Many people wonder about SUV safety. There is a generally held maxim that SUVs are safer than other passenger automobiles. However there are many examples where this is not the case. These are examples which are typified by situations where SUVs have been driven in situations that cause the vehicle to roll over or were in a collision with vehicles that were much different in size and shape.
There is also the consideration about weight, that it is somehow related to safety. Many times you hear folks say, that an SUV is safer simply because it weighs more. However this is generally accepted by those who know a thing or two about vehicle safety as an urban myth as there are other factors involved. Weight is classified as a gross vehicle weight GVW for short.
The Institute of Highway Safety shows that cars that are below 2500 pounds have fewer deaths per million collisions than do vehicles weighing more than 4500 pounds.
If you look at most SUVs on the road today, chances are great that they will fall into the category of weight classifications above 4000 pounds.
This is true for vehicles like the Lincoln Navigator, the Lincoln Aviator, the Chevy Suburban, the Yukon Denali, the Cadillac Escalade, and of course the BMW X5. Other vehicles that are also in this category include the Land Rovers and Range Rovers. It should come as no surprise that because these vehicles sit higher and have more components such as all-wheel drive systems and larger engines that they are simply going to weigh in at much larger numbers than four-door cars.
Of course many people buy an SUV because they need to haul around seven or more passengers as well as the need to tow vehicles that can weigh as much as 9000 pounds. Some of the disadvantages of owning SUVs is that many of them have poor crash test results and also are susceptible to very high rollover risks. These risks are usually contributed to by poor braking and handling characteristics. This is one of the reasons why I like the BMW SUV so much as well as a number of the import SUVs.
Typically they are designed for much better road holding than their American counterparts.
When buying an SUV the most important things to look for to help improve your safety on the road include antilock brakes, traction control also known as antiskid systems. BMW calls this Dynamic Stability Control Honda calls it Vehicle Stability Assist which is included in the Honda Pilot and GM calls it a StabiliTrack.
All-wheel drive or four-wheel drive systems of course will deliver power to all four wheels however it is generally not considered a safety feature despite what many people have said for generations that it helps in inclement weather.
I am more excited about the ability for SUVs to swerve and avoid obstacles than I am about them having all-wheel drive. For example any SUV that has independent suspension is going to be able to outmaneuver a vehicle with out independent suspension any day of the week.
The last two safety features that I think are important in any vehicle not just SUVs are seatbelt pre-tensioners which will take the slack out of the seat belt very quickly in a crash which of course is standard in most vehicles today. And of course let’s not forget about airbags which have been required in all cars sold in the United States since 1994 however front airbags sometimes just aren’t enough and that is why I recommend an SUV that has side impact airbags also known as curtain airbags in the event of a side collision or roll over. Studies shown by the Highway Safety Institute show that these types of airbags can reduce the risk of death in side crashes by as much as 45%.
