ABC 4 has learned thousands of cars on the road right now are flunking a new kind of crash test on a common and often deadly kind of accident. The corner crash is when your car’s front corner hits a power pole or another vehicle on the side of the front fender.
"It just involves the front corner of the vehicle... It misses the strong energy absorbing structure that's in the middle," said Adrian Lund of the insurance institute for highway safety
The insurance institute is now performing a stunning, first of its kind crash test that shows most cars need more protection at the corners. Of the 11 cars tested, only 3 passed. The rest suffered horrendous damage, so did the test dummies inside.
"That side of the vehicle that's struck is pushed in toward the occupant and your restraints tend to move out of the way," Lund said.
The Acura TL and Volvo S60 earned "good" ratings, while the Infiniti g was rated "acceptable." the Acura TSX, BMW 3 Series, Lincoln MKZ and Volkswagen CC all received "marginal" ratings. The Audi A4, Lexus ES 350, Lexus is 250/350 and Mercedes Benz c-class were rated "poor."
One automaker claimed the test replicates an "unusually severe and uncommon crash." The insurance institute says they hope this visual evidence will inspire action because in today's market, safety sells.
