The purpose of the study was to investigate the on-road crash experience, safety, and stability of utility vehicles. Selected for study among the off-road, multi-purpose passenger vehicles were the JEEP, Blazer, Bronco (pre-1978) Jimmy, Ramcharger, Trail Duster, Scout, Land Cruiser, and Thing. Data studied included more than 12,000 fatal and non-fatal utility vehicle crashes in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Michigan, New York, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas, and Washington. Also, FARS data, R. L. Polk & Company vehicle registration data, and data from Collision Performance and Injury Report (CPIR) files were examined. Selected vehicles were subjected to physical measurement of the height of the center of gravity. Applicability of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards was reviewed. Major conclusions are that: utility vehicles experience a rollover rate 5 to 11-1/2 times higher than passenger cars; the JEEP and pre-1978 Bronco overturn at least twice as often as Blazer; rollover and ejection in open-cab vehicles appear to be major fatal injury factors; death and injury rates are about twice as high in JEEPS as in Blazers. The study findings raise serious questions concerning the safety and stability of these vehicles, which are exempted from or not covered by several of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards required for passenger cars. Complete technical documentation is presented in the HSRI report number UM-HSRI-80-14--On-Road Crash Experience of Utility Vehicles from which this overview was excerpted.


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    On-Road Crash Experience of Utility Vehicles

    R. G. Snyder / T. L. McDole / W. M. Ladd et al. | NTIS | 1980



    Crash Exposure and Crashworthiness of Sport Utility Vehicles

    Malliaris, C. / Digges, K. H. / SAE | British Library Conference Proceedings | 1999


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    Crash exposure and crashworthiness of sport utility vehicles

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