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Honda Fit Safety & Crash Test Results

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    bobw3bobw3 Member Posts: 2,989
    can you post the photo? I'm confused how a pickup truck could end up on top of the Fit if the accident was during slow moving stop and go traffic?
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    smile100smile100 Member Posts: 20
    I estimate the speed of the car who hit our Fit was at least 30+ mph. The force was so severe, it pushed our Fit to raise her front pickup up.
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    habberdabberhabberdabber Member Posts: 2
    :cry: My 4 month old Red Fit AT Sport got hit by very large pieces (the size of your arm) chunks of ice falling off a TV tower this Spring. Estimates of $1300 & $1600 to the roof dings. The TV station was not legally responsible....act of God or some such thing. Insurance did cut me a check. Other cars in my work parking lot lost windshields and had even more damage. :cry:
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    FrungyFrungy Member Posts: 5
    I bought a Fit a month ago and was rear ended yesterday. Traffic was stopped on a state route, but the jeep behind me plowed into me at about 30 mph. My car moved forward and rear ended a pickup truck in front of me. Both sides of my car were crushed, the jeep and pickup were unscathed. Luckily me and my dad in the passenger seat were able to walk away without any injuries apart from whiplash. However, none of the airbags deployed, which was a big concern for me. Considering both the rear and front were crumpled, I'd expect they to deploy. I'm not sure if I should be upset, or happy that we managed to make it out uninjured yet with a totaled car.
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    backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    The airbags are not designed to deploy in a rear crash. I think the 2009 Fit is supposed to get active front headrests, which should help protect against whiplash. For the front, it depends on how fast your car was traveling when it hit the other car. I've heard that the trigger speed for deploying the front airbags is somewhere around 20 mph. Since it was a rebound, it could very well have been less than 20 mph. The airbags are called a "supplemental restraint system" for a reason. For low-speed frontal impacts, your seat belt is your primary restraint. When they need help in a more severe crash, the airbags deploy. In this case, the restraint systems did their job and protected you (except the headrests, which are not the Fit's strength). And you (and your insurance company) don't have the added expense of replacing the airbags--which can be a considerable cost. Also, when they deploy some minor injury is possible. So maybe you should be glad that the airbags did NOT deploy.
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    FrungyFrungy Member Posts: 5
    I suppose, but like I said, the car was totaled so nobody's replacing anything... they're scrapping the car The frontal crash was a rebound, but it still managed to crumple the front up to the engine area. The frame seemed to have done a good job spreading the force out to the sides... the front windshield didn't even crack. I guess the worst part about it is that even though it's only a month old, it still loses around 20% of its value the instant it moves off the lot.
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    backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Yep. It doesn't take much to total a small, inexpensive car these days.

    The good news is, the driver of the car that hit you in the rear should have paid for your damages, or at minimum your insurance company could go after his/hers. Since the car was near-new you could ask for full replacement cost.
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    greeneyes75greeneyes75 Member Posts: 1
    I am absolutely in love with the Honda Fit. I love the way it looks, the gas efficiency, and the the way the seats fold up an down. The car has been advertised as having excellent safety for front passengers however the IIHS rates the Fit 'Poor' in rear crash safety tests. This is my only reservation about this car and a BIG ONE. Most of the time it will be only me in the car but I am feeling very worried at the prospect of putting anyone I love in the back seat. My question is- Has anyone here had the unfortunate experience of having a rear crash with their Fit? How did it hold up?? Because of this I'm now considering a significantly more expensive car that has excellent safety all around. I really want the Fit but I don't want to compromise safety to get it...
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    backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Keep in mind the IIHS rear crash test is a test only of the front seat and how it protects that occupant (head and neck) in a rear crash. The actual vehicle is not used in the test. Instead, the seat (driver's seat I think) is mounted on a test platform and then there's a simulated impact in the rear.

    In other words, there is no way you can tell from the IIHS crash test how well the Fit would protect your loved ones riding in the back seat. The good news, is, there is quite a bit of crash "space" behind the rear seats of the fit--much more so than for some other small hatchbacks.

    FWIW, fhe 2009 Fit will have active front headrests that move forward to better protect head and neck in a rear crash, so the IIHS rear crash test score should improve a lot for 2009.
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    anony_mousanony_mous Member Posts: 4
    While passing a truck at 70mph the other day, I hit the largest rock I've ever seen hit a windshield (kicked up by the truck's tires, I guess) off my 08 Fit. Golf-ball-sized, maybe slightly larger. It struck directly below the rear-view mirror in the center of the windshield glass, seemingly headed straight for my face. The sound of the impact was incredibly loud, left my ears ringing. For a moment I feared for my safety.

    Not only did the Fit's windshield absorb the impact without shattering, it wasn't even scratched. That must be some impressive engineering to disperse the force, and some very good tempered glass -- so I felt Honda deserved kudos here.
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