Even it not staged, driving any car at speed into a solid obstacle is not going to end well.

 

Just about everything from the 70's / 80's would fare in much the same way, all being built with the same basic structural methodology. It may be a bit unfair to single out the XJ6 S3, eg. how would a large Chevy, Ford or any SUV from the same period compare?

The pioneers of real change to vehicle architecture and safety systems in the period and well before, were Volvo / Saab / Mercedes, arguably so far ahead of everyone else they were justified in claiming theirs as the safest cars on the road.

Beyond those exceptions, the era was still subscribing to the theory (or fantasy) that bigger and heavier was safer. As we all know, a collision outcome depends on many conditions including speed and angle of impact, so no two collisions can ever be truly compared except in controlled "lab" crash tests. One collision may see an XJ6 ending up as mince meat, whereas the next one it wins, and any direct comparison between the two incidents will be impossible.

 

Sorta like comparing HP and torque of similar engines, but on different dynometers!!! On diferent times and in diferent areas!!!


Gotta finish my chores and get my new Epson printer on line!!!


Then recliner time... Two football games and a baseball game.


And, this machine lot the "power options"??? WIN 10???? oh why,,,,


Carl

 

I figure I might as well put the king of crash safety in here as a comparison. This is a stock Volvo with a rollbar 'crash tested' repeatedly in comedic fashion. It doesn't have airbags either, but it seemed to do well.


I honestly think Volvo cars and Nokia phones are made of the same mythical super-material.

 

Bits and pieces, aka jiblets???


1. My new Epson printer is almost on line. USB, though, my ancient , but upgraded Dell lacks a WIFI card. No problem, they are close together. Print and copy work nicely. Much clearer and quieter than the older Epson that conked out, and it replaced. it has a FAX function. Not on, gotta look into that. if it requires a dedicated phone line, it will not be energized. If it can live with my cable modem, mebbe.


2. My most ancient cell phone is a non-flip Nokia. Not in service. Son gave me a flip Samsung. More functions than I need and it doesn't do odd things in the holster. It doesn't explode either!!!


3. My daughter gave me an LG almost smart phone. Naah, mebbe much later, too many bells and whistles I don't need. And a Sprint locked unit. Mine is ATT. Not that I love ATT, I don't but, change???


4. In 1935 Studebaker introduced it's "turret top" cars. An all steel cabin with no roof opening for wood and fabric!!! It was rolled off a cliff. Then put back on it' wheels. Doors opened and it was driven away.


5. My dad was a professional soldier. In about 1942, the CCC was disbanded and the army took over it's equipment. Dad lead a detail of drivers to retrieve a bunch of CC trucks. He rode back in a late 40's Dodge. His driver went into a dip too fast, lost it. The truck rolled.
The all steel cab saved the both of them. No seat belts there!!! But, the doors remained closed and they remained inside. Battered and a bit bruised, but nothing serious...


Truck probably junked....


6. My school chum and fellow "T" enthusiast loved to drive fast and too long... He bought a surplus USGS 40 Chevrolet. Dad gave him $'s for a new 235 engine and a paint job. Nice in a bronze. We called it baby s...t brown!! Rolled it over away at Texas A & M. No one hurt.
The of Chevy got fixed and painted.


Billy was entrusted with his dad's brand new 46 Pontiac sedanette. A prize as new cars were just becoming available. Billy rolled that one somewhere in New Mexico. Kids OK. Car not so much.


Luckily, I missed those.



7. Two twin kids latched on to a pristine circa 25 T tudor. but, try as we might, it only ran on 3!!! On a test run, Roy swerved hard to miss a car in an intersection. The "T" went on it's side. The tin on wood body did not so well. but, we were OK!!! We put it back on it's wheels and drove to my house. Off with he battered top tin and it became an open car, but still only on 3!!


Carl

 

In years past I've had a total of 6 Volvo's, all 240's. Some of them sedans, some wagons. They were somewhat under powered and certainly not stylish, BUT you could carry anything in their cavernous load space and they were just about indestructible. Never made sense to me why all cars couldn't be built with such quality, it wouldn't have been difficult to replicate. I guess other manufacturers just pandered to the greater motivators of most car buyers - style and price (the former often being debatable!)

 

Your right Tony.....I owned a couple of 244's back in the 70's, a real tank but gee I felt safe!

 

I haven't got any pictures for the story, but I can testify to the Jaguar's lack of crumple zones being a small issue. A driver blew a red light in a rural area while I was driving my 1985, I went into evasive maneuvers that evolved into an uncontrolled slide, and I slid nose first into a culvert at a considerable rate of speed. The Jag suffered a damaged radiator, condenser, the lower valance was wadded up, and the bumper and hood were pushed up in the front, but that was the extent of the car's injuries. Me, on the other hand, I came out with a concussion, several broken ribs, and a broken ankle from my foot finding it's way under the brake pedal at some point on the way. The concussion and broken ribs came from me smacking the steering wheel at speed instead of smacking an airbag. On the plus side, once I could walk again, I had her right as rain in about 2 weeks.

 

As a daily driver of an XJ6, it does not make me warm and fuzzy inside you got messed up that badly in one.

I've avoided more than one accident by a narrow margin - closest I ever had was hitting nearly 100 feet of black ice as I was entering an S-hairpin. I somehow managed to serpentine drift it through - with an automatic no less - but I made it by only a couple of inches. I can only think it was a combination of raw torque, knowing the car and sheer luck that got me past it.

I wasn't going too fast, but now I feel like a 30mph collision with a steel guardrail would have hurt a lot more than I'd think.

 

Bottom line, if I die in a car crash, hope its in my 87 Series 3 Jaguar VDP..

 

I agree, and make it a good job! That's far better than to linger in pain, or worse, a vegetative state for months or even Years! And in the end, probably easier on the family.
(';')

 

As the old joke goes....

I want to die in my sleep, like my grandfather....

Not screeming, like his passengers !

 

This is always a sobering realization, that an old car is not as safe in passive occupant safety as a new car. Just how bad is the question. There are not many modern cars that can ensure your protection in these type of collisions.( maybe none) These videos depict the worst case scenarios, very high speed impacts with a solid immovable barrier. A 100 mph. collision of this type is "somewhat" equal to a direct, head on collision between two cars going 50 mph. Thankfully, these collisions are rare occurrences on modern divided (full center divider wall) highways, where the traffic is traveling in the same direction. That's why the most hazardous highways are those two and four lane secondary roads lacking a center divider barrier. Whenever opposing traffic has the opportunity to enter your lane of travel there is always the possibility of a horrific collision. But in reality these collisions are rarely that severe. Most drivers will brake and slow considerably or brake and swerve, either causing an off set impact, or run off the road into a ditch or into a roadside obstacle. This can be bad too, but probably not as bad as a full head on. Of course secondary highways and back roads are what we prefer for our pleasure travel.

Since we can't avoid every possible hazard, I would suggest using your seatbelts, driving at the speed limit on the secondaries, and planning your vacation trips so that you don't have to cover long distances on these highways at night. Of course don't drink, text, or drive when your so tired you might actually fall asleep.

Here's a link to an interesting but somewhat depressing video. I hope the occupants didn't fare too badly.

 

Last week, within 48 hours, in this small area, occurred no fewer than THREE head on collisions, resulting in the deaths of 5 people.

I happen upon two of these incidents soon after (bodies were cleared away but not wreckage), and although all vehicles were newish (one only a year old) with full arrays of safety equipment, roll cages and airbags, ALL OF WHICH CORRECTLY DEPLOYED AS I COULD PLAINLY SEE DRIVING BY, all those people still died!

No Car, no matter how well constructed or how well padded, will protect occupants against such crashes.

If someone is so worried about the "safety" of our 30 and 40 year old Classic Jaguars, then they shouldn't be driving them!
(';')