X6 acccident at PC

[palbay]

That is amazing!!!! If you have seen pic's and vids of Michelin's test grounds....it's wide open.This was in broad daylight.Somebody was clearly not paying attention to the task at hand.The fenders are the same stuff as the fenders on 2nd Gen X5....some Superman strength plastic.I wonder what those fenders look like when you tangle w/ an 18 wheeler?????......Thanks. PalBay

[Wagner]

new meaning to a crumple zone.

[Viperfreak2]

Please take 5 seconds to imagine why the fenders are plastic.....brilliant.

How about EU pedestrian impact standards?

Sheet metal doesn't take the force of any impact better, it's the structure underneath. Would you prefer a new plastic fender, or some body filler to smooth out the wrinkled metal some body shop hammered back into shape?

The bumper and fenders and not one big piece. See the parting lines?

[Wagner]

Originally Posted by Viperfreak2

Please take 5 seconds to imagine why the fenders are plastic.....brilliant.

How about EU pedestrian impact standards?

Sheet metal doesn't take the force of any impact better, it's the structure underneath. Would you prefer a new plastic fender, or some body filler to smooth out the wrinkled metal some body shop hammer back into shape?

The bumper and fenders and not one big piece. See the parting lines?

Ah metal can be fixed, plastic MUST be replaced. Metal bends or dents...it doesn't crack.

[Viperfreak2]

It will also break your bones much better.

[Wagner]

Originally Posted by Viperfreak2

It will also break your bones much better.

Yeah...all those sheet metal fenders killing people...tragic. I'm sure the 4000+ lbs of steel equates to the impact of Nerf

[Viperfreak2]

[Viperfreak2]

Fairfax police Sgt. Pat Wimberly sees it at least once a month: A pedestrian steps into traffic and gets hit, and the outcome is always one-sided. "Whoever designed and implemented the human body never intended that to happen," Wimberly said. Now the auto industry is debating whether it can change the equation, designing cars and trucks that are less deadly in collisions with pedestrians. At least one major supplier has developed an air bag that deploys on the outside of a car, to cushion the impact on a person's head. Honda Motor Co. has led the industry by redesigning its entire fleet of vehicles to make the hoods more forgiving to pedestrians.

Beginning this fall, the European Union will require manufacturers to meet pedestrian safety standards on all new models of vehicles, with stricter requirements on the way in 2010. Japan is not far behind.
But the rush to act is meeting resistance in the United States, where industry and government regulators alike say making automobiles more pedestrian-friendly is not a priority. Carmakers argue that such changes add cost and alter vehicle appearance in ways consumers might not like -- rounding off hoods and shortening front ends to lessen the danger to the human body. They also contend that driving is different overseas, where pedestrians are more likely to come into contact with automobiles in crowded cities.
"We view it as a longer-term priority," said Gloria Bergquist, spokeswoman for the U.S.-based Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. "We're looking at things we might employ somewhere down the road, but it's a different environment in Europe. [Pedestrian safety technology] will be there sooner than here."
Detroit's manufacturers will incorporate the new technologies and designs on vehicles they sell overseas, but not domestically. Still, some products sold in the United States are likely to be affected as regulations take hold abroad.
"If the changes are structural, in the design of the car, that would come here automatically," said Tom Purves, chairman of BMW North America. BMW is looking into a number of approaches, Purves said, from redesigning vehicle front ends to using "active" hoods that pop up slightly on impact, creating space between the sheet metal and the harder engine block below.

[AzNMpower32]

Let's be honest here, folks. The plastic fenders are meant to cut costs and reduce weight.

Honda and other automakers can make cars that are pedestrian friendly without resorting to recycled bottle caps. Plus, BMW, despite claiming to try and meet standards, still doesn't score many points from the Euro NCAP tests for pedestrian safety.

Now, stupid things like parking lot dings and fender benders are going to be "parking lot cracks" and "fender snappers" that require $$$$$$ to repair and look horrendously ugly.

[motordavid]

I was poking/kidding about the plastic fenders being used to reduce
the weight of the Very Porky X6, obviously...I also drive a Vette which
is basically an assembly of composite shells over a quasi-monocoque
frame. But, the suckah is very light weight, as a vehicle.

as for the EU regs, I'm no crash or impact expert, but if I remember
my physics, F=Ma, and while "cushioning/breakaway" parts may be
of some help in very low speed impacts, I'm not sure there is any
practical way to reduce the damage a 2 1/2 ton+ vehicle, doing
60, or 40 mph, does to a human being. Good for them, though we
aren't the EU, here.