The Smart ForTwo has been selling in the US for months and yet it is not until now that the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has completed its crash testing of the minuscule auto. Ofcourse, with the car being the size that it is in comparison to most other vehicles on the roads of America safety is a primary concern. Then again in spite of a lack of reporting from the Crash-Ologist’s of the US Government the Smart ForTwo has been selling faster than they can arrive on our shores.
The video at the top of the page demonstrates the side-impact test on the Smart ForTwo. The NHTSA gave the ForTwo a 5 star rating, their highest award, despite the driver side car door becoming unclasped and opening. An open door in a crash is never a good sign, as the NHTSA noted it could lead to passenger ejection, but it did not worry the NHTSA enough to lower the score accredited to the car.
The video below demonstrates the frontal-impact test for the Smart ForTwo. The combined score for the frontal assault was 4 stars; 4 star rating for the driver with a 3 star rating for the passenger. With a 3 star rating on the passenger side you should make a note to yourselves - always volunteer to drive when getting into a Smart ForTwo.
From the Creative minds at the British show 5th Gear comes the idea of stacking two two seaters to make a four seater. Four bolts, a small lift and some iron… uh… nerves gives us the worlds first double-decker Smart ForTwo. But how will we know of its capabilities without some very thorough testing? Well they are steps ahead and have acquired a new Mitsubishi “I” car with its 4-doors and room for four seating to provide some “scientific” comparisons.
Just as everything that glitters is not gold… Not everything on four wheels is destined to stay on them. Check out the video below for a taste of what makes the British so Brilliant!
Australia takes the lead now in cracking down on illegal street racers. Not only do they have a national ad campaign that refers to “hoons” as having a small man-part they are trying to make up for but now they are taking their beloved transportation and crashing them for educational movies. So if you are an illegal racer in New South Wales there is always the chance that your car may get its fifteen minutes of fame and will be shown at schools and other facilities around the region.
 The NSW government believes that what they are doing is just, since the illegal street racers are so willing to put others lives at risk. Thus by filming and evaluating the cars they crash from convicted street racers they will be able to educate others about the risk they are putting themselves in as well as the risk to the innocent bystander.
This Saturday some new automotive regulations will be taking affect that are going to provide the dealership walking customer better information and more accurate information than before. Appearing on the sticker of all new cars will be the newly calculated fuel mileage ratings gauged by the EPA for real world driving. Also, to make their first appearance on a cars window sticker will be the NHTSA’s official crash test ratings for all new cars that have undergone testing. There are also two new safety features that have now been made mandatory for the 2008 model year that will take affect on Saturday. All-in-all Saturday will be a most busy day.
The change in the EPA standards for measuring fuel mileage have been talked about for a while now. Some 2007 cars carried additional stickers that indicated both the old mileage ratings based at 55mph highway and the new measurements based on real world driving.Â
