection.
That means, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, these two convertibles are actually safer in many ways than many vehicles they've tested with fixed roofs. Automakers from Saab say they compensated for the absence of the roof by reinforcing the windshield header rail, the A-pillars, and by making the door sills wider and larger than in a regular sedan.
In addition, to be a "Top Pick" the Institute had an extra requirement for convertibles - a roll bar system - as rollovers are the deadliest situation for convertibles. The Saab 9-3 has a supplemental restraint system that is designed to anticipate and react to a potential rollover situation.
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