LAT: Car Safety Group (Ins. Inst. for Highway Safety) Making Big Impact

[DeepModem Mom]

Car Safety Group Is Making a Big Impact
By John O'Dell, Times Staff Writer


RUCKERSVILLE, Va. — As Volkswagen prepared to launch its redesigned 2005 Jetta sedan, the automaker asked the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety to run two of the cars through some tough crash tests.

To get the tests early, Volkswagen footed the bill — about $60,000, including the two cars sacrificed at the institute's test center here in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. VW wanted to include the crash tests in new ads it is launching this month....

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The institute is determined, many auto executives say, to embarrass the industry into improving the safety of its cars and trucks. The chief weapons of the institute, a nonprofit organization funded by insurers, are its reputation for solid scientific research and its graphic crash tests.

The tests have been a staple on "Dateline NBC" Sunday night broadcasts since 1996, and the videotapes have given millions of Americans a good idea of what can happen when a poorly designed vehicle is hit, or crashes, at even moderate speeds. Other media outlets also regularly publicize the institute's research findings, test results and recommendations....

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, is the official government rule maker. Auto companies must follow the federal agency's orders, but it can take years for the politically sensitive agency to turn a proposal into a legal requirement. Other safety advocates — such as Consumer Reports magazine and Public Citizen and Center for Auto Safety, lobbying groups founded by safety crusader Ralph Nader — also have a significant voice in the nation's automotive safety agenda....


http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-cartests6jun06,0,125356.story?coll=la-home-headlines

[CAcyclist]

1. I Love the IIHS

They do great research and they are not auto industry biased. They have a great study promoting the use of modified roundabouts (not like the old-fashioned rotaries in the East).

[wallwriter]

2. Watch out, though.

Even though the IIHS does some good things, the insurance industry is always, to me, highly suspect. The tests might be a step above government tests, but they are still pretty unrealistic.

Also, they could save more lives and money if they could just get people off their phones while behind the wheel. Arguably a more pressing issue.