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H3 Crash Test Results :(
"General Motors' Hummer H3 was the only SUV in the group that didn't get the top rating in the frontal crash test.
The Hummer got the second-highest rating of "acceptable" because the test showed a likelihood of injury to the driver's right leg in a frontal crash.
The frontal crash test simulates a 40 mph (64 kph) crash.
The H3 also got an "acceptable" rating in the side crash test, and the worst rating of "poor" in the rear crash test.
In a statement, GM spokesperson Alan Adler said the H3 "meets or exceeds all federal crash safety standards."
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080226/suv_crashtests_0802- 25/20080226?s_name=Autos&no_ads=
The Hummer got the second-highest rating of "acceptable" because the test showed a likelihood of injury to the driver's right leg in a frontal crash.
The frontal crash test simulates a 40 mph (64 kph) crash.
The H3 also got an "acceptable" rating in the side crash test, and the worst rating of "poor" in the rear crash test.
In a statement, GM spokesperson Alan Adler said the H3 "meets or exceeds all federal crash safety standards."
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080226/suv_crashtests_0802- 25/20080226?s_name=Autos&no_ads=
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Comments
http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=907
The Insurance Institute tests are supposedly tougher than the government's.
My wife was upset by that story until I showed her the IHHS and government ratings.
I can't _imagine_ why that news story, reported both on TV and in print, rated the H3 so poorly. It's nice to see the media isn't letting FACTS get in the way of supporting their stories.
Those Insurance Industry ratings show exactly the same results as reported in the media.
Frontal Offset Test: A (acceptable) "Forces on the lower right leg were high enough to indicate the likelihood of injuries.
Side Impact Test: A (acceptable) "Driver — Measures taken from the dummy indicate that rib fractures and/or internal organ injuries would be possible in a crash of this severity. The risk of significant injuries to other body regions is low."
Rear Crash Protection: P (poor) "Seat/head restraints with marginal or poor geometry aren't tested dynamically because they cannot protect taller people in rear-end crashes. These seats are rated poor overall."
The above is the same information as reported in the media, and is taken from the Insurance Institute tests that you linked to in your post.
"I can't _imagine_ why that news story, reported both on TV and in print, rated the H3 so poorly. It's nice to see the media isn't letting FACTS get in the way of supporting their stories."
I imagine the media reported the results of the tests because it was a newsworthy item, and the information and link I provided appears to be factually correct.
http://www.safercar.gov/Index2.cfm
Within the spectrum of safe cars-unsafe cars, these ratings indicated to me that the H3 was reasonably safe. Are there other SUVs with better ratings? Sure, but nothing piqued our interest the way the H3 did, and there are other considerations for us besides safety when considering the purchase of a car/SUV.
In the area in which I live, TV and print media made it sound like the H3 was _unsafe,_. In fact, one reporter said, about the H3, "So looking tough may not mean it _is_ tough." (or something to that effect). This followed a video of a red H3 being crash tested. To the uninformed, it looked like the H3 suffered terrible damage, but the passenger volume seemed to fare quite well, while the portion from the A-pillar forward crushed as designed.
The Insurance Institute's findings, while not as favorable to the H3 as the governement's, also indicated to me a reasonably safe SUV; an "Acceptable" rating, in concert with the H3's other qualities, was not a deterrent for me to buying an H3.
My wife is quite satisfied with my explanation (fortunately!), and while some of the nationwide media might be fairly objective in reporting the crash test results, _around here_ the impression was given that the H3 was _not_ a safe SUV. That was my objection, and I guess my original post failed to accurately convey my thoughts on the matter.
BTW, in looking at the safecar.gov site, it was interesting to me to see how many SUVs did not do as well as the H3 in the government's crash tests.