Re: IML: Old Imperial hits Kia, comes off the worst

[dardal@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Quoting Hugh & Therese <hugtrees@xxxxxxxx>:


> whatever vintage you drive.  I know a lot of people around here have mean 
> things to say about modern cars and like to brag about how invincible our 
> Imperials are.  Man, I wish that was true.
> 
> Hugh 
> 

Nothing is invincible.  Any structure, no matter how strong it is, can be
damaged.  However, there is little doubt that the older cars were built much
better.  And Imperials (I mean the real Imperials) are among the strongest
passenger cars.  If that pickup that Hugh hit was not jacked as high and the
Imperial's bumper was given a chance to meet the other bumper head on, the
damage balance would have been reversed, and you may not have had any damage at
all.  Hugh, if you had a 90 "Imperial" when you hit that pickup, the damage
would have been far more extensive, and you may have even been hurt because the
dash may have moved backwards and hit you, airbags or not.  

The real issue here in both occasions, is lack of driver training.  This CAN be
avoided, if you learn how to operate your brakes in the wet, when more likely
to lockup (but its important in the dry too).  I strongly suggest practice when
there is no danger ahead.  As soon as you hear the tires lockup, back off the
brakes and hit it again.  This should become a reflex so that you do it so fast
that you don't even have to think.  The least trained driver may have to repeat
that many times until the car comes to a stop.  If the brakes are properly
balanced however (i.e., no wheel is grabbing more, and the proper proportioning
valve is there as opposed to back-yeard brake conversions that some Imperials
may suffer in order to avoid Budd brakes or whatever), the optimum technique is
when you hit the brakes the second time, you hit them a little less hard, so
that they are in the borderline of lockup, and keep them there unless they lock
again.  A well trained driver does not really need ABS...

As far high bumpers in Pickups are concerned, they may get some advantages in
fender benders, but overall, they (their drivers and passengers) have much more
to lose than us.  These vehicles are far more dangerous than our Imperials
because their center of gravity is so high.  That makes them very prone to roll
overs, especially after a crush, and given their cabs are so weak, they are in
serious risk of getting crushed by their own car, it happens every day with
trucks and SUV's, about 15,000 + people a year get killed like that every
year.

D^2



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