Buy a convertible it is, to some extent, driven by largely emotional and irrational motivations. As safety always comes first, this has led us to ask ourselves, how safe is it to drive a convertible? Is the risk of being blown off the roof high?
There’s an idea that they may not appear as safe as other vehicles when driving with the top down, but crash statistics tell a different story, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety –Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)-, a safety testing organization supported by the US insurance industry.
While fabric convertibles such as retractable hardtop are exempt from current roof crush resistance requirements in crash tests in the United States, some manufacturers have voluntarily reinforced the A-pillars on both sides of the windshield and installed roll bars. to provide additional protection in rollover crashes.
In other words, late-model convertibles are no riskier than regular cars, according to the analysis. In fact, both accident rates and driver death rates were lower for convertibles than for non-convertible versions of the same cars.
According to statistics, convertibles were involved in 6% fewer police-reported crashes than their conventional counterparts. Likewise, the mortality rates of the drivers were 11% lower. In conclusion, convertibles are not more dangerous, so when buying one you have to take into account the same as with “roofs”.
In detail
- They were involved in 6% fewer accidents than their conventional counterparts.
- The death rate for convertible drivers was 11% lower than that of their peers.
- The occupants of the convertibles used their seat belts more and rode at a slower speed.
- They feature high-strength bars that sprout in less than 110 milliseconds if the vehicle rolls over.
- They reinforce the windshield environment so that it is less likely to bend under pressure in an accident.
- Extra strength in the roof arches, the windshield pillars and the rear seats.
- The headrests even have integral bars that work in conjunction with bolstered seats to provide a virtually crush-resistant area.
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