Toyota Safety

Car accidents are still a major cause of death. Car manufacturers like Toyota are constantly innovating safety features on automobiles. One of the main methods used to accomplish this is the crash test. This may seem like an outdated technique for improving safety features in automobiles. Seatbelts, airbags and anti-lock brakes have all been major advancements in car safety, yet car accident deaths and injury rates are still high. An ever-evolving line of technology should allow automakers and government agencies to test vehicular safety using computer modeling. So why do they still need to stage crash tests?

New styles of vehicles added to the road need to be tested to help ensure that they meet the safety requirements. Think back to the 1990s. SUVs were at the peak of their popularity, but they also were more likely to roll over than sedans. Auto manufacturers were able to stage crash tests and determined that improperly inflated tires and driver error contributed to the majority of SUV rollover accidents. To help combat this, auto manufacturers like Toyota engineered and built tire pressure monitoring systems to alert drivers when their tires were critically underinflated.

Another evolution of crash testing is the crash test dummy. In the beginning, all crash test dummies were the same size, shape and weight. Scientists soon realized that passengers of different sizes are susceptible to different injuries in a car crash. Dummies now come in several different shapes and sizes. Modern crash test dummies thus are more lifelike than previous models in that they can mimic human physiology in a more accurate manner.

There will always be some risk involved with driving a car. But with auto manufacturers like Toyota improving automobile safety, we should see a safer future on the road.