Safety features fail on Toyota 120 Prado

Mike,

Firstly my hilarious comment below reads like it's mocking you, but is aimed at the blogger. Just to clear that up ;)

Now we should not forget that SRS means *supplemental* restraint system. Always wear a belt - that's your primary system. These people appear to have - it worked, apparently. Not that they're grateful.

We should also remember that SRS is designed for primary impact, not to be a firecracker of pyrotechnic bags as your car pirouettes down the road.

SRS systems vary a lot, depending on age, bags fitted and manufacturer. Comment on this specific case without better information is hard as all that is offered is a picture of the damaged car and a line drawing.

Focusing on side airbags and curtains.
Side airbags are usually fixed into the seat and/or the A, B or even C pillars. These are primarily designed to cushion lower limbs and torso in intruding side-on impacts. A T-bone crash. These measure a specific level of unanticipated force from a certain angle range. Since this appears a fairly low speed roll-over (left side impact-leading windows are intact), there would not have been nearly the level of force to trigger these.
Curtains are normally hard-wired to the side-impact circuit. One goes off, so does the other. Or not as is the case here. The main purpose of these is to reduce lateral whiplash in intrusive side-impacts.
As the blogger alludes to, some manufacturers have an additional curtain circuit which uses ESP and other information about vehicle dynamics to determine a pure rollover trigger. This vehicle doesn't have it, but I would honestly question its benefit. As it only did one 270 degree roll, the speed was comparatively low, so I question the benefit of the curtain. As I mention before, they're a big bang going off next to your lug-hole!

Again, the blogger comes off as being more miffed at the non-explosion of their "I paid for them" optional airbags, than proposing any enhanced safety they would have brought to this situation.

T

"Any other thoughts?"

Go Volvos!

2 tonne of 4WD flipped by a Volvo in a low speed collision.

Pete

That's gold!

The blogger has endured a very successful, if unorthodox, PIT manoeuvre from a Volvo.

Redbakk,

Your anecdote makes those crashes sound likely unsurvivable, not airbags a false security. They only become a false security if you expect them to do what they can't (ie - stop you from hitting trees too fast to survive) Rapid decelleration into stationary objects is particularly unpleasant as they often don't have crumple zones like cars and crash barriers, so inflict much on your other internal organs (aside from brain) for which an airbag can often do little.

Legs on SRS dashes should have sticker like for front kids seats. It's very ugly. Hands on wheel is less of an issue as the bag normally brushes your arm away unless you're yawning or hand is over the centre line of the bag. Think eating a maccas... Sunnies will often give you a couple of shiners too.

Equally bad is people who put clocks or remote controls on their steering wheel or dash. Same goes for charms etc as if they don't hot you, they often delay or distort the airbag deployment.

Well said Tim...I know at the time I was shocked and the drivers very dead.....one vehicle was almost totalled but the magna did not look too bad.....with this one I could not help but think his number was up regardless....even if he had crashed into a stack of pillows.

I agree Redbakk. I think some people expect an airbag will prevent injury altogether - it won't, but it could reduce it significantly. In the same way a seatbelt can even causes its own injuries - eg. seatbelt bruising. So why keep using them? Because a seatbelt bruise is generally better than the alternatives.

Face it: if you crash, you will most likely get injured - even with airbags. Driving on the road is not a computer game where you just tap the spacebar and drive on. Airbags and seatbelts might give you a greater chance to live on to tell your tale, but they certainly can't guarantee it.

Timglobal, there usually is a sticker - it's all that fine print that's written on the sunvisor filled with bright yellow sections of caution messages. Besides, the mere "SRS" logo on the dash should be enough of a reminder.

Personally I don't understand feet on the dash - apart from making the dashboard/windscreen dirty, it doesn't look comfortable to me. More importantly, airbag or no airbag, I can't imagine it helping your chances in a collision.

Hey Tim,

Seen stickers for kids seats, but never for legs on the dash. I guess it may be the cars I drive, or just using my noggin like the blogger hasn't. :)

T

Ah yes, sorry - I know the stickers you mean - the little graphic with a line thru it (usually on the end of the dash & visible when you open the door). You could have a sticker for feet on the dash, but how many stickers do you want to cover every possible thing someone could put on the dash? I guess car manufacturers (for the moment) can assume that people should be using the seats as they were designed to be used (ie. feet on the floor).

were they wearing seatbelts?

australian airbags are desighned to work with seatbelts

Reading it a few times, it increasingly looks like a troll blog. i.e. - someone has made it not to serve as a warning, but to antagonise Toyota and common sense.

The blogger specifically fails top mention some keys facts:
Where they live (though we assume St Petersburg).
Age of car and brief usage history.
Driver details.
Where, when and the details of the accident.
Precise number of occupants and their respective injuries.
Result of police investigation.
Why he wanted to fly to Finland to inspect a car that Toyota were happy to shift back to St Petersburg.
Why he mentions insuring himself durung transport what would clearly have been a write-off and covered by his insurance.

They are also unclear in what they actually want. Presuming they were insured and comparatively injured, then they seem to be seeking for roll-over curtains to be fitted to their crashed car, based on an accident where they clearly weren't needed.

On the flip side, if they were uninsured and are trying to mitigate their loss by claiming contributory injury negligence from Toyota, then it makes a bit more sense, but exposes their game very clearly.

" were they wearing seatbelts? "

yes.

.

Actually Timglobal, I think you summed it up best in your earlier post:

"Again, the blogger comes off as being more miffed at the non-explosion of their "I paid for them" optional airbags, than proposing any enhanced safety they would have brought to this situation."

Generally, at low speed impacts, airbags potentially do more harm than good so they are designed not to trigger in small impacts - many people have asked this same question afterwards: "I paid for this thing, why didn't it go off when I crashed?" The reason being that it was not really necessary at such a low speed impact. Some manufacturers are now working with partially triggering airbags so they can trigger, though less violently, for lower speed collisions. Still, at low speeds, they shouldn't trigger at all - imagine bumping something while parking and the airbag triggered!

Hi Donks,
how did you get that info as I would like to find all the sensors in my 98 mod 100 ser L/C ?

Cheers John.

G'day Johnny

That image is taken from the Toyota parts catalogue

but you can have a look at this site. Enter your VIN, go to electrical and select air bags ( 13 )

Toyodiy link

Donks1

Hey b

Dead drivers don't complain :-)

Hi Mark

I don't think I need to say anything this time.

Hi Robin
No need to really is there? actions speak louder.... :)

WHG - stability control will do nothing in this instance. Stability control works with the ABS system to prevent/control slides with the intention of keeping the car on the road, and therefore giving it a greater chance of staying on its wheels. All the diagrams I've seen explaining it show a car being pushed too hard into a corner when some/all the wheels start to slide. The ESP/ESC/whatever acronym applies braking force to certain wheels to correct the slide and keep the car in line. That's why people like TopGear drivers don't like it - because it ruins their fun of driving sideways round a corner!