AUTO MANUFACTURERS VOLUNTARILY AGREE TO SAFER REDESIGNS.Fifteen auto manufacturers announced Dec. 4 they would redesign their vehicles, including sports utility vehicles, to reduce the risk of injury in collisions between smaller and larger vehicles. The manufacturers had been under pressure from Jeffrey W. Runge, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA, often pronounced "nit-suh") is an agency of the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government, part of the Department of Transportation. , to adopt voluntary rollover A graphic element in an application or on a Web page that changes its color or shape when the pointer is moved (rolled) over it. See JavaScript rollover. See also n-key rollover. standards. The standards, developed by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is a U.S. non-profit organization funded by auto insurers. It works to reduce the number of motor vehicle crashes, and the rate of injuries and amount of property damage in the crashes that still occur. , call for vehicles to be redesigned by September 2009 to have side-impact airbags and to reduce the front-end height of taller vehicles to be more compatible with the height of smaller cars in head-on collisions. By September 2008, the standards call for 50 percent of the vehicles to have side-impact air bags side-impact air bag Public health A safety device in cars that protects the head, thorax, shoulders in side-impact crashes, which cause ± 30% of MVA deaths. See Air bag, Seat belts. and to meet the front-end standard. Public Citizen President Joan Claybrook Joan Claybrook (born June 12, 1937) is an American lawyer who has served as President of Public Citizen since 1982. Previously, she was head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in the Carter administration from 1977 to 1981. , who headed NHTSA NHTSA National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (US government) in President Carter's administration, said the term "standard" is misleading but only a "voluntary protocol" the industry is not required to meet. "While we are pleased that the automakers are finally confronting the dangers of SUVs, the voluntary program is a diversionary tactic to stave off meaningful federal regulation and standards that consumers can rely on," she said. Meanwhile, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety released results last week of four front and rear bumper crash tests on nine midsize SUVs, as well as a separate test for hitting a barrier at 40 mph. On the bumper tests, the 2003 Honda Pilot The Honda Pilot is Honda's second SUV fully built and designed by Honda, released in the summer of 2002 for the 2003 model year. The Honda Pilot is built in Lincoln, Alabama. Honda's initial SUV offering for many years was the Passport, which was a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo. received the highest rating of the vehicles, but that rating was only the Institute's second-highest rating. Eight of the nine vehicles received the Institute's highest rating on the high-speed crash test. Although the 2003 Toyota 4Runner, 2003 Infiniti FX35, 2004 Chrysler Pacifica and 2004 Cadillac SRX did not do well in the bumper tests, earning the Institute's lowest rating, they did better in the high-speed tests. In the high-speed tests, the Institute awarded a rating of "good" to the Lexus RX330, Infiniti FX, Cadillac SRX, Toyota 4 Runner, Nissan Murano, Chrysler Pacifica, Honda Pilot and Mitsubishi Endeavor. |
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