Do you drive a Death Trap?

[el Guapo]

Look up your car's safety at www.crashtest.com (Warning Pop Ups)

Please post your car(s) score.

Like this: 1985 Volvo 244GL 3354lbs - Five Stars Driver and Passenger - Overall Excellent

This website is a handy tool to use when you are shoping for a new or use car. We almost bought a minivan from someone once. Then we found out how poorly it performed in the NIHS offset testing. You tend to pay more attention to crash test results if someone in your family was badly injured in a car crash.

 

[Repo Man]

1999 Honda Accord 2DR

5 Stars Drivers Side
4 Stars Passenger Side

Overall Good

 

[Dan]

1998 Volkswagen Passat - just "good."

 

[donk]

1994 Volkswagen Jetta GL - Driver's side 3 stars, passenger's side 3 stars, 2725 lbs overall acceptable.

It should be noted that I bought mine with a salvaged title and have since put more km's on it then it had before its last accident. It drives perfectly straight and except for a badge difference and a bit of overspray is difficult to tell it was ever crashed. I would not normally have bought a salvaged title vehicle, except a friend owns the shop that did the repairs and a I really needed a new car (my K Car blew up)

 

[Queen B]

2001 ZX2 (Escort) Acceptable

But I think better than that and this is why. I was in a wreck with a 1999 Escort the guy came across the center line and clipped me right behind my seat. It completely took out the drivers rear corner. Tore off the back wheel. Spun me down into the ditch and I didn't even have a scratch big enough to brag about.

 

[Seabishop]

98 Lumina - Good.

100,000 taxi drivers can't be wrong.

 

[giff57]

2003 Ford Taurus Five Stars Driver and Passenger

The pic is even my color.....

 

[SW MI Planner]

2001 Chevy Impala (w/o 20 inch blades)

3 'excellents', and 5 'goods'.

 

[nerudite]

I have a 93 Nissan Pickup... which is overall acceptable, but has a poor death rate.

 

[Cardinal]

Subaru Legacy, good overall, four stars both driver and passenger sides.

 

[Downtown]

94 Cavalier - overall, acceptable. however, i've been in more than a couple crashes with our cavalier, and come out quite alright.

we also have an accord, for which jfortin already posted.

 

[NHPlanner]

1998 Chevy Cavalier Coupe: Overall marginal.

 

[Cardinal]

M-1 Abrahms tank. Excellent overall, five stars for both passenger and driver side. Crash-testing facility flattened.

 

[Mud Princess]

Scoobydoo Forester: good to excellent.

 

[BKM]

My newer (2002) Impresza wagon rates "Good" in the offset test, good overall, and only "acceptable" for the weight category.

Since I don't WANT a heavy car, I'm not sure that I would base a purchase decision on that alone. Especially since my lead-footed driving style means medicore gas mileage anyway

 

[SGB]

Couldn't be certain on these charts referenced, but elsewhere my 2002 Subaru Outback Wagon rates good overall.

 

[kms]

1990 Bonneville overall GOOD. It's starting to sound like an old car, though. I may think of getting something else - ick - minivan - because the kids need room to bring along a friend.

 

[Runner]

01 Corolla

Front: 4 Star
Side: 3 Star
Overall: 3 Star

 

[Tranplanner]

1996 Ford Escort - 4 Stars front driver and passenger - overall: acceptable.

My wife claims our car is only a death-trap when I'm driving it.

 

[Mud Princess]

Interesting - 4 of the 18 posts in this thread so far reference Subarus. Is a Subaru a "planner car"?

I also find them at trailheads a lot - definitely a hiker car.

bturk mod note: 6 counting my post below.

 

[Chet]

My Outback Sport rates the same as BKM's WRX.

My Land Rover had 5 acceptables and 2 goods

 

[Cardinal]

Interesting - 4 of the 18 posts in this thread so far reference Subarus. Is a Subaru a "planner car"?

I also find them at trailheads a lot - definitely a hiker car.

bturk mod note: 6 counting my post below.

You will also see a lot of Subarus in places that lean to the left. Maybe it is that most planners tend to think liberally, or at least progressively in the true sense of the word. Or maybe it is because, as you say, they are found at trailheads. We tend to be outdoorsey people, and the Subaru's all-wheel-drive helps in that context while still being environmentally and socially more acceptable than a big SUV. Or maybe it is that as planners we think things through, and buy well-constructed, reliable cars. That might also explain a passion for Volvos that some planners exhibit.

 

[Mud Princess]

You will also see a lot of Subarus in places that lean to the left. Maybe it is that most planners tend to think liberally, or at least progressively in the true sense of the word.

Ah, so that would explain why I saw so few Subarus in Arizona and southern California last year.

Or maybe it is that as planners we think things through, and buy well-constructed, reliable cars. That might also explain a passion for Volvos that some planners exhibit.

Yeah, we're smart! No Hummers for this crowd!

 

[Chet]

Yeah, we're smart! No Hummers for this crowd!

El Guapo - You wanna hit this one out of the park?

 

[The Irish One]

pinto rules -gremlins suck

pinto rules -gremlins suck

 

[Chet]

Re: pinto rules -gremlins suck

pinto rules -gremlins suck

OMG my Dad had a '70 Pinto that exact color!

 

[The Irish One]

He's a class act, your dad must be a ladies man!

 

[Chet]

He's a class act, your dad must be a ladies man!

I'll go dig out and scan the photo of the entire family standing in front of it!

As I recall, Dad was wearing groovy plaid pants, mom had the tight fitting sweater (EWW did I just type that about my mom?!) and pointy cornered glassses, Big Sis at that gawky 8 year age, and 4 year old me had a mop of blonde hair and my blue sneakers with little yellow faces all over them. Truely a model of 1970 Americana....

 

[Chet]

I'll go dig out and scan the photo of the entire family standing in front of it!

As I recall, Dad was wearing groovy plaid pants, mom had the tight fitting sweater (EWW did I just type that about my mom?!) and pointy cornered glassses, Big Sis at that gawky 8 year age, and 4 year old me had a mop of blonde hair and my blue sneakers with little yellow faces all over them. Truely a model of 1970 Americana....

Ack! I remembered everything right except dad wore a plaid shirt not plaid pants! That's the orange Pinto behind us!

 

[biscuit]

Ack! I remembered everything right except dad wore a plaid shirt not plaid pants! That's the orange Pinto behind us!

Now that's a paint color Ford needs to bring back!

 

[biscuit]

'96 2dr Accord rated excellent. I bought it after selling the '90 R-Rover POS I drove though some of my college years. It looked good and did well on the farm and off-road but it got like 10 mpg on premium fuel and was always in the shop. Decided to get the slightly used Honda and 4 years and 150,000 miles later I couldn't be happier. Now I'm just waiting for an Accord gas/electric hybrid to hit the market.

 

[The Irish One]

forget everything! how about that watch band your pops is sporting!

 

[BKM]

Subarus

I bought my little Subaru because I have a juvenile, environmentally evil enjoyment of quick, crisp handling cars. With a turbo, we ain't going to win any lefty environmental awards.

Seriously, it is relatively small, nimble, and practical for hauling a bicycle (my new bike ain't riding on no roof rack!) and dogs. I don't know if that is a lefty perspective-I just hate the bulky clumsiness of most SUVs.

 

[Seabishop]

Off on a tangent here - do 4 cylinder cars last as long? I was always told by "car people" to aim for 6. I'm just talking about regular cars, not suv's or trucks.

 

[biscuit]

Off on a tangent here - do 4 cylinder cars last as long? I was always told by "car people" to aim for 6. I'm just talking about regular cars, not suv's or trucks.

I have never heard of a 6-cylinder out lasting a 4. I would think it would have more to do with the make of the engine as opposed to the number of cylinders. But what do I know, I've never even changed my own oil. From my personal experience: One of my first cars was a 4-cylinder Honda Accord my mom handed down to me and eventualy handed down to my sister. She got rid of it at 210,000 miles. That was over four years ago and the car is still running. A relative of mine had a 6-cylinder Mercury that fell completly apart before it hit 95,000 miles. Go figure.