28th Jul 2012, 15:07
There is a DOT bumper on the back of truck trailers to prevent cars from driving under them. These late 70's GM's have a high enough ride height as well. The only thing safer about new cars is airbags. But airbags don't prevent people from getting crushed. Metal dashboards were banned from US passenger cars in the 60's per the USDOT.
9th Nov 2009, 11:42
"If they rear ended a tractor trailer, the "nose-dive" affect of the brakes usually made the vehicle dive under the trailer, and would decapitate the passengers!"
Not totally true, this was usually due to older trailers not having the low, sturdy ICC bumpers that new trailers and straight trucks are required to have. A nose dive of 3 or 4 inches is pretty negligible. Also many new trailers come with side skirts to prevent the same thing from happening on the side. And don't forget the fact the hoods on all new cars other than pickups or SUVs sit much lower than the hood of this Buick.
It looks like the car in the review sustained a very hard front impact, and at least a moderate side followed by another moderate front impact when it hit the barricade. For being a 29 year old dinosaur land yacht, it did a remarkable job!