"Making a safe car that is fun to drive”Cars that were made to be destroyed
 

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Continued from last week.

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Safety features deserving of the New Leone were possible through the process we’ve discussed so far. Once the engine is mounted and the suspension connected, Horiguchi’s team in charge of safety performs testing using large-scale equipment.

“When one imagines a safe car, the image of a car that has uncompromised robustness no matter how severe the accident comes to mind. However, this is not quite so. You must remember that when designing a robust cabin, it is just as important to ensure that the hood and trunk regions efficiently absorb impact energy and dissipate it before it reaches that cabin. Although we have both theoretical and numerical evidence of this, the best way to be absolutely sure is gain empirical evidence through actual crash testing. Out tests consist of inflicting a variety of impacts and flips upon the test vehicle. I am not sure just how many brand new cars we destroyed during these tests, but I feel a little sorry for all those cars that were only made to be destroyed.”

Although from the outside, most cars seem to have a uniform rigidity throughout the vehicle, in reality different parts are designed to either be rigid or to crumple in the case of an accident. This type of advanced body design is the result of years of experience combined with constant research and testing using the latest methods.

To be continued next week…
Extract from Cartopia Vol. 89 (Issued September 2nd 1979)




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