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Corner Protection in Low-Speed Crashes
Technical Paper
2007-01-1760
ISSN: 0148-7191, e-ISSN: 2688-3627
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English
Abstract
Recent estimates of the annual cost to repair vehicle damage from motor vehicle crashes ranges from $17 billion (£9.1 billion) paid by U.K insurers to $45 billion paid by U.S. insurers. Many of these repairs were for damage sustained in low-speed front and rear impacts, with the majority costing less than $2, 500 to repair in both countries. In about a quarter of all claims the damage is limited to the vehicle corners and vehicle bumpers should prevent or limit much of the damage sustained in these minor crashes. However, many vehicles do not have bumper reinforcement beams that extend laterally much beyond the frame rails, leaving expensive vehicle components such as headlamps and fenders (wings) unprotected. Research by IIHS and Thatcham shows that 15 percent overlap front and rear crash tests at 5 km/h into a bumper-shaped barrier produce vehicle damage similar to that seen in real-world crashes and in vehicle-to-vehicle front-to-rear crash tests with low overlap. Tests also show that relatively minor modifications to bumper beams can greatly reduce the extent of this damage in low-speed collisions.
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Citation
Aylor, D., Nolan, J., Avery, M., and Weekes, A., "Corner Protection in Low-Speed Crashes," SAE Technical Paper 2007-01-1760, 2007, https://doi.org/10.4271/2007-01-1760.Also In
Safety: Rear Impact, Rollover, Side Impact, Crashworthiness, Air Bags and Bumper Systems
Number: SP-2117; Published: 2007-04-16
Number: SP-2117; Published: 2007-04-16
References
- Highway Loss Data Institute 2004 Insurance collision report (R-04): 2002-04 passenger cars, pickups, utility vehicles, and large/cargo vans Arlington, VA
- Association of British Insurers 2005 Annual Motor Statistics London, UK
- Thatcham, the Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre 2006 Data from collaborative study with Insurance Repair Centre sharing repair estimates. Unpublished data.
- Highway Loss Data Institute Unpublished analysis of data from CCC Information Services Inc Arlington, VA
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 1977 Tile 49 Code of Federal Regulations Part 581, Bumper Standard Washington, DC National Archives and Records Administration
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- Thatcham, the Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre 2006 Bumper Test Protocol 1
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- Aylor D.A. Ramirez D.L. Brumbelow M. Nolan J.M. 2005 Limitations of current bumper designs and potential improvements SAE Technical Paper Series 2005-01-1337 Warrendale, PA Society of Automotive Engineers
- Insurance Institute for Highway Safety 1982 Bumper Standard Rolled Back. Status Report 17 7 Arlington, VA